Southern NY, Dutchess county and below

[queenchick16]

Morning all,
Christina , I knew you would fall in love with those NNs.
Been working like a farmer around here. Harvested 2 colander a of peas, a cabbage, and several yellow squash. The silkie is no longer broodie.
The tristar strawberries are going crazy.
Has anyone ever been to the Kutztown festival? It's going on now til July 6. I wish I could go this year. Christina, check it out, maybe take my favorite little beauty.

 

[queenchick16]

Forgot to mention. Recently bought DE at Agway for 4pounds for $14 plus tax. Just got my shipment yesterday from this company off Amazon . Food grade DE for 10 pounds for $20.00, no tax and free shipping. Since we don't have a tractor supply around here that's the way to go.

 

[JerseyHen]

Morning all,
Christina , I knew you would fall in love with those NNs.
Been working like a farmer around here. Harvested 2 colander a of peas, a cabbage, and several yellow squash. The silkie is no longer broodie.
The tristar strawberries are going crazy.
Has anyone ever been to the Kutztown festival? It's going on now til July 6. I wish I could go this year. Christina, check it out, maybe take my favorite little beauty.

That looks like a great festival. I would love it, so would the kid, but 4th of July is my grandmother's birthday and it is tradition to be at her house, so my brother comes up from Manhatten for the weekend and I doubt he would be into the trip.

Those NN are ridiculous as babies. I now have 5, one is still in the incubator drying out.

 

[queenchick16]

Christina, maybe we can go next year. Meet there and stay over night.there is also an antique/farmers market that is very famous. I think it is much closer to you, although I've done the drive many times. Adamstown is in my opinion the antique capital of the USA.
Cute, cute babies.
Happy and safe 4th everyone.

 

[lalany]

These darn chickens.... Just found 8 eggs under a Hosta!

 

[Carolyn252]

Two unique events for me this week: Broody Breaking and Never Again Wasting the Dregs of Chicken Feed.

1- First time any of my hens went broody. It was the little black Frizzled Cochin that I got from ChickenFairyGodmother Roberta a few months ago. Found her in the nest box yesterday with a very warm ceramic egg tucked under her chest. I lifted her out and set her on the ground. She clucked a long story to me and then ran right back into the coop, up the ladder and into the nest box where I watched her use her tiny beak to push that same egg under her chest and settle down on it. So, I took a plastic grocery bag and filled it completely with every single bit of wood shavings that sits three inches deep in that nest box. Took the broody out and set her on the ground again. Quick lined the now-empty wood floor of the nest box with a layer of waterproof fabric AND deliberately left the nest box door wide open. No privacy; bright daylight, considerable wind blowing through, and no longer a cozy intimate spot. She ran right back up the ladder, layed an egg on the fabric in that wide open space and promptly ran back down and joined the rest of the flock within the hour. The next morning, I dumped the old shavings right back in the nest box and all is normal again. I'm guessing that must be some record-breaking broody-breaking!!

2- You know all that fine powder and broken pellets at the bottom of the feed bag? I usually end up tossing it all out. This time however, I simply poured it all into one of their big food bowls, added enough water to make a very wet creamy mush, and it was all eaten up by the end of the day!!! Yay, no more wasted feed.

That is all; keep on truckin' on down the road.
-Carolyn252
Mother of Chickens

 

[irischick]

Hi everyone. Been off fir a while lots happening. Mom had open heart surgery to replace mitral valve. All went well and she's doing great. I was in oyster bay till a few weeks ago taking care of that. During that time my darling James handled the fort here.he is amazing. Two hens were setting and hatched 4 chicks. Adorable. Dad is a Bantam Mille Fleure. However, one hen, Henna, decided she didn't want them around and killed three. James buried them. Im sad he had to deal with that alone.We have one left with a hen, Gretle, that didn't even hatch her and is still broody sitting on three more. Very upset over it but little chickie is doing great. We have them separated so everyone is in coop but hen and chick can go in run during day and the others in yard. We now have an incubator because one hen who went broody wasn't very good at it and all eggs (4) didn't make it. We gave 7 eggs on day 15. Yay. School is finished for the summer. Yay. I'm just finishing catching up on my gardens. Veggies doing great. Lots of lettuces and radishes. Peas were amazing. String beans just starting to come. Rhubarb is still coming. Just picked a batch to make some straw-rhub preserves, rhub-mango chutney and if there is any left after that a straw-rhub pie. Off to meet horse vet and maybe get a ride in. Have a great day everyone.

 

[JerseyHen]

These darn chickens.... Just found 8 eggs under a Hosta!

It is like an egg hunt every day, isn't it? Now the question is, do you mess up the hosta nest in the hopes she goes back to the boxes, but risk her finding an even better spot? do you lock her in the coop for a few days to break her of the habit? or do you just make the hosta a regular part of your egg collecting routine?

 

[lalany]

I've decided to just put the kids to work....they have an egg hunt everyday!

 

[JerseyHen]

That is the way to go! Win win for everyone.