What did you do in the garden today?

[Mutchi]

Like others have already mentioned, you probably already have worms in your soil and maybe it's just a matter of getting them to one place. You might want to build a worm tower out of a PVC pipe with holes, stuck into the ground, and filled with kitchen scraps for the worms to eat. If done right, it should attract worms into the tower. Anyway, YouTube video link follows....

Ok. I was asking cus I want to be able to feed worms to my chickens for treats.

 

[Sooner Magnolia]

Ok. I was asking cus I want to be able to feed worms to my chickens for treats.

I haven't done the research on it myself, but have heard multiple times that chickens can get parasitic worms by eating earthworms that have their eggs inside. This is probably not a big risk, but they don't seem to really love earthworms that much, and earthworms are so good for the soil. I would start raising mealworms instead if I were you. They LOVE them.

 

[Mutchi]

I haven't done the research on it myself, but have heard multiple times that chickens can get parasitic worms by eating earthworms that have their eggs inside. This is probably not a big risk, but they don't seem to really love earthworms that much, and earthworms are so good for the soil. I would start raising mealworms instead if I were you. They LOVE them.

How do I raise mealworms?

 

[Sooner Magnolia]

How do I raise mealworms?

There are 3900 threads on here about it (just checked). Here is one Thread 'Raising Your Own Mealworms' https://www.backyardchickens.com/threads/raising-your-own-mealworms.1431674/

 

[TJAnonymous]

How do I raise mealworms?

Check out this video on YouTube for a self sorting mealworm farm.

 

[TJAnonymous]

Question for everyone... My asparagus falls over. Every year, they get nice and tall and frondy, then fall over. Now my dill, which is planted nearby, is falling over. Does anyone have this problem? Do I have something in the soil, or am I missing something? Yeah, probably time for a soil test.

My asparagus fronds fall over too once they get over 8 inches tall. I assumed this was normal?

 

[TJAnonymous]

I had a SUPER CLOSE call this evening with a grey fox. I can't believe what just unfolded....

I keep my Silkies and game hens in a separate coop & run from the big chickens. Because Silkies don't see well, I rarely let them out to free range. In fact, last night was the first time ever that I have allowed them out and they were supervised the entire time. I've been more worried about stray cats and hawks than anything else.

Well tonight I decided to let them out again. I had been riding the 4 wheeler around so I was laying down on top of the 4 wheeler about 15 ft from where the Silkies and game hen chicks (their mama is penned up for everyone's protection) were happily pecking away at the grass and looking for bugs. It wasn't too late.... Maybe 7 or 7:30? Still a little while before dusk.

Suddenly I heard one of my Silkie roos give a startled squawk so I sat up on the 4 wheeler. And not 5 ft from me was a grey fox running straight at my Silkies. I yelled out HEY and it started the fox who NARROWLY missed one of my buff colored Silkie hens. My yell alerted her just in time to leap out of the way. I'm certain he missed my mere centimeters.

The fox kept running right past the chicks who were in a panic. He ran another 20 or 30 ft, stopped and turned to look back. The minute I hopped off the 4 wheeler, he took off across my front pasture and crossed the road into the woods on the other side.

I'm just baffled by the entire event. I'm guessing maybe he was so focused on the Silkies that he never saw me on the 4 wheeler until he was right next to me? No clue but I'm REALLY GLAD that I didn't leave the Silkies unattended because I was mulling it over thinking surely they would be fine....

 

[oldhenmisschick]

Today I harvested green beans, squash, okra, cucumbers, bell peppers, pimento peppers, eggplants, basil leaves, some dill flowers, and rosemary cuttings. It's getting too hot for tomatoes, I miss them. Lots of rain and humidity, I may also lose my melon vines to rot

 

[gtaus]

I just started watching Homestead Rescue on the Discovery channel and have become a fan of the series. In each episode, there is a section on homestead gardening. So far, I have seen some interesting greenhouse builds out of found material and a hydroponics setup in one of the greenhouses. They also built some raised bed gardens in one episode. The "gardener" of the crew does a decent job explaining what is being built and what benefits it brings to the homestead.

I don't live on an off grid homestead, but I find the episodes interesting in how they reuse, repurpose, and upcycle just about everything they can find on the homestead that most people might just consider trash. I find the series interesting and just thought I'd mention it here for the gardening section of each episode. Might give you some ideas of what is possible on little to no money.

 

[chickengr]

Boy, that looks like the meat will just fall off the bones. I bought a very nice pressure cooker for Dear Wife about 5 years ago. It was normally priced over $100, but I got it on a Black Friday sale for half price. I don't know anything about pressure cookers, but there was a lady there at the same time I was and she was loading up 3 of those pressure cookers to give to her daughters. I asked about the quality of that cooker and she told me that it was a very good one, which is why she was buying them for her daughters.

Long story short, Dear Wife is from the Philippines, knows her way around a frying pan and wok, but not so much ever dealt with a pressure cooker. After 5 years, the pressure cooker is still sitting in the original box, unopened, never used. If anyone in our family shows any interest in cooking, I'll just give it to them. Too nice not to be used, too valuable to be given away to someone who does not want it.

I wish your wife could cook something for me. I wouldn't mind to give a pressure cooker away if somebody cooked for me delicious meals