Countdown to Chicken Acquisition Day

That sure does come in handy.

you can bag those droppings to use in your garden. except when feeding medication...

I thought I could put them onto my compost pile and kind of mix them in? I read somewhere that they are a little too high in nitrogen for direct use in flower beds. I have a compost pile so hopefully that will work out.

Yes, they are too "hot". I think six months composting will break them down--maybe less depending on how fast your compost is turning over. I think is important to balance the nitrogen ratio--

My 3 month olds are "living" penned on one of my raised beds in hopes of having them kill the bremunda that has invaded it. I'm planning to use the bed again after ammendments in Janurary. I need to find out what to use to help buffer all those chicken droppings. Any one have an idea? It would be the same concept with a compost pile--although composting will probably work better.

Catscan, I am thinking AG lime? Not really sure if it would work or not.

GG

It sure couldn't hurt, granny. I would help soil tilth, even if it didn't help it break down. I am ashamed of how badly I've taken care of the beds--I filled them with steer, chicken and rabbit manure and bedding, potting soil and coffee grounds last year and had wonderful tomatoes--but it rotted down to only half full over the winter and then the bermuda moved in.

CMoxon--I was reading that if you don't mix the dropping with some other moist organic material it will dry down to something called "fang" which has very little available plant nutrients. If you get Damerow's "Guide to Raising Chickens" she has a nice chart comparing the different effects of different animal manures and how to best incorporate them into a growing program. Everyone seems to think having a dropping tray under the roost is a smart idea--but I haven't tried it yet--mine spend so little time in the house. Let us know how it works.

Great suggestion Catscan - I think I will get that book. Neighbors have sheep and they offered me some of their droppings too (the sheep droppings, not the neighbor's droppings!). I would like to get that all mixed into my veggie beds and get that great soil for growing things for my chickens! LOL! I had to bring in 16 cubic yards of compost this spring at $600 - that was a lot of money for a bunch of dirt! But, it really mixed in nicely with the clay soil. I need to keep that up all over the yard.

I keep trying to get hubby to make me a compost bin, well maybe he will now by the chicken coop. IF I promise to clean the coop I think he might.

OK, I just ordered 3 Gail Damerow books from Amazon. Plus another book on espalier that I wanted. :-) More information coming my way!

Ooooh! Which ones did you get? I am really interested in the one on Chicken Health.

Well darn, that is the one I didn't get! I'm hoping to have healthy chickens! LOL!

I got the following:
"Building Chicken Coops: Storey Country Wisdom Bulletin A-224"
"Storey's Guide to Raising Chickens: Care / Feeding / Facilities"
"Barnyard in Your Backyard: A Beginner's Guide to Raising Chickens, Ducks, Geese, Rabbits, Goats, Sheep, and Cows"

The first one is just supplemental to the 45 chicken coop designs one that I got the other day.
The second one is what you recommended (I think).
The third one is for extra info, plus in case I happen to get a goat. :-)

Claire

Claire,
WHY are you collecting plans for chicken coops now that you have your Eglu?

How many chickens do you see in your future, anyway?
Tysons be warned!

I have the last two and the one "45 plans" and I've found them all very useful. I haven't purchased the Chicken Health Book either, for the same reason you give. With such a small flock, I am hoping to avoid some of the major health problems--no guarantee I guess?

Yes, the second one is the one with the information about manure/fertilizer. It is on pages 248-251.

I started all this book collecting planning for the day I would have goats--then realized I could have chickens NOW. They have been great fun and a real adventure! It will be such fun hearing your experiences too.

Oh, well Kelly is a woodworker - he loves to build things. The problem is, he gets too many projects going at once and then nothing really gets finished. He just made a series of handles for chisels that needed them for about a year now. Next comes the series of trellises that I need for my clematis that are too tall for their current trellises. So many projects....

Anyway, he wants to build a chicken coop that he thinks will be warmer in winter for the chickens, plus in case I wanted more, it would be supplemental housing. He thinks he wants to build one in a Mission/Arts and Crafts style. It will take him hours to design it but he will want to look at all the different styles out there before he decides what he will build. Then it will take a couple of years before he actually builds it. Plus, we might convert the Eglu into a rabbit house if the chickens become habit forming. :-)

Also, we talked about how when some chickens get old, they will not lay eggs any more, but I cannot kill them, so we might use the Eglu for our laying hens, and another coop for our "golden oldies" hens. That way only one coop is getting eggs in it.

Good thing you don't know how many cookbooks I have. :-)

No one can stop with just one coop, Potagere!

There are some lovely coop designs on-line too, CMoxon. I wish my DH would think about the aesthetics--he builds "strong" very strong--I can hardly lift the top of the rabbit hutch. I am starting to build a separate coop for my bantams myself and I am hoping for something with a little more character:0)

This message was edited Jul 25, 2008 4:16 PM

My biggest concern with the goats is what to do for vacationing. I think I need to get to know my neighbors a little better first! Over the road they have about 8 sheep and about 50 cows. Maybe we could do some care for their animals and they could care for ours? But cows are a whole other matter, I think.

Bet you don't have as many (cookbooks) as I do, Claire! Or in as many languages, either! Mostly I just read them, however. I've never felt one should be slave to a recipe! Although, as Ms Marta is fond of pointing out, it might be nice if the same dish tasted the same occasionally! And, BOY, do I have some GREAT chicken recipes!

I keep looking at online pictures of those chicken tractor designs, Catscan. I think those are nice, plus I like the floor of the interior part being mesh so that the chicken poop goes straight onto the grass and fertilizes the lawn! I think he could build an arts-and-crafts tractor style coop for me. Oh, I forgot, he's also supposed to be building me a potting bench. Maybe I need to get cracking on my own potting bench!

Potagere, that sounds like me - I have lots of cookbooks (only English and French) but I mostly read them, look at their pictures, and use them for inspiration. I always mess with the recipes when I do use them. These days I feel like I have limited time to cook so I do a lot of soups and stews in big batches and then freeze portions for grabbing to take to work for lunch.

But I still won't eat any of my chickens. Eggs on the other hand, are open season!!!

Well, my bossy doctor tells me that eggs are off-limits, but skinless chicken is allowed!

Yeah, cookbooks for inspiration are good! And it's often amazing what people have come up with that I never would have imagined!

Then there's this bookcase full of garden design books ...

I always wanted a butcher table for the kitchen, you know what I mean? So for my 55th birthday, Ms Marta bought me one. But it was too big for the kitchen! So I use IT for my potting bench and it works a treat! (in fact, I'll bet it would house a couple of chickens! But, alas, not keep them safe from our 4 cats, who would LOVE an Eglu: feline drive-in movie show! I can just see them all now!)

I made the Mother Earth News chicken tractor/coop for 3-4 hens myself--and incurred the ridicule of my DH (it is not pretty). But it does work functionally much like third rate Egglu, especially in our milder climates.

Now I am ready for something beautiful.

I collect cookbooks too---mostly vegetable/Indian cookery. And I too have hundreds. Parsi cooking uses lots of eggs and I am hoping to try more of those recipes. And quiches and frittatas and omelets! I would love to learn more French recipes using chicken--egg or meat. Right now I am big on marjoram and thyme and have a lovely recipe for roast chicken using Herbes de Provence.

If any one wants to suggest a new recipe or approach, I would love it! I will not eat my chickens either. But I am afraid supermarket chickens are fair game. It is not logical:0)

That's great Catscan - very ambitious and I'm sure it was fun. I am sort of scared to try building something for fear it will fall apart and my chickens will run loose! I wish I had a milder climate.

I'm so glad there are others in the hundreds of cookbooks category. My mother always says that I will never live long enough to use all those recipes, but for me they are like novels sometimes to read. Well by the time I retire, maybe I will make more recipes! I do admit that I steer clear of Indian cooking - reading about it is fascinating, but I have not acquired a taste for the spices, especially curries. I keep trying but never can get past that. I am also very big on thyme and use it constantly (along with rosemary). I am excited to start picking my new potatoes and gently cooking them and seasoning with butter and thyme. I also love ginger. When I have the time, I love to bake breads. My favorite vegetarian/vegetable cookbook is called Vegetarian Planet by Didi Emmons.

No, I am not going to grow my own wheat!!

Cmoxon, why not? You could have a 2x2 patch and then dry it like I did and make a dried bouquet with the dried wheat stems and berries. In fact, you wouldn't need that much of a space to grow some for decorations.

Cookbooks...ahhhhh. Good reading, especially the local church organization fund-raising cookbooks. Love to read them even if I don't use them. I get most of my recipes online now as I don't have the room to keep them. And, of course, gardening books, glass collecting books, quilt books, etc, etc. I do, however, collect household hint books when I find them. Some of the old ones are not only interesting, but very practical advice.

GG

Exchanging recipes would require another thread than this one devoted to Claire's chickens.
[And, BTW, Claire, if you "chicken out" and don't get those chickens soon, we'll all kill you from the frustrated suspense!]

A friend of mine taught me how to roast the spices to make my own curries. I don't always have the time, but there IS a big difference. And you can mess with it: use a bit more of the familiar herbs/spices and a bit less of the less familiar (or less liked), until you develop the taste. OK, granted, some tastes may not be worth developing if you have real problems with them, but I have found that, in fact, every effort I have made to "acquire" a taste has just added to my enjoyment of the multifaceted wonder of our world!

My potato vines are dying down now. This year, I grew "Bonnotte de Noirmoutier", supposedly the world's tastiest "new potato". Well, I don't have the seaweed and seagull poop compost used on the Isle of Noirmoutier to produce "the real thing", but there really are GOOD! Like any new potato (if I'm not re-creating the comfort of creamed peas and potatoes from my childhood), I don't peel these, just cut them into bite-sized pieces, boil or steam them, drain, puit back in the hot pan, add a few pats of butter and some finely chopped rosemary tips (yes, catscan, just those last tender bits on the stalk!), and shake the pan. The butter melts, the rosemary adheres to the potatoes, which get really "mealy" on the outside (because of the butter and the 'abuse', I think) but stay "firm" inside. Mmm good!

~ Claire: I have some spelt seed I picked up at a"living museum" in Scotland! If you won't grow wheat, do you want to try this? It is seriosly "back-to-the-land" stuff!

GrannyGood has the idea!

I've got a bunch of reproductions of those old "household advice" books in my library.
Interesting that I continue to pick one up ans stumble across something newm although they are all almost 150 years old!

Potagere, you know exactly what I am talking about. I recently had the good fortune to be able to use one of those old hints. In fact, my doctor gave it to me. Using a poultice of vinager and crushed aspirin. I got hit with a brown recluse and the cellulitis had grown to about two inches across. I made the poultice and kept it on the bite (on my leg) for about 20 minutes at a time for a couple days, and I was able to pull all the toxins out of my flesh.

Just recently found a book using salt for different things. Haven't read it all yet, but interesting reading.

GG

Whoaaa! I wish I had read that one. Just last month, I managed to aggravate some paper wasps that had commandeered the entry to my greenhouse. It took 3 days and numerous drugs to overcome the results of the 1 bite I got that day!

I sometimes think that for every new and improved discovery we make, we lose one old and unimproved piece of knowledge. OK, sometimes the new discoveries (e.g. a cure for smallpox) are more important than the lost knowledge (a poultice for insect bites/stings). But if we could retain them all, I think we would be richer for it.

I'll bet there's a bunch of "chicken advice" in those old books, too. We better go look!

an antacid tablet and tobaco with a bit of water will work also. My lil one when she was in 1st grade attracted a wasp, one that will sting and sting...........well the nurse calls me and asks what to do, I said make a paste, she happen to be a smoker. It took the sting right out. i felt so sorry for my baby. That had to hurt.

granny I will remember that one, we have them bad boys here also.

The one for bee and wasp stings is also ASPIRIN crushed with a drop of water making a paste, apply it and the sting goes away. Something to remember, make sure you remove any bee stinger with a plastic card or other rigid device. Don't try to remove it by squeezing it. You don't need the tobacco. I am allergic to bees and yellow jackets. I was stung, called poison control and they told that to me. It worked. After the third sting, a little redness showed up. Saved me a trip to the emergency ward. Like the vinegar poultice better. I haven't been stung since that time, but it probably will work.

GG

BTW, I capitalized aspirin because most people have Tylenol, not aspirin. I keep a cheap bottle of aspirin in the house for those times when I need it for making pastes or poultices. Tylenol doesn't work.

I always have asprin, dont use tylenol.

Those are really interesting treatments! I had never heard of that. How useful to know! I wonder if there are any such things for tick bites. We have SO many ticks here because of the deer. I hear chickens eat ticks though. Good thing! They won't go hungry here!!

I dont know how true it is, but I heard some yrs ago about eating garlic will help keep the ticks off. I use garlic in just about everything I make but here lately I ran out. And have been bitten. 7 dust will rid your yard of ticks.

Well that's an easy cure! I just ordered garlic for fall planting from Seed Savers Exchange. I tried some new kinds for this year. I like to intermix it with my perennials so my plants are less likely to be eaten by the deer.

Potagere, there is no way at all that I will "chicken out" from buying my chickens! LOL! The very worst that can happen is that none of the people at the fair have them for sale and I'll have to order chicks. BUT, there are ALWAYS animals for sale at the fair. So, I guarantee I didn't buy an Eglu for a yard ornament. It will be a home for a couple of very special and well loved chickens. I just don't know who they are yet. Your potatoes sound interesting. I suppose I could grow wheat, but I really meant that I wouldn't because it would be too much trouble to then get a mill and grind it, etc etc. I do work full time +, and I want to spend time with my chickens!

I have settled on one name for sure. My mom's name is Penny, so one chicken will be Henny Penny, because that is the name of a chicken from a children's book she used to read me, and so it's sentimental to me. :-)

I use a garlic spray to repel mosquitos and it also says it repels ticks. Since I only spray the fenced in yard, I don't know if it works, but we have never had ticks in the fenced in yard. Since it is an organic repellent, there is no harm to humans or animals including poultry. I get it from a local company but I know it is available nation wide. All you have to ask for is "mosquito barrier".

GG

Well, if we're doing "storybook", why not "Chicken Little"?

My 'spelt' was offered as lightheartedly as was your original "No, I am not going to grow my own wheat!!"

You can always get spelt at the health food store! Come on Moxon--you know you want to!

I actually have an interest in some of those ancient grains. Spelt, quinoa, etc...they are very interesting and offer some good health benefits. I am not sure what conditions spelt requires but if they can grow it in Scotland, one would think I could grow it in Iowa! Maybe when we finally buy a small tractor I can try some real row crops as opposed to my vegetable garden which is all planted by hand.

I plan on trying to grow a bit of grain next year by "hand planting".. ok, I will walk and roll plant.. but will try to grow a little hay.. about an acres worth.

You'll all laugh at me!
But I got my original spelt seeds from this "living museum" in Scotland, and grew them just as they were doing: for display purposes ----- in a pot!
My thoughts were:
Here I am, keeping an ancient grain alive (and I do that a lot here: plant rare bits, hoping they will survive on my rough hillside, and so live on)
and
If it grows here, maybe it will work down my "prairie" (that being the part of my yard given over to decorative grasses and (semi)naturalized wildflowers.

Wow Fran, that's a really cool idea! Are you going to use it for your chickens or another purpose? I use hay between my veggie garden rows. You'll have to tell us how it works out. I wonder if you will get low weeds there because it's such a vigorous crop that is closely planted together?

I found something in my "prairie" today that I don't recognize. I need to take a photo and post to the ID forum. Looks like sensitive plant but with yellow flowers. Pretty but I have no clue what it is.