Maine

[lazy gardener]

You can have some of my deer flies if you'd like?! They have it down to a science, to where I can literally take 2 steps out of my vehicle and they are already landing on top of my head. I've used some pretty colorful language to express how I feel about them lately. I hope they take notice of it.

I'm just a week or two away from being "chicken ready" (as if that's a thing) and I'm sure they will enjoy the grasshoppers should they be able to catch ahold of them. Not sure why, but I've got tons of them in the yard, and they seem far more docile that the ones I chased when I was a kid. They're in for a wake up call when the chooks arrive!

Cheers,
Jazor

I'll pass on the deer flies. Have you tried wearing a hat? The minute they spy my dark hair, they're all over me, but when I wear my geeky hat with a wide brim, (I call it going incognito) they don't recognize me and for the most part, I can go about my business. You can double the mileage by giving the hat a liberal dose of bug spray. I've also heard that people get success wearing a darker hat with a white sticky strip on the back or top. Supposedly the flies land on the sticky, and it's game over. No, flies don't take notice of colorful language. I think it only excites them in an improper way! My girls don't seem to be fast enough for those flying grasshoppers. (although there are none in their run) When ever I see one that doesn't move faster than I do, I stomp it. Then the girls get to fight over it. I'm sure the neighbors (if I had any close enough to see me) would consider calling the guys with the white jackets because of the oddly dressed middle aged lady chasing bugs with a butterfly net and randomly jumping up and down on the lawn. Again, I say it's a novel idea to wait to get the chickens until you're actually ready for them. Good for you Jazor. What are you getting, and when?????

 

[lazy gardener]

Frozen Japanese beetles! You could be on to something here, Ash.

Good luck with your bold fox, Coopchick.

I just found out I have an unexpected olive egger. This happens to me every time I do a mixed hatch. I hatched 3 olive eggers, thought they were all roosters, and they all went into the freezer. Then I kept getting these green pullet eggs.

It turns out one of those roosters was a blue Marans (I had no idea they had cuckoo patterned sickle feathers) and one of my blue Marans pullets is a blue Isbar x blue Marans cross. I always wondered why she was smaller than the other blue Marans. She has a splash pattern and looks like a light blue leopard.

I might have considered keeping the Blue Marans roo had I known, but I would have to get rid of our olive egger roo, and he is very polite to us, so maybe it is just as well. Meanwhile, one of the cockerels in the bachelor pen I eventually found out is a pullet. She is solid black, and I think now I will name her "Guy Noir".

Congrats on Guy Noir. Hope she wasn't too badly traumatized being stuck with all those bachelors.

 

[Jazor]

I'll pass on the deer flies. Have you tried wearing a hat? The minute they spy my dark hair, they're all over me, but when I wear my geeky hat with a wide brim, (I call it going incognito) they don't recognize me and for the most part, I can go about my business. You can double the mileage by giving the hat a liberal dose of bug spray. I've also heard that people get success wearing a darker hat with a white sticky strip on the back or top. Supposedly the flies land on the sticky, and it's game over. No, flies don't take notice of colorful language. I think it only excites them in an improper way! My girls don't seem to be fast enough for those flying grasshoppers. (although there are none in their run) When ever I see one that doesn't move faster than I do, I stomp it. Then the girls get to fight over it. I'm sure the neighbors (if I had any close enough to see me) would consider calling the guys with the white jackets because of the oddly dressed middle aged lady chasing bugs with a butterfly net and randomly jumping up and down on the lawn. Again, I say it's a novel idea to wait to get the chickens until you're actually ready for them. Good for you Jazor. What are you getting, and when?????

Haven't official nailed down the 'what' or the 'when' as of yet; however, I'm planning to go with half a dozen or so to begin with--and seeing how they fare in my area. I'm fortunate enough not to have any (visible) neighbors near enough to see me goings crazy in my yard. Good thing.

I'm going to get the birds soon as the coop's ready--and I will end up getting whichever breeds are readily available. I've noticed someone else say they like to get all one breed/color bird, then the next year another breed/color/etc. for tracking purposes. To appease my OCD I'm hoping to do this, so I can easily differentiate who is who, and how old they are.

Cheers,
Jazor

 

[ashandvine]

Frozen Japanese beetles! You could be on to something here, Ash.

It turns out one of those roosters was a blue Marans (I had no idea they had cuckoo patterned sickle feathers) and one of my blue Marans pullets is a blue Isbar x blue Marans cross. I always wondered why she was smaller than the other blue Marans. She has a splash pattern and looks like a light blue leopard.

I might have considered keeping the Blue Marans roo had I known, but I would have to get rid of our olive egger roo, and he is very polite to us, so maybe it is just as well. Meanwhile, one of the cockerels in the bachelor pen I eventually found out is a pullet. She is solid black, and I think now I will name her "Guy Noir".

Pictures here would be nice Bucka. A blue leopard sounds lovely! The beetles only go into torpor at this point. I figure after a few months in there they might be dead though.

 

[superchemicalgirl]

I'm looking for some unpasteurized milk around the Augusta area for some cheese I want to make. Emery's Market used to sell it but I went in today and they had stopped a few weeks ago. Anyone else know where I could get some? Hopefully cow not goat.

Thanks.

 

[MEMama3]

We have several farms in our area that sell it, but being in Fryeburg, that's probably too far for you. Do you think it ships well? Lol

 

[lazy gardener]

Haven't official nailed down the 'what' or the 'when' as of yet; however, I'm planning to go with half a dozen or so to begin with--and seeing how they fare in my area. I'm fortunate enough not to have any (visible) neighbors near enough to see me goings crazy in my yard. Good thing.

I'm going to get the birds soon as the coop's ready--and I will end up getting whichever breeds are readily available. I've noticed someone else say they like to get all one breed/color bird, then the next year another breed/color/etc. for tracking purposes. To appease my OCD I'm hoping to do this, so I can easily differentiate who is who, and how old they are.

Cheers,
Jazor

The only neighbor I have who might call the guys with the white jackets is crazier than I am.

 

[superchemicalgirl]

We have several farms in our area that sell it, but being in Fryeburg, that's probably too far for you. Do you think it ships well? Lol

Thanks, but that's a bit far. I do love your covered bridge, though.

 

[hoppy]

you might call the sheepscot general store, they have all that organic everything. I know they had raw milk but not sure what kind and that was a few months back. (they are in whitefield)

I'm looking for some unpasteurized milk around the Augusta area for some cheese I want to make. Emery's Market used to sell it but I went in today and they had stopped a few weeks ago. Anyone else know where I could get some? Hopefully cow not goat.

Thanks.

 

[dowgirl71]

We are heading up to camp this weekend. It's our family reunion as well as my birthday. I'm excited, but super nervous about leaving the chickens for the first time. Do you think I should ask my neighbor to let them in and out of the coop or just leave them in? She knows very little about chickens and my run is chicken proof, but not predator proof (wooden lattice hoop). Also, how much do you want to bet that my silkie lays her first egg while I'm gone. She's over 6 months and no egg yet.

MEMama3, I was in the same situation you are. We just got back from camping for 2 nights and I was feeling the same way you are. I did actually read your post, last night while we were away, but couldn't reply to it. My neighbor let my chickens out and back in a night, but that was it. I did leave them plenty of food and water and it's a good thing, because they were out of water, when we got back. They were fine and it was so cute to see them "high tail it" around from the back of their coop, when I got home and called out to them. I just love "my girls!"