***OKIES in the BYC III ***

[NanaKat]

NanaKat~ I got seed potato's yesterday along with onion sets. I know that I have to cut them & let them dry, how early can I plant them?

If you cut them too soon, they are too dry by March 17th which is when I plant. I usually wait until March 1 to start cutting mine. I cut chunks to there are at least two eyes and then turn them upside down in open egg cartons to dry.

Sooner - I dont think anybody else is coming to visit with us this morning. We must be too early for them.

I've been out in the barn...had frozen water in some cups so I added another light between two cages. Also spent time combing hay and putting out new hay for tonight. Filled all the feeders and water jugs and set out some rubber tubs of water also. Put toe sacks on the sides of the pens set in the barn to help hold more heat.
I still want to drop one of the heat lamps in the hen house by 1.5 feet over the roost. And I'm going to unplug the other one from the timer and lower it. Hope to keep the big water containers from freezing.
I still need to bring in extra med chick feed from the barn for the chicks in the hot tub room...don't want to have to walk on ice if they run low.

I had a question. When I start seeds the plants always get a fungus and die...how do you prevent that?

The soil should be sterilized. You can either buy it or sterilize it in aluminum trays in the oven at 250 degrees for two hours. Let it cool before using. Also you may be watering the seedlings too much and there isn't enough air circulation. I use Benomyl spray on my seedling. It helps with "damping off" the condition where the seedlings get fungus at the soil line and simply fall over. You can get it at Walmart or most hardware stores. I mix it into a little pump sprayer like a hairspray bottle.

Anyone know if/when we're getting snow? I was going to put a new group of babies in barn brooder today, but maybe it's too risky.

 

[upcdayz]

The other day when I was at the Dollar General store I saw a kit for Wonder Egg plants. Since I'd never seen one before, I thought it would be fun to try it. This is not the pot that came with the kit - just one I liked better that I had here. The seed packet is labeled Solanum melongena var. Golden Eggs. From what I've read about it, they're supposed to be an ornamental variety of eggplant. I started the seeds, now it's time to wait and see what happens.
Has anyone grown these before?

 

[fairwindminishetland]

I am open to adult, chicks or eggs...Hoping for some nice MF's and then anything else that happened to be a pet that I could love on...ha----I got a trio from Amy in SC, MF roo and nice type mottled hens carrying MF genes....but that's all I've got....so I am open to what ever you might have...think you could get me some eggs as well? Hoping for either great color or type on the MF...Tell me what all you've got or may have, let's see what we can work out.

 

[artsyrobin]

they are say snow starting about midnite, but the high tuesday is 50- so won't be here long

nothing is cuter than 2 serama chicks giving each other stinkeye!

 

[fairwindminishetland]

I had to log off of BYC and then relog, and then on this thread, had to update my subscription today to get it to start coming to me again!

 

[Ksane]

Okracefan, I haven't been getting post notices for weeks now. I'm here all the time and there were pages and pages to catch up on this morning! I can't imagine trying to keep up if you miss a few days. I'm going to try logging off and back on.
Poco, that's a pretty cat. I've bathed probably thousands of cats in my life but not for years. It's always fun when they climb your arm and park on top of your head. I agree with Bill, it certainly looks like she's plotting pay-back.
The cold hasn't started yet??? We have more coming??? But heck-I'm in the OKC area, if it hits tonight and ends tomorrow it won't be so bad. I grew up in Iowa. It would hit in Sept and not end until the following May. I didn't even know how bad I hated it until I moved to OK when I was 22.
Kass, the Dachshund picture is hilarious lol!!

 

[fairwindminishetland]

Thank you so much for the information on the soil and how to prevent the fungal problem. It has really frustrated me...after waiting and getting plants up for planting, to then have them die, is not fun! I knew there had to be a way! THanks again.

 

[artsyrobin]

can someone pop over and help this guy with his hen- i really don't know enough to help - and no one else has jumped on to give help

https://www.backyardchickens.com/t/...op-how-to-get-olive-oil-down-her#post_8394669

 

[NanaKat]

Just a little bit ago we had a guy pull in the drive saying there was something wrong with one of our breed bulls. Went running out to check on him and the 2000 pound bull Buddy was laying on his side with all four legs sticking out. He had stopped trying to get up. Buddy was laying on his side with his feet pointed up the slope and was so big, he couldn't get his head up or his feet under him to get up. And he had clumps of love grass keeping him from rolling over on his own.

We actually had to put a rope wrapped on his back two legs and attempt to roll him. Got him wiggling and he was then able to get his head up his feet pointed down the slope...got up and looked at us like "Hi, where's my cubes?" He is out there slinging dirt at the other bull...picture of health.
Guess if he hadn't been spotted by our neighbor, Buddy could have suffocated. From the looks of the ground around him, he had been there for a bit. Roger and Larry had come in not an hour ago from putting out hay and feeding.

 

[Ksane]

Nana, bulls can get down like that and die because they can't get up? That'd be scary to deal with. Thank God your neighbor saw him!