Surviving Minnesota!

[MinnesotaNice]

Awesome! What breed are they? I've never incubated duck eggs before, the ducks are doing that themselves. I hope they do okay! My two broody hens don't mind getting off the nest for water a few times a day too!

Oh, I'm sorry to put you through such trouble!

Thank you for taking some!

2 week old chicks can fly too! At least flighty breeds like OEGBs can. I think they will be happy to have more space!

Muscovy ducks, but I don't know if any will hatch. I didn't like how the eggs looked when I put them in lockdown. I have 8 other eggs that are about 10 days in and all are fertile and looking good so far. My one duck is sitting on 18 eggs the last I counted and another on 6. Times like this I wish I had a nice broody Cochin or Silkie.

What would happen if a broody was sitting on eggs a week apart in the incubation process? My guess would be she'd get up and take care of her first hatch discarding the others. But I really have no idea.

And my neighbor does have homing pigeons. I figured that much out. Here's my not so great pictures from the road....Lol...

No free rangers....I wonder about the insect pollinators. Not many bees around. Our apple trees (4 of them) do well with pollination. Can I assist in pollination of blueberries? (Break off a twig and swirl the flowers around into each other. I overheard this at a greenhouse seminar for apples?

Do you just have one blueberry bush?

I wondered about that because I noticed that too that there were definitely two shades in my Barred Rocks...I actually thought it would have been opposite though....but my little escapee from this morning who I think is a Roo, is more of a dull grey as apposed to the others who seem a darker black...I will try and count again to see if the colors coincide with the ones I think are roo's. Thanks! Any tricks for the other breeds? Wyandottes, or Australorps? My Cochins I think are easy...the hens feathered fast with a little tail right away and now only one is developing coloring on the comb, we will see if I am right

I think this was already mentioned, but with Barred Rocks the roosters will definitely be lighter due to the double barring gene they carry. That should be clearly noticeable by 8 weeks (I'm not sure how old yours are). I have two GLWs that are 7 weeks old and I have no idea what they are! You'll have to fill me in if you learn any Wyandotte tricks. The only trick I have so far is a crow.

 

[Violetsfeathers]

Alot depends on the roos and how much room you have. I've had more than 2 roos a lot of times. They usually work out a pecking order and all's fine but once in a while you will get a rooster that will get picked on constantly, then you have to do something. It's the same as the low hen on the pecking order most of the time she will just stay by herself but every once in a while the other hens will still pick on her until you have to intervene or you'll have a dead hen. I would try it and see what happens.

Thanks, I think I will

 

[MNChickMom]

Quote: I have 4 bushes. 2 different kinds.

 

[Siggie]

@bantiesrule is there any magical number of roo's you can keep? I have 22 chicks and at this time I am estimating I have 7 definite roo's so far? (and you know there will be more...it's inevitable) Can that large of a number get along? I just don't know how I am supposed to choose who I cull

 

[MinnesotaNice]

I'm enjoying this talk about blueberries. There was a rack of them at lowes late last week when I was there and was tempted to get a few but decided to think on it. Seems like future me would thank current me if I got them and started them now bs later

I picked up some from there this year. I got some Raspberry bushes, too. I was surprised they had more than a few to choose from. I'm currently preparing for the future onslaught of Raspberries taking over my yard. We've had our Blueberry bushes for awhile and they've stayed mostly contained. Mostly.

I have 4 bushes. 2 different kinds.

Hmmmm. My chickens get to them before I ever get blueberries. The birds do, too. I wish they liked creeping charlie.

 

[lvie]

Good Afternoon. Ralphie should be able to tell us how many roos are manageable and how to maintain them. Ralphie, where are you? My CLB, Reggie, is beginning to try to crow. I have never experienced that before and it is definitely the difference between boys and men.

I have one RIR that is the bottom of the pecking order. Did I tell you this already? That I put her back in with her original flock and they were on her like flies ......
I let her back out and put her back with the young flock. She is beginning to roost with them and hopefully the adjustment / acceptance period may be close to over. Then her flock mate runs with the big girls during the day but wants to roost with the bottom of the barrel hen. But the second RIR does not belong with the young flock. Its sad because she does not quite know what to do with herself. I picked her up and put her inside the coop last night after comforting her.

Gotta run.

 

[Siggie]

Muscovy ducks, but I don't know if any will hatch. I didn't like how the eggs looked when I put them in lockdown. I have 8 other eggs that are about 10 days in and all are fertile and looking good so far. My one duck is sitting on 18 eggs the last I counted and another on 6. Times like this I wish I had a nice broody Cochin or Silkie.

What would happen if a broody was sitting on eggs a week apart in the incubation process? My guess would be she'd get up and take care of her first hatch discarding the others. But I really have no idea.

And my neighbor does have homing pigeons. I figured that much out. Here's my not so great pictures from the road....Lol...







Do you just have one blueberry bush?



I think this was already mentioned, but with Barred Rocks the roosters will definitely be lighter due to the double barring gene they carry. That should be clearly noticeable by 8 weeks (I'm not sure how old yours are). I have two GLWs that are 7 weeks old and I have no idea what they are! You'll have to fill me in if you learn any Wyandotte tricks. The only trick I have so far is a crow.

Yep can't tell either on my GLW! They all are looking pretty much the same. When they were little, I had 2 of them get their wing and tail feathers sooner than the other 2 so I was guessing they were hens so we will see soon if I was right! My chicks are 4 weeks old. They are pretty much feathered out except for their necks....they are starting to look like little rag-a-muffins like they just got out of bed and haven't brushed their hair yet

 

[duluthralphie]

Does anyone here grow winter onions (also called walking onions)

My old neighbor in town had a well established plot and we enjoyed when she shared them but her kids took them all when she passed and I haven't seen any since.

I'm curious where to get them from or if any onion would do and it is more of a method than a type?

I have an old established patch of winter onions. I love them but am real stingy on eating them. I want it to get bigger....BUT others here give my onions away to relatives, that I would just as soon not give anything too......

They are more of a green onion than a bulb type onion. I have a 16x16 onion patch. it has winter onions and Walla Walla's in it.

 

[KlopKlop]

I have an old established patch of winter onions. I love them but am real stingy on eating them. I want it to get bigger....BUT others here give my onions away to relatives, that I would just as soon not give anything too......

They are more of a green onion than a bulb type onion. I have a 16x16 onion patch. it has winter onions and Walla Walla's in it.

I have never gotten walla walla onions or other full size onions to grow bigger than a golf ball. The onion seeds I started this year flopped and I don't think I will bother planting any and just buy from the Amish market by harmony again.
I have found seeds for several types of 'bunching onions' including 'hardy varieties' on Johnny Seeds. Is that what I should try?

 

[duluthralphie]

Alot depends on the roos and how much room you have. I've had more than 2 roos a lot of times. They usually work out a pecking order and all's fine but once in a while you will get a rooster that will get picked on constantly, then you have to do something. It's the same as the low hen on the pecking order most of the time she will just stay by herself but every once in a while the other hens will still pick on her until you have to intervene or you'll have a dead hen. I would try it and see what happens.

I had to move one also, she wanted to set out in the wood pile. I left her set for almost two weeks but want to get her into a shed before the chicks start pipping and cheeping...calling all the coons and skunks to dinner. I have her in a crate in the garage now and I think she has settled on the eggs, have my fingers crossed she stays that way.

I have several roos. When I free range them they get along Ok,..RIght now all the roosters are in breeding pens, Except for Sven and King George. Sven and the King have territory marked out. When they are both free ranging the driveway is the dividing line between them. The wild bird feeder is no man's land. Most squabbles occur there.

I actually think the bird feeder should belong to Sven. The King has a bad habit of infringing on the bird feeder looking for one of Sven's women. King will do the wing drop dance but the hens will normally run form the King. They seem to know who their rooster is. Sven never crosses the line and the King makes sure his girls stay way back from the line.

I do not care if the King Breeds one of Svens women. I would get upset if Sven breed a British gal. However, this may only work because I have lots of land for them to roam. The Toms are also in the rooster pecking order. JJ is top, King is Second. JJ and King do knock each other off their gals now and then, but it has not affected the fertility yet.

I normally only allow the king out in the late afternoon though.