Helpful hints for building coops

[Crooked Chicken]

Yeah, this was a vacation cabin so the people never planted seed or laid sod so just weeds. I plan to change that to give husband something to keep him busy. I tried to plant grass behind the house earlier this year but got sick of watering it and lack of rain was no help so it died off. Once we have a rainy stretch coming i will try planting more or maybe laying sod.

I hear you on trying to grow grass. I had some basement anchors put in last winter and there are still some grassless areas around the house. Actually, I shouldn't really call it grass -- it's mostly a mix of grass, weeds, clover, etc.

Pokeberries?

Thank you for that Tigger! I have been wondering what these darn nuisance plants are that popped up everywhere this past year. I made the mistake of letting one in the backyard get real big. Everytime I went past it on the mower I got splattered with purple juice. Most of the birds don't seem to eat any of it, so I have been trying to get rid of them. I guess there are some uses for them, but I want them gone.
https://www.gardeningknowhow.com/edible/vegetables/pokeweed/growing-pokeberry-plants.htm

Don't you hate those persistent weeds? I am battling poison ivy and virginia creeper. One person here covers the stuff in cardboard and adds dirt and mulch on top. That way the weeds die from lack of sun.

Luckily I haven't found any poison ivy here, but Virginia Creeper is prevalent. I've managed to kill some off and the rest I try to pull up or spray if out away from where the chickens go.

Anyone know what this is?

They get really tall and have little red berries. The chickens love them. I have them growing all along the back of my property and a few on the in-between fences here and there. Pretty sure they aren't elderberry as the berries are not in clusters. The plant is more like a small tree/shrub.

I did plant a few elderberry for the wildlife, but those don't seem to be doing much yet.

 

[Crooked Chicken]

laying sod is expensive, and you really have to water the heck out of it.

wait for a rainy spell and do the grass seed.
IMHO.

supposed to be rainy here today, more on than off.

I laid in bed this morning and did some mental adjusting to the wall to square it up with angle braces in each corner.

I decided on 3 foot braces. worked it out to make sure , with the calculator, and it comes out to 25.5 inches on the two short sides of a 45 degree angle.

a brace in each corner should stabilize the ceiling.

I have a grove of about 80 black walnut trees.
they drop dry branches constantly.
almost as messy as a willow tree.
I can mow over anything 3/4 inches dia. or smaller. but I would like to have a Dr brush cutter.. there is a weed that grows up in the pine trees. It resembles elderberry, but the stems are soft and the roots run all over and new sprouts are constantly shooting up.
last year I pulled all of those up by the roots,
but there is just enough root hairs left to start them all over again.

.....jiminwisc......

.....jiminwisc.....

Can't wait to see that coop when you get finished with it.

I had a mulching kit added to my mower so that I could better chop up all the small branches and stuff, but I found that it's do near as good a job when the grass/weeds started to get tall, and real bad if it was damp. I had to have it taken off. Too bad it couldn't have a switch to go from regular mowing to mulching. lol

 

[jvls1942]

I worked between rain drops.
got 2 beams and the ridge beam all marked out for rafter spacing.

got the front beam up and screwed in place.

rain is sneaking up on me again.

after 4 PM the rain is supposed to move out.
then we have a few dry cool days ahead.

we had an Amish house near here blow up and burn to the ground. not a mention of it on the news..

a nearby farmer fell off of his tractor and got crushed. they haven't released the name yet.

a 4 yr old girl was walking along a street in her PJ's. two women stopped and called the police. it took them over a half hour to respond.

......jiminwisc.....

 

[Crooked Chicken]

I found out what it is, Bush Honeysuckle. Now that I see that, yes, the one just behind the house did have honeysuckle flowers, but I forgot about that.

https://nature.mdc.mo.gov/discover-nature/field-guide/bush-honeysuckles

They are calling it a noxious invasive weed. Lol, it is far better than the vining type that chokes off trees, etc. I have some of that too, but it only grows on the fence between my property and the highway south of the house. It was growing on another fence, but it's been killed off and ripped out when I had chainlink put around the house for my dogs.

 

[CapricornFarm]

Once more burning brush and old dead trees so the area is cleared for building the new goat shed! I kept watering the area since it is so dry, and i am happy with the way it went.
Going to the Restore tomorrow to try and find windows for the shed. And supposedly they have lots of stain and paint for cheap. Love to get great deals!

 

[User395221]

I had a wood chipper when I first bought this place, it's an insane amount of work and time and noise to feed all that brush into it for chips. Then you've got to store it under cover, maintain the engine, etc. Unless you've got a large self feeding one, not worth it IMO. I sold it and now burn brush.

I have an electric mulcher. It is good for eating leaves and small cuttings and it's nice to be able to keep the mulch on-site. A proper chipper that does big branches is a whole other ballgame.

 

[Crooked Chicken]

Once more burning brush and old dead trees so the area is cleared for building the new goat shed! I kept watering the area since it is so dry, and i am happy with the way it went.
Going to the Restore tomorrow to try and find windows for the shed. And supposedly they have lots of stain and paint for cheap. Love to get great deals!

I had to take my truck to the dealer in a nearby town yesterday (recall) and I planned to go to the Habitat Re-Store there. I ended up poking around Hobby Lobby and forgot all about it.

I have an electric mulcher. It is good for eating leaves and small cuttings and it's nice to be able to keep the mulch on-site. A proper chipper that does big branches is a whole other ballgame.

The one I got says it does up to 3" branches. Wish it would do bigger stuff, but I'm sure that would be way out of my price range.

 

[User395221]

Wish it would do bigger stuff, but I'm sure that would be way out of my price range.

Not just purchase price, you have to keep them well-maintained, blades sharp. They can be very dangerous if they aren't looked after.

 

[The Phantom]

Apoxie paint is awesome! I can wash and scrub all the poop off. Looks cool too.

 

[Arnettalynn67]

Thanks for sharing. Yes, I have built my last run that I can't stand up in. I bought a couple of dog runs for my latest co-op build.

Dog runs are great..just put chicken wire around bottom edge of kennel for security..