Homesteaders

[jerrey]

push the potato all the way to the leg my roo seem to like the heat from the potato there is no pain he feels better with out them they can walk better with out them let me know how easy this was

 

[jerrey]

It depends of the roo I suppose. I have his son with some girls and some of them have some skin showing. I can't say how the fertility is though. I'm getting ready to set eggs. As many as I can.

This pic was from a couple of years ago in the spring I think. These are my four original hens. They all seemed fine with the cold. Laid very well through the winter.

It's cold now and out of six hens I get 3 - 4 eggs a day.

that is pretty good

 

[rancher hicks]

I watched a couple on Youtube. Looked easy, but then a lot of stuff looks easy.

I've been reading the thread. learning lots of useful stuff from everyone. I don't think dh and I could be called "homesteaders", but we do what we can. I don't think we will ever go off the grid due to our age. We're not old, but not young enough to go that route. We have 3 acres and a stock pond. We have chickens, compost pile and raised garden beds. I plan on putting in a small orchard this fall along with building some more raised beds. We have also installed a wood heater to help out with the electricity.

Rarely does anyone go 100% off the grid. Too rarely does anyone live 100% off the land. Many find out they need a job outside to pay the taxes. Most homesteading books are misleading as one or both have jobs. Many as "writers" of homesteading books.

One woman went back to school and became a doctor.

So you can become a semi homesteader. If we just grew and saved what we need for the year we'd do okay.

Besides how would we store that pig or cow we butchered. We tend to forget about that. Folks had to preserved food without refrigeration.

We are not young either.

Don't forget to post pics and your ideas. We can modify if we need to for our specific situation.

 

[rancher hicks]

that is pretty good

That is just the Marans. They lay a nice extra large egg. Nice shells. I'm hoping to hatch more and increase that flock. Also my Delawares.

No heat in my coops and they lay pretty good.

EE's are good layers but less than a 2 oz egg most of the time. An olive egger lays 2 oz or better. She is a EE/ Maran cross.

With the price of eggs I could use three times as many eggs.

 

[Talithahorse]

I watched a couple on Youtube. Looked easy, but then a lot of stuff looks easy.

I've been reading the thread. learning lots of useful stuff from everyone. I don't think dh and I could be called "homesteaders", but we do what we can. I don't think we will ever go off the grid due to our age. We're not old, but not young enough to go that route. We have 3 acres and a stock pond. We have chickens, compost pile and raised garden beds. I plan on putting in a small orchard this fall along with building some more raised beds. We have also installed a wood heater to help out with the electricity.

That is one thing that we learned when we started out was to plant the orchard and other perennials. They often take 3-5 years to really produce but then after that the investment in time is minimal compared to say a typical garden. We started the first year with adding 3 blueberry bushes, two pear trees and an apple tree. There was an orchard on our property but it had not been cared for so needed work. I have yet to get a peach crop but then I don't use chemical pesticide and peaches are notoriously hard to do organically. In hindsight I should have put in the nut trees (mine are so young) early on as well. We have been adding a bit each year. I now have about 10 blueberries, muscadine vines, 2 fig trees, 2 hazelnut, pecan trees (that were on the property already and well established) and the apple orchard. My plums are the most fickle. I get a crop about every 3-5 years but when I do they make the best jelly.

 

[Loc20chick]

@rancher hicks it's good info not just running on and on. I have a few other breeds, from past spring hatching I now have 1 or maybe 2 EE, 1 araucana, my own barnyard mix and 4 RIR/buff orp mix and some I bought this 4 as chicks. None of them are laying yet, the eggs I'm getting are from last years red & black sex links. I'll hopefully add the C.rocks and brahmas next year.

@henless that's quite the homesteading you are doing there!! I started with one apple tree last year and added one more this spring and a peach tree, My 2 blue berry bushes I planted last year did not sprout back this year, The grapes did ok thought did not harvest any, my fault I did not take care of them. Reading more on the apple and grapes care and hopefully get better at it.
On your stocked pond, how do you maintain it? I have one that came stocked with the property but the fountain aerator broke down and algae is taking over!!

 

[jerrey]

I have 5 EE 6 months old one is laying what color are the shell's

 

[henless]

Rarely does anyone go 100% off the grid. Too rarely does anyone live 100% off the land. Many find out they need a job outside to pay the taxes. Most homesteading books are misleading as one or both have jobs. Many as "writers" of homesteading books.

One woman went back to school and became a doctor.

So you can become a semi homesteader. If we just grew and saved what we need for the year we'd do okay.

Besides how would we store that pig or cow we butchered. We tend to forget about that. Folks had to preserved food without refrigeration.

We are not young either.

Don't forget to post pics and your ideas. We can modify if we need to for our specific situation.

That's exactly what we are! lol

I wish we had started when we were younger. We would have been a lot further along. We'll do what we can and try to improve every year.

That is one thing that we learned when we started out was to plant the orchard and other perennials. They often take 3-5 years to really produce but then after that the investment in time is minimal compared to say a typical garden. We started the first year with adding 3 blueberry bushes, two pear trees and an apple tree. There was an orchard on our property but it had not been cared for so needed work. I have yet to get a peach crop but then I don't use chemical pesticide and peaches are notoriously hard to do organically. In hindsight I should have put in the nut trees (mine are so young) early on as well. We have been adding a bit each year. I now have about 10 blueberries, muscadine vines, 2 fig trees, 2 hazelnut, pecan trees (that were on the property already and well established) and the apple orchard. My plums are the most fickle. I get a crop about every 3-5 years but when I do they make the best jelly.

I want to put in some figs, apples & plums. We have a lot of wild plum trees in our area that make very good jelly. I made some fig jelly & preserves last year and want to put in at least 3 of them.We both like peaches, but I don't know if we'll put any of them in. I've heard they are hard to grow also, so doubt I'll try them.

@rancher hicks it's good info not just running on and on. I have a few other breeds, from past spring hatching I now have 1 or maybe 2 EE, 1 araucana, my own barnyard mix and 4 RIR/buff orp mix and some I bought this 4 as chicks. None of them are laying yet, the eggs I'm getting are from last years red & black sex links. I'll hopefully add the C.rocks and brahmas next year.

@henless that's quite the homesteading you are doing there!! I started with one apple tree last year and added one more this spring and a peach tree, My 2 blue berry bushes I planted last year did not sprout back this year, The grapes did ok thought did not harvest any, my fault I did not take care of them. Reading more on the apple and grapes care and hopefully get better at it.
On your stocked pond, how do you maintain it? I have one that came stocked with the property but the fountain aerator broke down and algae is taking over!!

Our's is spring fed. We had it built several years ago when we sold some clay. It usually stays full, but occasionally it will get a little low when we've gone through a drought season like we have this summer. If your's isn't spring fed, you will definitely need to get your aerator fixed.

I have 5 EE 6 months old one is laying what color are the shell's

I have 3 EEs. I get green, blue and pink from them. They can also lay brown, white & even olive if you have the olive eggers. It just depends on what egg color gene they get. I've got some baby Crested Legbars that should lay a real pretty blue egg. I can't wait till they start laying next year.

 

[jerrey]

I am like you I can't wait see what color they lay

 

[rancher hicks]

I am like you I can't wait see what color they lay

My EE's are crosses of Ameraucauna and EE's and Maran and Auruacana . I just keep them for the colored eggs. I'm not fussy. Now if I get a legbar hen or two I'll add them to the mix.