YO GEORGIANS! :)

[ChristyinGA]

So I am laying in bed, about to sign off for the night. Meanwhile, my sister and youngest niece are both practically camped out in my niece's room beside the big 100G aquarium holding baby chicks and ducks. They haven't moved in 30 minutes...

We call this "Poultry Peeking" LOL

I'm keeping my fingers crossed for a good hatch for those eggs! I usually candle four times: Day 5 to check for development, Day 10 to mark the size of the air cell, and again on Day 14 and 18 (lockdown) to mark the air cell. That way I can gauge the humidity needs of the eggs, and adjust accordingly. I usually don't get much movement by day 18 either.

I am so very ready to start getting chicks and their mess out of my garage, so I totally understand -and I'll hope for a finished coop for you too.

My first hatch, I was very hands on. Weighing, candling and marking air cells at days 1, 7 and 14, and candling and marking air cells on day 18. I decided this batch to just leave them alone for the most part. I've candled one or two here and there, but for the most part, have tried to ignore them. The air cells are appropriately sized and now we just hope I can keep my humidity high enough through hatch. I had a dream last night that I had two external peeps over night - at 25% humidity. YIKES. Not a good dream!

 

[GAFarmGirl87]

@denn1948 Thank you so much for the pictures!

That's perfect for what I need.

I have to keep a limit on how many eggs I hatch each year, because I don't have room for more than about 35-40 grown chickens at one time, which means I'll only be hatching around 20-30 eggs each spring. That brooder is the perfect size!

Now I've got about 9 months to plan, and get this thing built in time for next hatching season

 

[GAFarmGirl87]

Yeah, their fine. Eating like little gluttons. Which reminds me, my Brahmas seem to eat as long as they have food in front of them. Will a chicken over eat to the point of detriment?

Mine do too! And they are SO BIG now. I've got to get them outside ASAP. They need more space. Plus they stink bad now.

 

[GAFarmGirl87]

Hello my name is Brittany I live in southwest Ga was wondering if any of you would know where to get goose hatching eggs If so please reply I have had no luck and would love to buy locally thanks

Welcome!

pure Cornish are a breed, that can breed naturally.
Cornish rocks are hybrids that rarely live past 3 months because of extreme weight gain, which can cause broken legs and heart attacks. If you had some make it to being age, though careful feeding, you would have to help them breed. The rooster would be to heavy, and if he tried, he could hurt the hen. If you have feed the and water close together, they will just sit there and eat. They eat allot and poop allot, and will be to heavy to roost.

These are my bantam Cornish

The girl up front is lovely!

 

[GAFarmGirl87]

Ok, now that I've got up on the 150+ posts made in my absence...

Good Morning!

 

[RoboDuck]

Hello my name is Brittany I live in southwest Ga was wondering if any of you would know where to get goose hatching eggs If so please reply I have had no luck and would love to buy locally thanks

Hi Brittany. Welcome. Don't give up on the eggs. Surely there are people around Albenny that sell hatching eggs.

Quote: My Light Brahmas are about the same age. They've been outside for a couple of weeks now. Even through the last cold spell with the temps dropping down into the upper 20's and low 30's. They did fine. They are a cold tolerant breed. But of course the White rocks also did well that are mixed with the smaller group of LB in the other end of the cage. But we put a small dog crate in with them wrapped in a thick black garbage bag so they could all pile in and snuggle to stay warm. Come to think of it, the SLW were outside in their own cage during the same time frame. But we draped plastic over their whole cage to keep out the wind.

 

[sanchabird]

Well, my mom taught me to sew when I was very young. She tried to teach me crochet, but i never caught on. I learned to knit in my teens. Crochet is something I've always wanted to do, but never had time to learn until last year. I strongly suggest watching a few beginner YouTube videos on the Granny Square, if you want to learn. I used those videos, watching them several times, to teach myself. The Granny Square uses the basic stitches in crochet, so it's a great place to start. 

My apple tree bears very well. My plums don't bear much at all. This winter Dad helped me prune them all, and I plan to fertilize them. If they don't bear some fruit within the next 2 years, I'm cutting them down and planting something else. I also have a grape vine that does rather well. We pruned it down this winter, so likely we won't have another grape crop for about 3 years. It's an old vine, and needed pruning desperately. 

I recently planted blackberry bushes, along with several blueberry bushes, and a few cherry bushes. Hopefully 3-4 years from now, I'll have lots of cherries & berries 

I don't have an apple tree, but I've got a plum, a nectarine, a peach, and 3 blueberrys. We got the fruit trees last year and got a plum and that's it nothing else. 2 blueberrys are 2 years old and the other is a year old. We got blueberrys the first year and the birds ate them all the second year. Do the fruit trees self pollinate because we got a plum and that's the only fruit we have gotten? I'll probably have a small fruit orchard when we move to the 30 acres.

 

[GAFarmGirl87]

Hi Brittany. Welcome. Don't give up on the eggs. Surely there are people around Albenny that sell hatching eggs.

My Light Brahmas are about the same age. They've been outside for a couple of weeks now. Even through the last cold spell with the temps dropping down into the upper 20's and low 30's. They did fine. They are a cold tolerant breed. But of course the White rocks also did well that are mixed with the smaller group of LB in the other end of the cage. But we put a small dog crate in with them wrapped in a thick black garbage bag so they could all pile in and snuggle to stay warm. Come to think of it, the SLW were outside in their own cage during the same time frame. But we draped plastic over their whole cage to keep out the wind.

Ok, well as soon as I have my tarp in place, out they go to the tractor. My SLW are nearing 3 weeks. I want to put them with the Brahmas. You think they'll be alright in the tractor too? Then there would be 12 of them to keep each other warm at night.

 

[RoboDuck]

3 weeks might be a tad young unless their feathers are already coming in. I'd wait until they have more feathers or the temperatures are staying in the 60's at night, whichever comes first.

 

[GAFarmGirl87]

I don't have an apple tree, but I've got a plum, a nectarine, a peach, and 3 blueberrys. We got the fruit trees last year and got a plum and that's it nothing else. 2 blueberrys are 2 years old and the other is a year old. We got blueberrys the first year and the birds ate them all the second year. Do the fruit trees self pollinate because we got a plum and that's the only fruit we have gotten? I'll probably have a small fruit orchard when we move to the 30 acres.

I think self-pollination depends on the breed of tree. Some need a second variety for pollination, like Blueberries, which produce better when there are 2 different varieties planted. I have 3 different plum trees, so they should pollinate each other. My apple tree is by itself. Don't ask me what kind it is, because I have no idea. I've never tasted an apple like it, not even in Ellijay. It's delicious! The people who lived in this house got most of their trees & plants from the woods behind this property. That whole area used to be cotton fields, but now it's hardwoods, and owned by a paper company. We're near the river, and this part used to be under water. It's all river bottoms back here. I think this apple tree could've come from an old homestead back in the woods. The apple tree is not quite wild, but pretty close. And it's a very old tree. I keep it pruned, and it produces like crazy.

I have all my blueberries together in a very large raised bed. Once they start producing berries, I will use a net over them to keep the birds, and the chickens, away. 2 of my bushes have blooms, so I'll get a handful of berries this year. Likely I won't get much from the blackberries until another year or 2.