Bee~ Journal of then...

[Beekissed]

Nice blog site up by someone on BYC if anyone is interested....looks to be a good place to start brainstorming chicken husbandry.

http://naturalchickenkeeping.blogspot.com/

Hey!!! How ya been? Long time no see.....

 

[kstaven]

I drop in regularly. Just haven't been posting. Real world garbage is taking up way to much time.

 

[BarredBuff]

I drop in regularly. Just haven't been posting. Real world garbage is taking up way to much time.

Don't ya just hate that?

Bee, I have a question. Can waterfowl be fed fermented scratch grains?

 

[Beekissed]

There are many folks on BYC using it for waterfowl right now and reporting great results. Some are even trying it on rabbits. What most folks are liking the most are the lack of smells in their coops. No smell. Nada. It's lovely!

Even in damp or hot, humid weather~ no smells.

 

[BarredBuff]

I was just checking, I thought (for some reason) they could get botulism. Thanks!

 

[Beekissed]

Botulism??? Why in the world would they get botulism from fermented grains? You've been reading on the canning threads, haven't you?

 

[BarredBuff]

Botulism??? Why in the world would they get botulism from fermented grains? You've been reading on the canning threads, haven't you?

Yeah I got canning mustard greens mixed up with this I did read somewhere about that Maybe it was silage could give them botulism. I dont know

 

[Beekissed]

Haven't posted on here for a long time. Many things have happened in my life in the last few years and all of them counted as wonderful blessings! I am living with my mother now and we have such a good time being roommates...so much joy and peace that it's like walking in the hand of God every day.

Still have a flock of free range chickens and a dog to protect them, but now have much better forage than where I lived before, so the birds are getting most of their nutrition from the land in three seasons out of four. I looked for free roosters in the local ads this fall and winter and obtained 19 old and young roosters in this manner which, along with culling my own older flock, was placed in a jar in the form of meat and stock. I also froze schmaltz for cooking with later.

I was both shocked and pleased about how the fermented feeds fed to those older roosters took the gaminess out of the meat and left it the most flavorful chicken I've ever tasted in my life. Even the ol' Bat agreed that she's never tasted better chicken in all her 79 years, so that's saying a lot. Mark another one up for fermented feeds!

I have many spring projects I'm looking forward to and hope to complete, if the Lord wills that I should do so.

• Enlarging and improving the hoop coop~will remove the old tarps and get clear tarps instead to let more light into the interior in the winter months, but will layer a darker tarp over these during the other seasons to provide shade. Moving the nest boxes to the front, will have more space for the birds when they are confined by bad weather...this winter was a wake up call about how cramped and dark my coop was in these colder temps and snows.
  
• Incubating for the first time~I have always done broody hatches and never really wanted to incubate, but I'm going to be receiving some very special eggs from a heritage breeder of renown and will be trying to insure maximum hatch. Of course, as per usual, I will be doing this in a manner that no one else is doing it and will document the experiment and results~I want to simulate a broody hatch as much as possible, so this incubation will not be typical. First will try this method on some of my own flock's eggs to see if it's viable. Will also be brooding these chicks in a different manner as well and will report on all these things as they transpire, whether good or bad.
  
• Will be building a rabbit hutch/tractor for a few does and a buck, with room for a grow out for offspring. Will not be feeding pelleted feeds, only pasture, hay, mixed grains.
  
• Intensive gardening~square foot gardening and companion planting, as well as using mostly heirloom varieties. Will be sprouting my own seeds using my own soil mixture, some of which will be comprised of leaf litter from my deep litter in the coop. Will go smaller on garden space but will put more in the space used. Will be planting clover in the pathways and using suppression cloth/plastic for the rows. Will also plant a large area next to the garden for wildflowers.
• Will be getting a batch of 10-20 CX chicks to run with the layer flock and will can up the whole group. Will also be canning rabbit as they mature. Will be canning up the garden and also buying sweet corn to can, as I can buy it better than I can grow it in the space that I am gardening.
• Will pray more, thank God more, laugh more, love more, go fishing more, and will enjoy every moment of every day. Oh! Forgot to include...my first grandchild will be born soon, so I'll be a grandma shortly. Life is good!

 

[Denim Deb]

Sounds like a good plan and I'll be following what you do very closely.

 

[TanksHill]

Good to see you Bee!!! I was wondering how you and the Ol' bat have been doing.