Southern NY, Dutchess county and below

[Imprfctme]

This is in response to rhubarb recipes -

boy do I have a lot of them. I mean, A LOT. but the basic crumble can't be beat. Preheat oven to 350. The gist of it is chop rhubarb into bite size pieces, mix with strawberries or peaches until you reach about 2 lbs and add sugar to taste in a big bowl. Leave to macerate unrefrig for 20-30min. I add grated ginger, orange zest, cinnamon - whatever I feel like. If you like a thickness to your crumbles add a TB of flour or corn starch or instant tapioca. Put fruit in oven safe dish, top with brown sugar/butter/walnut streusel topping and bake for 30~ mins. Obviously if you are in need of more specific recipes you can find them on Cooks.com or whathaveyou, I just usually wing it. Do try rhubarb pickles they're really good on dark greens for a salad!

 

[Cheeky Chick]

Chickens are my life...and these aren't even mine!

That what happens the second you let your guard down. Chickens know you love them.

 

[Cheeky Chick]

So, my husband adores his new chickens. He's becoming quite the chicken farmer too. Last night was my youngest sons last baseball game of the season. I am his coach, so I wasn't home until about 8 pm. I pulled into the driveway, after the game, sad to see the season come to an end...and I see the coop door open and one of the big girls just standing there, picking away at the ground. I had a freak out, thinking one of the kids left the door open, and it's getting dark, and my babies could be getting lost!

I jumped out of the car and ran over and there's my husband hanging out with 2 of the big girls, and May. He let them out around 7, for a little free ranging in the yard, watched them for an hour, and now, lookie, honey-they're going back by themselves.

After my heart got back into my chest and I made sure everyone was ok, I was grateful that he had let them out the first time. I would have been really nervous about them going back in by themselves, but this way, they had already done so, and it was relatively pain and stress free for me!

He said the only ones that didn;t want to come out were the Cochins, they're nervous Nelly's-he said they stood at the wire and clucked at the girls outside for the hour. "Be careful, don't get lost, hurry back in here, make sure you have mad money".

The new girls have made life infinitely easier for me. the littler girls follow them, like a child follows their bigger sibling. Really great since the big girls know how to do everything right. Everyone puts themselves to bed too! I adore my chickens. Ok, I adore my husband too.

 

[Cheeky Chick]

OH, forgot to mention this: My youngest sons "Dude's day" (Father's day to normal people) was yesterday, so my husband took a half day at work to go. One of the stations of activities was "Petting chicks". My husband said, they enjoyed it, but my son knows, the inn is full, and I told him NOT to ask his dad for any chickens.
The teacher is like a chick pusher. As the "dude's" and petting chickens, she's telling them just how easy and fun chicken keeping is, they can get eggs, and "Oh wouldn't you like one?'. My son and husband just said "no-we don't have room" I had told the teacher that as well, when Miss Boots visited the classroom. I hope the chicks find homes, but I also hope the parents realize they need alot of space, and time.

I feel like holding a chicken seminar, or at least making up a care sheet and a predator warning.

 

[queenchick16]

We're going to have to call you Mrs. Al with that chicken on your head

Chickens are my life...and these aren't even mine!

 

[queenchick16]

OK missy...........do you ship fresh direct??? LOL I'll swap rhubarb for some fresh peas.

I wish I could ship you some. This is the first time I tried this type. Easy-peasy an exclusive from Burpee You get 2 pea pods per node.(I bought them 'cause I loved the name) I also used their pea/bean booster.The secret is to plant them on ST. Patricks day.I do it every year I don't care how cold it is.

 

[ChickenAl]

We're going to have to call you Mrs. Al with that chicken on your head

I was going to say something like I started a trend and it is now catching on. Suzanne, it is funny looking at someone with a chicken on their head. You have that look like, "I think it pooped on my head, right?"

 

[magsrags]

Nasturtium - grows easily and hens love it

My birds go crazy for the kale I grow for them and it grows fast too.

 

[smkchick]

I was going to say something like I started a trend and it is now catching on. Suzanne, it is funny looking at someone with a chicken on their head. You have that look like, "I think it pooped on my head, right?"

At least you had to good sense to be wearing a hat!

 

[littlecritters]

Hi
My daughter is handicapped and I am renovating our 8' x 16' garden shed based on thespoiledchickens brilliant coop design with PDZ poop boards. It is very difficult for my daughter to bend down and the waist height poop boards will be perfect for her. I hope you all don't mind me asking a few questions...

We currently have 7 silkies, 2 polish and 10 LF chicks (BO, SLW,GLW, EE). Based on your experiences, do you think our silkies could be integrated into one large flock (with the other breeds) and use one long poop board and roost? I could add a ladder...or even install a lower height poop board/roost underneath the waist high unit if necessary.

Right now the silke chicks are together with the polish chicks and have no problems. They havent been introduced to the other older chicks yet. Any thoughts and suggestions will be greatly appreciated.
Tina