Michigan Thread - all are welcome!

[Frankiegirl]

@aart ...I meant John Deere envy! I’ve been wanting a tractor but have no grass yet.
That will become apparent once all this snow melts! I’ve been investigating tractors

 

[aart]

Oh my gosh you have the snow thrower attachment!!! I’ve had people try to convince me to get a blade attachment vs the blower. I love the idea during the winter. What a time saver.

A blade would not work well here, with the fence and retaining wall defining the driveway.
Thrower is the way to go.
Still need to plan where those piles go, and clear out farther than you think you need.

what other attachments to you have? Anything that can pull cans up the driveway?

Just a mower....and a dump cart.
There are others that fit this model, nothing to haul cans, that might be tricky since tractor is small/short.

I’ve been investigating tractors

This is an 'antique', they only made the 200 series from about '79-'87.
Accessories are hard to find, especially mower decks, but some new parts are still available. You'd definitely need to be somewhat of a mechanic to own one.

 

[Sally PB]

Looks like the chickens all made it through the -6 degree night. Whew. I felt pretty confident, but as a first time chicken mom in her first winter... well, you know.

 

[Frankiegirl]

Looks like the chickens all made it through the -6 degree night. Whew. I felt pretty confident, but as a first time chicken mom in her first winter... well, you know.

@Sally PB...We are in the same boat! I was hoping I didn’t want go out to the coop this morning and have frozen chickens

TSC on alpine is getting their chicks by February 28th!! I’d like to get a few more to add to my flock. This is where I may need some help from all of you.

I may be able to start traveling for work in July. My thought is, if I get my new birds at the end of February, they could be integrated with my existing ladies by the time I go back on the road. It’s about 16 weeks. There is a baby brooder in the coop for when they are feathered out so they can at least be introduced to the big girls through the HC.

thoughts?

 

[aart]

There is a baby brooder in the coop for when they are feathered out so they can at least be introduced to the big girls through the HC.

Got heat out there for the chicks?

Could have them integrated by 6 weeks.
Here's a few idea of how to do that:
https://www.backyardchickens.com/articles/integrating-new-birds-at-4-weeks-old.72603/

 

[Sally PB]

Well, if TSC on Alpine is going to have them the end of this month, the TSC in Lowell can't be too far behind. Or in Ionia. Both of them are close enough to me, and actually, so is the one on Alpine. So... just need someone to have Blue Australorps...

This would be my first time with integration, so if you're in that boat too, @Mfranks, I understand your nervousness. Reading the posts/articles gives me some confidence, but actually doing it would let me know it can be done.

Here's another article about brooding that I found informative.
https://www.backyardchickens.com/ar...and-start-raising-your-chicks-outdoors.71995/

We didn't go to NC to visit hubby's dad last year because of Covid. His dad and stepmom are in the earlier groups to get vaccines, due to their ages. Hubby and I are waaaaay down the list. I told him I'm not comfortable driving through many states before we get the shots. But his dad will be 85 in June, and I understand hubby's desire to go see him.

I just hope I'm not in "integration phase" at the time he decides we should go to NC. And me saying, you go, I'll stay, or me saying we can't go because of the chickens, would not go over well.

I'm going to float the idea that they come up here, and we pay for their plane fare. His stepmom needs a break and a chance to "be" company.

 

[Folly's place]

About TSC chicks; find out what hatchery your local stores are using, and look at that hatchery's breed list. You will then have information that's really helpful. Usually it's possible to have an individual order of chicks included in one of the store shipments, and maybe get yours vaccinated too.
Visiting relatives, really challenging still. We really hope that more people are vaccinated sooner rather than later!
Mary

 

[Folly's place]

Early chicks are not fun, IMO, because integrating them is just more difficult in the snow and ice, and they will need extra heat longer than chicks hatched later. It's doable, just harder.
Mary

 

[RaZ]

A blade would not work well here, with the fence and retaining wall defining the driveway.
Thrower is the way to go.
Still need to plan where those piles go, and clear out farther than you think you need.

Just a mower....and a dump cart.
There are others that fit this model, nothing to haul cans, that might be tricky since tractor is small/short.

This is an 'antique', they only made the 200 series from about '79-'87.
Accessories are hard to find, especially mower decks, but some new parts are still available. You'd definitely need to be somewhat of a mechanic to own one.

I kind of have the opposite situation. I do have a walk behind snow thrower but my driveways are gravel and my Toro 2-stage throws the small rocks like bullets.

I got a blade for my UTV midway through my first winter here and made several mistakes learning how to properly plow a dirt driveway. I did it the easy way by pushing the snow downhill. Come spring thaw, I find that I had pushed most of the gravel down with the snow.

By spring, I had my JD tractor and attachments (bucket, rake, & blade). Again there was a learning curve to get the hang of blade positioning to keep from removing the gravel. The house driveway is U-shaped and about 10 feet higher than the road and angled towards the centre. It's easy to gouge the upslope edge of the blade side.

Now I plow in the up hill direction and pile the snow at the top and then use the dirt & gravel to make repairs after spring thaw. Not an ideal situation but I haven't figured out a better way to clear the snow. I tried just letting the snow stay as is but the slope is pitched enough that in really deep snow (or ice) that I can't get up to the house even when in 4 wheel drive. Heck, the snow was deep enough over the hard pack yesterday that the tractor would slew sideways while blading off the 10 inches that fell.

Despite the "problems" I have a tonne of fun playing on the tractor.

 

[RaZ]

Now here is a tractor that I could really use.