***OKIES in the BYC III ***

[Kassaundra]

Harvested my first batch of comfrey today. It is good for animal food as well as a good source of nitrogen for the compost and fertilizer. This batch I am fermenting into a highly concentrated nitrogen source that I can then use in the garden as a foliar feed, I should be able to harvest once a month or month and a half.

 

[cathiesue]

Working on using eggs today before I have to get them thier own rent house (the eggs). So far coffee custard (14 cups), 3/4 gallon pickled eggs, and 1.5 dozen deviled eggs. I think I've got it below 5 dozen in the fridge now, but haven't gathered the eggs today yet.

I've been reading about the diff between lacto fermenting eggs and pickeling them, has anyone tried lacto fermenting them. There seems to be two sides one that says it's better then pickled and the other that says it can't be done at all.

Today I am going to err on the side of safety and pickle them.

Um, Kass, what's coffee custard. Do you have a recipe? Sounds delicious!

 

[bfrancis]

Now your talking my language. Those are SO great bfrancis, beautiful birds.

Thanks!..you got New World's? Or game birds?

Ksane...I got buttons in the bator now...and might have a couple of adult pairs available before long....keep reading up on them. I've got tons of chickens, several breeds..but have to admit, game birds are more my thing...quail, pheasant, chukar, lol

 

[old*cowboy]

Carl if you get on tonight, what day do I need to come get chicks. I have to make a doctors appointment next week and was going to try to make package deal.

 

[nnbreeder]

Ed still has Show quality Naked Necks but the Society he used to run has not been active for several years. Ed is a great guy and will talk chickens, especially NN's with anyone.

I need to call Ed. At our last meeting he said that a lady over in Mo. was wanting to start the TNNBS back up again. I will post info as soon as I can get Teva to do it. LOL

 

[NanaKat]

Canning isn't something to be scared of! For a long time I was scared to use a pressure canner (to many horror stories). Now the pressure canner & I are even friends.
Think it would be hard to do a demo at poops, unless someone has an outdoor portable kitchen. If you can boil water you can preserve in a water bath canner. Same goes with pressure canning. Only difference is you have to be able to read a pressure gauge & regulate you temperature. The extension office offers canning classes I believe.
They say if you are in doubt of your ability to get a good seal on a jar start by canning water. Just put water in your canning jars & pretend it is your favorite salsa. If it works then you graduate on to canning real salsa.

There are some really good canning cookbooks out there. And finding a good canning guide for the different vegetables is very helpful.

No it's not w/ milk, but that is what I thought when I first heard about it too. Think real saurkraut. Fermenting w/ a brine solution. (or kimchie) It is an oldfashioned way to preserve food and it adds good probiotics to your diet and keeps the nutritional level of the food high. I am just now learning about it, haven't tried it much yet, but I am intrigued.

We make our own saurkraut and it is much easier than people think. We will pack about 200 lbs of shredded cabbage in the old fashioned crocks with salt top off with cold water, weight it down, cover, seal and let ferment for 4 - 6 weeks depending on the outside temperatures. When ready, we pack in quart jars and waterbath to seal. Last time we put up kraut, we ended up with 63 quarts....has lasted the family to years. We are down to the last 10 jars so it's time to get ready t put up some more.

bluchhhhhh

i read probiotics as laxatives. dont need any more of that!

My MIL always saves back a pint of kraut juice in her fridge for that very purpose. Also, our little grocery in Prague actually sells canned kraut juice in the vegetable section.

 

[Kassaundra]

Um, Kass, what's coffee custard. Do you have a recipe? Sounds delicious!

It is from my twisted imagination. I seldom use written recipes, but what I do is cook down about 10 cups of milk, just a low simmer to cook off a little of the liquid, sweeten to taste w/ maple (pancake) syrup (I use about 1/4 to 1/2 cup I don't use a lot of sweetener) then add dehydrated coffee crystals to taste then put 10-12 whole eggs in a blender add as much of the hot milk as you can fit in the blender then pour all that back into the cooking pan, just to mix the two up when fully mixed pour into custard cups and cook in water bath as usual, it takes about 35-40ish minutes at 350 (oh I also top w/ a sprinkle of cinnimon) cool and enjoy w/ whipped cream.

 

[NanaKat]

Spent today doing housework and laundry.
Then spent time in the hen house putting in another shelf unit and moved the cage near the barn door into the new hen house.
Now all chickens are either in the new hen house or in pens.

We are getting another light shower. We have 3/10ths in the gauge from the rain yeterday and today.

 

[poultryand bees]

Wanted to share a photo of my new California Valley quail, 2 pair, just picked them up from the post office this morning. They flew in from New Mexico. Right now they are in a "anti-bonk" quarantine pen...apologize for quality, but you can see the jest of them...

very pretty!

Not fair to call guineas stupid. It isn't their fault when they fly over the fence into the goat pen they can't get out of the pen.

I just call guineas mentally challenged. I love how they remember they have wings and can fly back over the fence - at dusk when it is time to go to roost.

Found this on fb and thought some on here might enjoy

I like this sign. So very true.

Big dogs are easier to train than little dogs only because little dogs do things and everyone lets them get away with them cause it's perceived as being cute where a big dog is scolded it leads the little dogs to think they are the leaders of the pack and ranked above the owners so aren't subject to the same trusts that a lower ranked critter in the pack might be,
I always like sharing what an old girlfriend of mine told me about housebreaking dogs (applies to chicken proofing also) When you find a place where the dog had gone to on the floor you take a paper and roll it up nice and tight then beat yourself in the head while repeating "I forgot to watch the puppy!" "I forgot to watch the puppy!"
When you are the leader of the pack the pupsters will trust that you know best when you tell them not to eat the food till you process it for the both of you LOL

That is hysterical!

(And very true as well)

 

[artsyrobin]

i have been hatching all the eggs and fertillaty is great but i will not have anny chicks for sell right now i hope to have some juviniles at NEOCS in june . i may have a verry limited supply of hatching eggs for sell but only a verry limited supply

they are gorgeous! I just love those fluffies! hey joe, those chicks i have of yours are wonderful! i still need to get some pics- they love attention!

here is a pic of my surprise chick from licorice the cochin who is hatching some banty faverolles, i am positive she played a joke on me and snuck her chick into the pile- she is a black cochin and captain is a lemon blue...