Saturday, April 20, 2013
Tuesday, April 16, 2013
Chicken Update
The chicks have been here for almost a week, and they are growing up fast. For the most part, they are still are cute little fuzz balls, but something tells me their awkward phase is right around the corner.
Layers News
The Buff Orpington chick died unexpectedly last Friday afternoon. I'm not sure what happened, as the chick appeared healthy that morning. Unfortunately, sometimes they just don't make it.
It occurred to me the other day what an unnatural process it is to raise a chick without the mother hen. They're born in an industrial setting, full of metal and concrete, packed into cardboard boxes, loaded into trucks, and shipped hours away, only to be picked up out of the box by a huge creature, and deposited in a box and expected to figure out how to eat, drink, play, and socialize. They undergo a huge amount of stress, so I'm happy the five remaining girls are doing well.
They seem to be enjoying plastic tote brooder, which is on our spare room. Once the meat chickens outgrow their dog crate in the barn and move to the coop, I'll move the five girls into the crate. I added a stick to the brooder and the chicks have enjoyed climbing on it, although they still spend a good deal of time under their brooder lamp.
Meat Chicks News
These guys are getting big, and fast. They are much more docile that the laying birds. The girls still shriek when I take the lid off of their tote box, and retreat to the opposite end. They tend to warm up to me a bit when they realize I have food. On the other hand, the meat chicks tend to spend a lot more time resting on the ground (probably because they're growing so fast), and don't pay much attention when I refill their food and water. They don't even move when I put fresh pine shavings in their brooder, which results in many of them being temporarily buried before they shake it off.
I wasn't sure how much work having these guys would be, but I probably only spend an extra 20 minutes a day on chick-related chores. My goal is to be as efficient as possible when doing routine farm tasks. Things will speed up once everyone is together in the barn.
Layers News
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| If you look closely, you can see the wing feathers starting to come in. |
It occurred to me the other day what an unnatural process it is to raise a chick without the mother hen. They're born in an industrial setting, full of metal and concrete, packed into cardboard boxes, loaded into trucks, and shipped hours away, only to be picked up out of the box by a huge creature, and deposited in a box and expected to figure out how to eat, drink, play, and socialize. They undergo a huge amount of stress, so I'm happy the five remaining girls are doing well.
They seem to be enjoying plastic tote brooder, which is on our spare room. Once the meat chickens outgrow their dog crate in the barn and move to the coop, I'll move the five girls into the crate. I added a stick to the brooder and the chicks have enjoyed climbing on it, although they still spend a good deal of time under their brooder lamp.
Meat Chicks News
These guys are getting big, and fast. They are much more docile that the laying birds. The girls still shriek when I take the lid off of their tote box, and retreat to the opposite end. They tend to warm up to me a bit when they realize I have food. On the other hand, the meat chicks tend to spend a lot more time resting on the ground (probably because they're growing so fast), and don't pay much attention when I refill their food and water. They don't even move when I put fresh pine shavings in their brooder, which results in many of them being temporarily buried before they shake it off.
I wasn't sure how much work having these guys would be, but I probably only spend an extra 20 minutes a day on chick-related chores. My goal is to be as efficient as possible when doing routine farm tasks. Things will speed up once everyone is together in the barn.
Monday, April 15, 2013
Friday, April 12, 2013
Thursday, April 11, 2013
Meet the Meaties
Yesterday afternoon 25 more chicks arrived. These guys are destined for the dinner table or the freezer in about two months.
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| Their container for the journey home was a box that housed peanut brittle in its past life. |
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| Chowing down under the heat lamp. |
Wednesday, April 10, 2013
They're here!
These six cute fluff balls arrived bright and early this morning. They were a little cold when I took them out of their shipping box, but they found the heater right away in the brooder. Now the countdown to eggs begins!
I'll also be picking up 25 more this afternoon at the feed store-- check back for pictures!
I'll also be picking up 25 more this afternoon at the feed store-- check back for pictures!
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| Five of the chicks were huddled together for warmth when I opened the box this morning. |
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| The Blue Cochin chick seemed to be alright on her own. I hope she's not being discriminated against because she's got feathers on her legs :-(. |
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| There are six different breeds of chicks (I'm not entirely sure what's what, yet): The gray chick is a Blue Cochin. She's joined by a Buff Orpington (the light yellow chick?), a Cinnamon Queen/Golden Buff/Red Star (the golden chick?), a Silver Laced Wyandotte, an Australorp, and a Dominque. |
Monday, April 8, 2013
Seed Starting 2013
Sunday morning (April 7) I planted the first set of seedlings for the vegetable garden. Included in this flat are:
12 cells of Pepper-New Ace F1 (Harris Seeds 2013)
6 cells of Sweet Hybrid Mix Peppers (Burpee 2012)
6 cells of Tomato-Early Hybrid (Burpee 2012)
6 cells of Chives (Burpee 2012)
6 cells of Parsley (Burpee 2012)
6 cells of Basil (Burpee 2012)
6 cells of Stevia (Harris Seeds 2013)
6 cells of Dill (Johnny's 2013)
6 cells of Red & Green Romaine Lettuce (Burpee 2012)
6 cells of Gourmet Blend Lettuce (Burpee 2011)
I wasn't planning to start so many herbs, but I wanted to fill up the tray. I still need to get another packet of tomato seeds.
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