Washingtonians

[itsren]

The only problem with that theory is that yellow jackets don't leave their stinger when they sting. Only honey bees, or those types of bees do. Yellow jackets, hornets and wasps are nasty mean buggers that bite AND sting and keep coming after you. I really don't like them and do my best to rid our place of the nests that seem to get started every year.

That's good to know. I'm pretty sure my daughter was stung by a honey bee. There was a stinger. We had a lot of those this year, and we really didn't see many hornets or wasps (thank goodness!). In past years, it has usually been the other way around.

A couple of years ago we did a bee project over the summer where we watched and counted the bees and had to identify which type they were and submitted the numbers to a research study (The Great Sunflower Project). That year, the honey bees were still far and few between. I was happy to see so many this year.

 

[itsren]

Found a white round paper nest (bigger than a softball) in the garden shed walls when I rebuilt the run. Seems to be inactive so I'm going to try and get it out whole.

Russ

A couple of years ago we found a huge papery round nest bigger than a basketball hanging in our Dogwood tree. It was cool looking. Before my DH had a chance to remove it, a neighbor sprayed it with something and took it down.

 

[itsren]

But then again, I am also filling in holes that they have dug around the perimeter. They can't dig out, but they get pretty deep.

Mine do the same thing. Every few days I have to fill a couple of their favorite spots in. Thankfully, ours can only dig down about 1 foot before they hit the concrete that we poured beneath the run - and they have never dug that deep. Having holes in the dirt floor all over the edges of the run is pretty unsightly, so I fill them back in and smooth it out so they can start to redecorate again. LOL!

 

[itsren]

Bumble bees were still plentiful, thank goodness

We had a lot of honey bees and Bumble bees this year. But Caunnie, my EE, kept eating my Bumble bees.

 

[UrbanEnthusiast]

Meyers has a mostly good rep.
There other hatcheries that also offer small quantities. I can't remember the names right now.
Reber Ranch in Kent is starting a fall chick days starting on the 8th.
Have fun getting ready

Russ

It does seem as though Ideal Poultry has no minimum order number for chicks as long as you spend at least $25, and they have more varieties of Hamburgs than any other hatchery I've researched. I've heard mixed reviews about them, however. And they are out of all Hamburgs till spring.

 

[JennS]

A couple of years ago we found a huge papery round nest bigger than a basketball hanging in our Dogwood tree. It was cool looking. Before my DH had a chance to remove it, a neighbor sprayed it with something and took it down.

That was probably a bald faced hornet nest. They make large, round nests with a single entrance/exit hole. I saw a huge one in a tree by our park last fall. They're nasty!

Jennifer

 

[Imp]

Quote: When I first bought this house. There was a gray football shaped & sized one in the cherry trees. The winter rains destroyed it.
I'm very curious about the one in the shed. It looks so white. I'm taking a few days off work next week, so maybe I'll get around to seeing if I can get to it.

 

[itsren]

That was probably a bald faced hornet nest. They make large, round nests with a single entrance/exit hole. I saw a huge one in a tree by our park last fall. They're nasty!

Jennifer

That very well could be. I googled pictures of a bald faced hornet's nest and it looked very similar. I do remember that it only had one hole. I recall telling my husband that if he could find a way to block the hole they might not be able to get out.

He just shook his head. I can only imagine what he was thinking.

He was very glad the neighbor dealt with it while he was at work.

 

[itsren]

So I have motivation to get coop #2 done. I want to build one of these in an 8x8:

http://www.frdmontana.com/gallery.html

We saw these in person as we were driving to and from Yellowstone. Poor hubby... he can't even go on vacation with me coming up with a new project.

I bought my cute little egg basket from this company for just $8. No tax, either. Yay!

My current greenhouse is a pop-up greenhouse. I'd love to retire that to just temporary use. I think I'm going to be watching Craig's List for more free wood.

 

[JennS]

Meyers has a mostly good rep.
There other hatcheries that also offer small quantities. I can't remember the names right now.
Reber Ranch in Kent is starting a fall chick days starting on the 8th.
Have fun getting ready

Russ

Grrr, nobody seems to have the breeds I want in stock. I guess I will be going to Reber next Saturday to see what they have. Hopefully I can at least get a few of the breeds I want to start, and add more in the future. It'll just be a bigger pain.

Jennifer