Surviving Minnesota!

[BantyChooks]

I stole this off another page posted by a Brit...

I laughed so hard I had to share it here:

View attachment 1064378

I nearly peed myself laughing at that.

 

[jerryse]

Ok I have been out in the garden . I made a observation on raspberries . BC and Ralphie may be interested . Raspberries are known to be self pollinating . However I have read that some wild ones are not . Seems they have been selected to self pollinate . So I brought a start of the wild red home last fall . 2 pieces of same plant .Well it bloomed but not with anything I had . So no berries set .So it seems it needs a pollinator .

 

[duluthralphie]

Ok I have been out in the garden . I made a observation on raspberries . BC and Ralphie may be interested . Raspberries are known to be self pollinating . However I have read that some wild ones are not . Seems they have been selected to self pollinate . So I brought a start of the wild red home last fall . 2 pieces of same plant .Well it bloomed but not with anything I had . So no berries set .So it seems it needs a pollinator .

That is interesting everything I have read says they are self pollinating. I have not found anything on wild berries.

I have been looking for that because I am contemplating "taming" some "wild" ones. I would like to plant them in front, of my trees between me and the road. It would really help block some traffic noise, look good and give the chickens a place to hide.

 

[bobbi-j]

We have black raspberries that grow wild on our farm. They came from a patch my mother in law planted over 40 years ago. I don't know if they need pollinators or not. I just know they are all over the place! (Not complaining - they're delicious!)

 

[jerryse]

We have black raspberries that grow wild on our farm. They came from a patch my mother in law planted over 40 years ago. I don't know if they need pollinators or not. I just know they are all over the place! (Not complaining - they're delicious!)

It is not a problem in wild patches as there are usually many individual plants and not just 1 clone . So all named selections are self pollinating . I do know the first attempt at a everbearing black raspberry was rejected because it was not self pollinating . Niwot or sweet repeat as Gurney's calls it was eventually patented and introduced . One that needs a pollinator is of interest to amateur plant breeders as any fruit set is likely pollinated by whatever bramble is blooming nearby . Making hybrids or crosses easier . That is why I am interested .

 

[duluthralphie]

Bramble berry can pollinate raspberries?

 

[shawluvsbirds]

Now I get the avatar change lol.

 

[jerryse]

Bramble berry can pollinate raspberries?

Brambles include raspberries and blackberries . All the Rubus species actually .

 

[Cluckies]

I cant keep up...

Good Morning! I'm still alive and just haven't been on here in a while. This new format hates my phone. So the only times I do log on here now is when I'm on the desktop in the house. Weather has been so nice down here that I haven't been in much...

Here's the low down on what's been happening out at our farm. About 6 weeks ago I was scheduled to have my yearly NPIP inspection. Had all my pens freshly cleaned and ready to go. The day before the vet was to come out I had a mink come in and wipe out every single one of my adult white silkies and just about all the blacks. This included over 40 top birds... UGhhh losing an overall open show winner pissed me off. So I moved the remaining birds back to the far pens that not even a sparrow can get in. Cement floors, plywood 2' up, welded wire to ceiling, and chicken wire over the top of welded wire. Well 3 days later the dang critter chewed up through the floor boards where the old gutters are covered with 2x6"'s. Went out to find every single one of my Bohemian pouters and some polish dead. I brought all the remaining silkies and polish into my house in town. Cocks are holed up in my basement and hens in the garage. The faverolles and standard cochins were left to run since I simply didn't have enough space for those too. I've got 3 guys running traps out there and so far have managed to get 1 female raccoon that was obviously nursing and 1 mink so far. I think my overall loss of birds ranges somewhere between 80-100. I just know there was so many that 1 week alone that we had to take the tractor to bury all of them.

As of today...about 6 weeks later, there are still fresh holes being chewed up into the empty pens and yesterday I found a couple puddles of blood, but no carcasses. I'm down to about 5 of the standard cochins and maybe 1 adult pair and maybe 6-7 pairs of the juvenile faverolles, and maybe 5-6 easter eggers out there. My silkies and polish are still holed up in house in XL dog crates. It makes ALOT more work with all those individual pens. Plus I have all my chicks that were in there growing like weeds too. The state vet called and wanted to schedule my inspection now and said I have til first week of July to get it done.... I told her to scrap that piece of paper for the next year at least. I'm not moving the rest of these out there til that other mink is gone for sure. Its a good reason to cut down on a few breeds where I now only have a few birds. I don't mind doing PT testing just to go to a show. I've got too much of a jumbled mess right now to comply with any of their NPIP stuff though.

Oh my gosh, this is terrible

Hard part about the mink is that they want blood and the kill is fun for them. So far the traps haven't been much luck because they want live birds. Same goes for the poisons... We have several types of traps: the regular live traps in several sizes, the box traps, pvc traps with claw type traps in them, and more conibear traps down under in the gutters. We got that 1 after the cattle were put back out on the pasture that wraps around the back north and east sides of the farm. It must have been enough to scare it back in the barn. We even delayed getting more of the hay loaded in the back barn til last week to eliminate hiding places. As Bogtown said, you see holes in the hay and the mice/rat population disappears. They can get through holes as big as a 50 cent piece. Frustrating! I had enough young silkies to repopulate. I was just one of very few breeders on the Bohemians and I was only one that I know of with yellows. Ughhh

Oh my gosh, so terrible!

Mine is a whiner.

Can a person trade up?

Plucked some oyster mushrooms off a maple stump today. Right outside my office. 2 1/2 more hours until butter and garlic salt transform it magically and it's in my belly..,

Mine does not whine, or complain. he cut his thumb down the center (top to bottom), about a half inch in, the width of a table saw blade, I didn't even know for 3 days. he just bandaged it, never said a word... cripes! (I'm the whiner... hahaha)

ILL, great job on your wins!

I agree . His waste would be everywhere . It would be bad for those who come up to his waste .

You make one spelling error... (and regret it the rest of your life!)

 

[Momof3plustwins]

That is interesting everything I have read says they are self pollinating. I have not found anything on wild berries.

I have been looking for that because I am contemplating "taming" some "wild" ones. I would like to plant them in front, of my trees between me and the road. It would really help block some traffic noise, look good and give the chickens a place to hide.

Don't. Do that! I have to wage war on my raspberries plants every year as the try to grow farther into my garden. I will GIVE you probably close to 50-75 if not a hundred sprouts! They are currently over 2 feet tall though and war will be waged when I return from WI on Sunday. So what ever year you decide to make a wall of brambles, which makes me think of Sleepying Beauty, which there is only one of in your home and her name does not start with M, all you need to do is plan and ask me and I will dig them all up for you and you can have them! I throw them out after I pass on what people want to come and get.