Homesteaders

[rancher hicks]

Peace to all. "May we think of freedom not as the right to do as we please, but the opportunity to do what is right". - Peter Marshall.

 

[CLSranch]

 

[Beekissed]

Unseasonably warm weather here lately, today it was up to 70* and breezy, sunny and blue skies. Been pottering around doing small chores that needed done in the fall but was too rushed to get to them.

Finally got a load of mulch hay a few weeks back, so was able to use some to form a hay box in the spare pen for the LGD, Ben...he doesn't like to stay in a dog house at night but I like him to have warm digs for when the temps go subzero, so last year and this one I formed him a hay bunker in the spare pen where he can exit quickly and still see and scent everything that is going on at night. He seems to like that and he and Jake will hang out there during the day sometimes, especially if it's rainy and cold. Also stored the winter squash and pumpkins in the top of his hay house among the hay bales, to be brought out and fed to the flock later on this winter.

A few weeks back some tree trimmers gave us a load of chips, which are a huge blessing, even if they are not chipped real well....LOTS of unchipped branches in this load, some as long as 5 ft. and some as wide as 2 in. Anyhoo....they are coming in handy for muddy paths around the coop and spare pen/dog lounge and shed. Instant solution for muddy pathways, giving good traction and filling in all the muddy paw and claw prints. Back to clean eggs in a jiffy!

Put some mulched leaves and wood chips on all the flower beds today and put some super composted leaves/wood chips around the apple saplings today too. I have rings of cattle panel and mesh around each sapling to hold various mulch materials...planted taters in those rings last year and they grew very well. Hope to do the same next season.

Here's a pic of one of the saplings surrounded by potato vines this past season...the tree itself had been attacked and stripped by Jap beetles but managed to survive its first year in the ground.




My uncle called and said he had another old oak down that he cut up and will let us have for firewood, so we just need to bring the splitter and work it up into firewood and bring it home. That last tree he had down was MASSIVE and yielded a lot of nice, old oak for the wood shed. This tree we'll place on the porch for days when it's too snowy to get a wood cart up and down the ramp onto the porch.

Finally got a chance to work up one of those big pie pumpkins from the garden and will work on it tomorrow to puree it and see what I will do with it....going to experiment around with combining some of it with my jalapenos to make a sandwich spread, will also can up some for use in breads and pies later.

Egg counts are creeping up, getting 6 a day now out of 12 hens. Put some fresh hay in the third nest box, just in case more hens want to start laying. Lots of breeding going on and I think the flock thinks spring is here...that rooster is working over time!

The peach trees are all showing fat buds and so is the lilac bush...this warm weather is sure fooling all the trees and animals. Could have sworn I heard a robin singing a territory song this morning.

Need to make a list of winter chores...I have a ton of them to finish before spring. This warm weather helps with all of that!

 

[Raech]

This is number 1 of 3 new hutches I am building. This one needs the doors hinges added and the roof on it and it will be done. Number two is just a base so far, and number 3 isn't started yet. This hutch will be for either Otter(buck) or Toby(doe) or for the babies.

 

[Beekissed]

Very nice build!!! I think you may find yourself wanting to replace that smaller hardware wire on the bottom due to the poops not wanting to drop easily out of those size of squares. It's even hard to insert watering nipples in through hardware cloth of that size, though that heated watering bottle nipple seems like it would be small enough to insert through those squares.

Will you place a stabilizing "foot" at the base of the legs so the hutch can't be pushed over by dogs or will this hutch be up against a building, thus preventing this?

 

[Raech]

They will actually be up against a fence so I don't think I will need the foot, but if I find them moving it too much I might add to it. this is my first start to finish build so I am not sure what I am doing. I don't use heater water bottles, as our winters are pretty mellow. I know that they bushes they will be up against will help prevent the wind from bothering them. Hubby is not sure about doing meat rabbits, but he is supportive of the hutches so far.

 

[lazy gardener]

I have been considering meat rabbits since getting my flock about 4 years ago. The hold back on getting rabbits is that I'm not sure how much I'd like rabbit meat. Have not tasted it in over 30 years. Also not sure how well I'd do processing a rabbit. Just started doing my own culling/processing of chickens about 2 years ago, though I've been involved in the processing process for about 35 years or better, just never "owned" the start to finish of it all by myself till recently. Hubby bought me a book on bee keeping!

 

[Beekissed]

Bees, bunnies and bawks is where it's at for the small acreage homesteader. All three have the largest yield of food for the comparative space in which they are kept and also less maintenance and money spent after the initial investment.

 

[Raech]

I have never had rabbit, but if it tastes like chicken, then it should be ok. I plan on "hiding" it in things like chicken tacos, stews and things like that. And if I don't like it I know of a lady who does and will be ok with taking my extra bunnies. I will just end up breeding for her and keeping the poop.

 

[Raech]

Bees, bunnies and bawks is where it's at for the small acreage homesteader. All three have the largest yield of food for the comparative space in which they are kept and also less maintenance and money spent after the initial investment.

So far my investement for the hutches is under $100 in supplies: the pallets were free, wire was $30 and roofing was $15 a sheet(got 2) a box of screws for $10, and I bought 4 2x3's. Most of the plywood looking stuff we had on hand. Going to side the boxes with more pallet boards that are going to be painted that mossy green.I was hopeing for barn red, but it took the oopsie paint for $9 verses the $20 can of red.