May 13, 2008

The Reel thing

For years and years, I have wanted a reel mower. You might call me obsessed.
When I saw one listed on FreeCycle I jumped.
Who knew it would be brand new? I am sure Scurfy turkey didn't know.
And it came with a blade sharpener and a bag to collect all those cuttings. I am not sure how well the bag will work though.
It does best on flat ground - we have a lot of bumps and pits. The wheels raise and lower to accomodate high and short grasses. I am beyond happy, but Gary thinks I am silly.
I asked Murphy to pose with it, but he was too busy helping Gary with the sawmill.

Posted by roosterh at 6:29 AM | Posted to Misc. | Poultry | Sawmill | What do you think?(0)
Technorati:

May 11, 2008

Ma petite chou

Gary's mom gave me a couple of heads of cabbage today. They had been in storage all winter, and have started to send out their seed heads. Does anyone know if I can plant these and get anything besides cabbage seed (ie cabbage)?
I had plenty of help when I was trying to get just the right picture. I am not sure if Murphy and slash were gobbling at the pictures they liked or disliked. They were interested in what I was doing, that's for sure!
Other little heads in the barn include this baby Old English bantam. He was hatched in the incubator, the only OEG to do so. :( Luckily it was within 2-3 days of a hen naturally hatching one of her eggs, so now she takes care of 2 babies. This poor guy will run around in tight circles like a top, peeping the whole time, when he loses his mama. I caught him in a slow moment.
He found his mama and scooted underneath. The other adult birds leave the babies alone. The mama is very protective, even though she is very small. The OEG rooster is also very protective and surprisingly fraternal to the babies too - you don't see that too often in roosters.
The Freedom Rangers went outside for the second day. I am finding they are not so range-y annd tend to sit in a mass a lot like Cornish X. They are getting the hang of the outside thing slowly and are starting to be adventuresome. Sorta.
Mostly to the (now empty) food bowl. :) Then it's back for naps. Life is rough for all my 'tite choux.

Posted by roosterh at 7:12 PM | Posted to Poultry | What do you think?(1)
Technorati:

Eggs large and small - and many!

A hen lays an egg about every 28 hours. Judging by the number of eggs I have these days, I am thinking they are lyaing an egg ever 12 hours, but that's really impossible :) They do however, lay eggs every once in a while that are MONSTERS. These are usually double-yolkers - 2 yolks and the same amount of white more or less. These eggs are not good candidates for hatching. They are good for eating!
These eggs are pretty large. Here is the green egg from above next to a typical extra large egg.
The guinea hens began laying this week too. Their eggs are banty-sized and the shells feel very thick like a duck's. I can't imagine anything preventing us from eating them, but we haven't yet. Guineas don't seem to care where they lay their eggs - I find them scattered on the floor of their coop even though I have set up a quiet place for them to lay.
Here are some quinea eggs alongside that big green egg.
The green egg is just over 3" long. I can't sell these eggs - they are too big to fit in the cartons! They are too big to fit in my poaching pan (my favorite way to cook eggs). With the double yolks you have to have a lenient recipe to allow for the extra.
I decided to make custard. We get our milk from the dairy farm where we get our hay, so the recipe is those 3 large eggs, 4C fresh whole milk, some honey given to me by a co-worker and a dash of vanilla. Scald the milk and mix the rest while it cooks. Allow the milk to cool a bit then add it little by little to the egg mixture (do it slowly or the eggs will cook in the milk). Oil your pan and insert it in a larger pan. Fill inner pan with custard mix, fill outer pan with water, and carefully put it all in your oven. Mine's at 350 degrees. When the mix is solid, it's done! Make some homemade whipped cream, or cut up some fruit, or just sprinkle with cinnamon for a nice treat.
My egg customers don't demand the medium eggs as much as they do the large and extra large sizes, so the mediums are used at home. I think they make the perfect devilled egg. I like to mix some spicy ingredients in the mix like horseradish, hot mustard or rice vinegar. Gives them a little bit of an edge. I haven't even shown you the 5 gallon buckets of eggs Gary has stored in the root cellar for when the pigs arrive. It is certainly the season for eggs around here. What are your favorite ways of using eggs?

Posted by roosterh at 9:43 AM | Posted to Poultry | What do you think?(0)
Technorati:

May 4, 2008

Lazy Sunday

Sunday afternoons in the sun. A great time for a nap. And this little guy just fits in the grain dish.
Petal the pygora snoozes too.
Tucker lounges in his hay feeder.
But when it comes to scritches, everyone is awake and waits their turn - even Scurfy the turkey.
Humingbirds and Orioles arrived today, no doubt attracted by lovely blossoms like this apple tree has, and sweet poplar catkins.
Murphy patiently waits for me to take his picture. There ya go, Murph. I think he knows how handsome he is, don't you?

Posted by roosterh at 9:00 PM | Posted to Goats | What do you think?(0)
Technorati:

April 28, 2008

Freedom Rangers

These are Freedom Ranger chicks. They are a hybrid broiler known for great foraging abilities. I split an order with a woman I met on Craig's List (a wonderful resource - bookmark it now). Unfortunately half the chicks did not survive transit. Newly hatched chicks can survive 3 days without food and water because of the nutrients from the egg yolk they absorb before hatching. They do not survive cold very well. As it turns out, soon after this shipment arrived, the hatchery closed its doors. Many of its shipments this year had the same problems as this one.

If you have chicks this year - and based on conversations I have had with staff at Tractor Supply and Agway, a lot of you do - your biggest sign when you have a chilled chick is pasty butt. It is what it sounds like. The old poop has to be cleaned away from the chick's little vent, but be very gentle. If you use water, make sure you dry him off or he will remain chilled. A touch of vaseline around the area will help too but most importantly, get him warm.

These chicks are oblivious. They are too busy eating and peeping. They are voracious eaters. And cute. But what chick isn't?

Posted by roosterh at 6:16 AM | Posted to Poultry | What do you think?(0)
Technorati:

Previous 10 entries...

Birds and Flowers (not always a good combination) Apr 27, 2008
PODcast Apr 27, 2008
Git along little doggy Apr 20, 2008
Daffodils Apr 19, 2008
eggs. are. everywhere!! Apr 16, 2008
Gimme Guineas Apr 13, 2008
New addition Apr 11, 2008
Signs of Spring Apr 10, 2008
Walk in the Woods Apr 7, 2008
Bees' Knees Apr 6, 2008