Summer is Here 2023

 So this week, the majority of the pullets are 19 weeks with a few that are 20 weeks. We had one pullet start to lay fairy eggs a few days ago, but has since stopped laying. The three older girls continue to produce well, and are close to 12 months old now. The two Comets produce extra large eggs and are a hit with our customers. The one remaining Black Copper Marans is only laying about three eggs per week that are medium large... a little larger than medium but not quite large. 

The ducks are over 12 months old and also are producing very well. The eggs are mostly large, with an occasional medium and an occasional extra large.  They like to hide their eggs in the tall grass so it feels a bit like an Easter egg hunt every morning. 

Weather has been typical June. Some rains, some thunder storms, but mostly sunny days with temps in the 80s.  It's been very nice. 

Garden is started albeit very minimal.  Not sure we will get much this year, but better than nothing, I guess. I have planted about half of what I planted two years ago.  Didn't do a garden last year. Less work, I guess, but that means less produce, too.  

Two years ago, we planted 50 Christmas trees out in the back part of the field. Only three survived the drought.  I didn't have any watering system set up.  We are going to install a drip system this year. I purchased 600 feet of hosing to get the water all the way from the house to the trees this year. So far, so good.  This year, I only purchased 25 Norway Spruce starts and plan to purchase 25 White Pine next year.  The three starts that did survive were White Pine.  Mowed a path between the two rows of trees but, the grass is so tall now, can't really see the trees.  They are marked.  The pink and white ribbons are the Spruce while the white only are either the remaining Pine, or will be the Pine next year. A lot of work goes into planting them, and to end up having 95% of them die last year was disappointing. Anyways, we will just keep adding 25 each year until we have a decent area covered and the wild life will have a bit of extra protection. 

Until we have the drip system install, I walk out across the field to water the trees.  While I'm out there, I look for nasties... lupin and ragweed.  I pull them and I am hopeful that one day they will be totally gone. The ragweed is the worst 'cause it is sticky and makes me itch. 

Snow Day for Hens and Ducks February 2023

We aren't getting a ton of snow, but enough that it is turning things white around here. Snow is coming in from the Northeast so we have wind panels up on those sides of the chicken coop, and the duck coop door is turned towards the South. At times, the flakes are pretty large, about the size of a quarter, but mostly just small, wet, flakes. 

Gave the hens some scratch.  We had a bad day yesterday in that it was windy and it blew their house hatch closed, locking them all inside for the majority of the day.  We knew it had to have been most of the day because there were no eggs in the nesting box. When we moved them to some fresh ground last night I put a light inside their house with some fresh water, while we did all the prep work for the potential of snow today. That way they could, at least, rehydrate before going to roost. Poor Girls. So they deserve a little extra scratch today. 

Ducks are doing great. Playing in their pool and running around inside their pen checking out the snow. We need to keep an eye on the white/fawn duck as she likes to take flight into the wind and we are having just enough wind to make it possible for her to fly right out of the pen. LOL

Update, these photos were at 2pm. By 6pm, the snow was five inches deep and still building up. When I went out to put the birds to bed, the duck coop looked like an igloo cave.