Tis Time for a March 2020 Hatch-a-long!

[gmjarvi]

I’m SO mad I have been checking the humidity and it has stayed at the lowest 50. Before I went to bed it was like 55. I wake up it’s 14!!!! I hate this incubator, are my chicks all dead and shrink wrapped inside? Ugh it’s day 20 today.
Should I candle or anything?
I was thinking of throwing a sponge in I have a paper towel but it’s pretty small

Don't panic! Mine did this until they started hatching, and then the moisture from the eggs/chicks helped keep it steady while everyone was hatching. I added small amounts of water to paper towels in a cap from a spice jar (I will be trying a sponge next time) to keep the humidity level until I saw an external pip. I had 8 eggs in there and 6 hatched, which is better than my Brinsea did for my first hatch! They cannot be shrink wrapped if they are not externally pipped. Try a damp sponge in the bottom and keep an eye on it. ❤ I hope you get some babies soon!

 

[wolfwalker]

With planting garlic, is it true you have to plant them prior to freezing? Fall to beginning of winter? Asking because my son and I are planting everything by seed in the raised beds and would like to do a half a bed of garlic. But will they thrive? Planted kale, cabbage, butter lettuce, beets, green beans, snap peas this last weekend. still have two huge beds to fill

One trick I've used when I need to plant garlic in the spring, is to refrigerate the cloves for 2 weeks before hand. that gives them the chill they like to wake up.

 

[Mosey2003]

Set 47 last night for batch 2. Recandled batch 1, the one questionable one must have had a big meat spot in it and that's what I was seeing, no actual development so pulled it. Will need to set up incubators 3 and 4 shortly...

 

[Floydie]

Yay. I ordered 12 and got 6 extra eggs. I can fit 8 into my incubator may just fit 9.. the rest are going in the fridge and I'll try a fridge hatch.

 

[BuckeyeFoodie]

With planting garlic, is it true you have to plant them prior to freezing? Fall to beginning of winter? Asking because my son and I are planting everything by seed in the raised beds and would like to do a half a bed of garlic. But will they thrive? Planted kale, cabbage, butter lettuce, beets, green beans, snap peas this last weekend. still have two huge beds to fill

I have planted garlic in very early spring and it does fine.

 

[BuckeyeFoodie]

Morning update! the last silkie egg was dead in shell, making me very sad as it turns out it was the only blue out of a sea of partridge, and I need BBS hens. So out of my 24 original tester eggs, 10 fertile, six hatched.

Two Ayam Cemani hatched overnight, with a third externally pipped. I don't think the other four eggs are active. Pictures probably tonight once everything has had a chance to dry.

 

[CluckNDoodle]

Morning update! the last silkie egg was dead in shell, making me very sad as it turns out it was the only blue out of a sea of partridge, and I need BBS hens. So out of my 24 original tester eggs, six hatched.

Two Ayam Cemani hatched overnight, with a third externally pipped. I don't think the other four eggs are active. Pictures probably tonight once everything has had a chance to dry.

Aww, I'm sorry the little Silkie didn't hatch.

Congrats on the peeps that hatched successfully! Remind me where the "tester" eggs were from? Were you testing your own flock?

 

[BuckeyeFoodie]

Aww, I'm sorry the little Silkie didn't hatch.

Congrats on the peeps that hatched successfully! Remind me where the "tester" eggs were from? Were you testing your own flock?

Testers from a local breeder friend of mine - she is a bit late getting her incubators going for personal reasons, and offered me tester eggs from her pens for cheap. Partridge is not my favorite color, but luckily hers are super nice, so I think I'll like them just fine!

 

[CluckNDoodle]

Testers from a local breeder friend of mine - she is a bit late getting her incubators going for personal reasons, and offered me tester eggs from her pens for cheap. Partridge is not my favorite color, but luckily hers are super nice, so I think I'll like them just fine!

Oh fun! I didn't like partridge coloring at first either but it's growing on me. I'm actually kind of hoping the chick I'm raising right now ends up with a really light partridge? I don't have a clue how this will grow out. She's pretty though!

 

[FortCluck]

Can you get a picture? That sounds really weird...

Yeah I will right now. That was my thought too