Getting the flock out of here - a diary of a crazy chicken man

[ozexpat]

copra meal I see u have 0 but what is it? thank you much

Copra meal is a by-product of coconut oil production from the dried white flesh of the coconut (not the dark husk or hull). It is high in protein but lacks decent lysene quantities. After the typhoon, copra has really jumped with the loss of 15% of the country's production so i dont use it except for goats as a supplement to grazing

 

[Sally Sunshine]

Quote: Interesting, I was just googling it, thanks.

With wifey's beautiful trees, do you use ALL parts of the fruits and the tree when taken down? If so what all are they used for? Do you sell them off or keep some for your own useage?

 

[piglett]

Homeschooling has been such a boon for our kids, but I won't lie...it's difficult. Honestly, though...we have so much more flexibility in all aspects of our lives because we're not tied to the school system. My kids don't get up until after 9am, and in the summer, our days don't usually start until later than that.

Last summer, the public school kids went back to school in mid to late August...we were having so much fun we decided to delay our school year until mid-September (though we were doing summer school, which was a light schedule...mostly review). We should be done this school year by mid-May and that late, only because I took an extended break during the holidays.

We do history during the cold months and switch to science for the warmer months. I can swap out curriculum when needed (and have done so,,,often). My oldest two kiddos are all over the place in terms of "grade level" but are working on what they need to be working on, not what they HAVE to work on because the classroom grade dictates it.

Socially...my kiddos will (hopefully) never have to bear social scars...never have to worry about fitting in with a certain crowd or clique. They are socially skilled with kids of all ages because they're not exposed to the idea that...6 yr olds hang out with 6 yr olds, 7 yr olds hang out with 7 yr olds. I also have much more say over who and what influences them and, when they encounter difficult social situations (which they do), I'm right there to help them navigate that. They have plenty of opportunities to interact with other kids, including classroom-schooled kiddos...via baseball, church, horseback (for my daughter), playgrounds, etc.

Homeschooling isn't for everybody...but it is way more overwhelming at first than it ends up being in the long run (our first year was very difficult, but this past year has been a breeze now that we know what to expect).

For us...it was one of the best decisions we've made for our kiddos....so far anyways! We re-evaluate every year!

i'll just add that my wife wants to send our youngins once they arrive to the Philippines for a couple school years

so they know some about both "worlds"

OZ your wife is very bright, have you too ever thought about home schooling your 2 ?

i think most of the schools in the PI are good

i can't say the same about schools here in the states



the jubilee eggs arrived!!!

i'll set them tonight

one guy said wait 6 days before you put shipped eggs on the turner

last time i waited just 3 days

what does everyone here think????



thanks
piggy

 

[piglett]

back to the farm



notice how burnt off the grass gets in the dry season. no rain for three weeks and the sand turns to desert

Bernie is up that tree harvesting green coconuts for the Mrs Oz and the kids to eat/drink back in the city

OZ you clearly need more freeranging birds, i don't even see 1 in the picture

 

[ozexpat]

Interesting, I was just googling it, thanks.

With wifey's beautiful trees, do you use ALL parts of the fruits and the tree when taken down? If so what all are they used for? Do you sell them off or keep some for your own useage?

Coconut Farming

We have around 180 fruiting trees that yield around 45 coconuts each per year producing 1500 kg of dried copra. At current prices we get a whopping $1800 for the copra at the copra mill.

Bernie harvests the coconuts on our time and dries them on his. His split is 40% - around $700 after transport costs. This is a great boost to his income.

We have planted 220 replacement trees that will begin to fruit in 5 years - at 10 years of age. Trees produce for up to 70 years but generally are diminishing at 60 years. Half of our trees are at 60 years, the remainder 50 years.

When we cull a tree, the whole tree is used

The lumber is used for construction. The very hard bark planks for coop walls, the branches are used in bernie and analous wood stove or sold by bernie for firewood to locals. The leaf stem make brooms. The heart of the palm becomes a wonderful fresh lumpia ubod.

Every part is used

 

[ozexpat]

OZ you clearly need more freeranging birds, i don't even see 1 in the picture

the falling coconuts got them lol


as soon as the fence is finished, we shall free many birds.

I actually have 50% of my Visaya hens in a coop makinging RIR crosses.

 

[Sally Sunshine]

Quote: HA HA Good one!

Quote: Lumpiang Ubod is one of the popular varieties of the Filipino fresh eggrolls, made with heart of the palm called ubod as its main filling.

I swear oz you are forever sending me on google search! ha ha ha!!

 

[ocap]

the jubilee eggs arrived!!!

i'll set them tonight

one guy said wait 6 days before you put shipped eggs on the turner

last time i waited just 3 days

what does everyone here think????



thanks
piggy

"hatching 101" says 36-48 hours

 

[Sally Sunshine]

piglet, I only settle overnight and sometimes I settle half a day.

I treat eggs all differently depending on how air cells present after such travels.

After reading so much about how important turning is in the first 10 days I changed my tune on that issue, plus the fact the the eggs are getting old as they sit there.

I throw out any rolling air cell (like a level rolling one side to the other)

A loose air cell is set upright and gently turned in the egg carton x3 at begin of set

All solid air cells get handled as usual and set as soon as the eggs are at room temps


Thats my story and I am sticking to it!

 

[Sally Sunshine]

Quote:

Can I defend myself and the article?? I need an attorney