Showing posts with label self-sufficiency. Show all posts
Showing posts with label self-sufficiency. Show all posts
Sunday, December 11, 2011
Bee in the Freezer
No, I did not put a real bee in the freezer. Our roo, Bumblebee, met the butcher block today. He had taken on a bit of an attitude and seemed to enjoy attacking all members of our family. Time to do with him what was intended from the start. I have to admitt that I had never butchered a chicken before. Scott has done a lot of ducks and turkeys over the years, but he was heading out for the late doe only season with his brother, so I tackeled this one alone. What a process! I do hope that it will get easier with practice and with a future chicken plucker (to be built next summer). I started hand plucking (we have been saving feathers for my mom and her craftiness), then just decided to skin him. Personally I don't like to eat chicken skin, but Scott does. I guess I win this time, I just went for quick. Now he is resting comfortably in the freezer until we decide to have him for supper. I didn't weigh him, but he was good sized. Next spring we are thinking about getting a bunch of meat chicks. We shall see how things goes, but I really like the idea of raising and hunting our own meat.
Tuesday, October 4, 2011
Autumn Aroma
Since September 1, I have been teaching preschool at the sister Day Care/Preschool to the one that I used to work at and that my kids go to. I love it! Anyway, this week we are talking about our senses and yesterday we went on a "smelling walk." While we were on the walk (through town) it brought me back to why I truly love Autumn, the smells.
Growing up on a decent sized farm (in those days) in west central Wisconsin, there were so many wonderful and not so wonderful smells come autumn. Most of what I remember are wonderful. The most distinct is the smell of silage. For those who aren't familiar with it, it is chopped up corn (stalks and all) and deposited into a pit silo (at least on our farm) and then covered with black plastic and old tires to hold the plastic down. To me, that is a wonderful and inviting smell that says "home!" My second favorite smell of autumn is of the drying and falling leaves and fortunately I can still smell that here on our little corner of the world. There is also the smell of apples, pumpkins baking and other canning/baking that happens in the autumn. This time of year is just so aromatically pleasing. What are some of your favorite autumn aromas?
This fall has been busy for all of us here on our corner of the world. Trying to get the garden put to bed, things canned and preserved, project to-do lists done, duck boat up and running, getting hunting licenses and bow target practises, getting kids to school and preschool, teaching preschool and just spending time together that I have not been on the computer. Yikes. I can't say that the next few months will be much different, as we are in the "hunting season" time of year that runs from Sept 1-mid December, and as our meat freezer is getting empty we have to organize our priorities. Wish us luck in filling it. :)
Oh - update on our lazy chickens. Well they are still lazy as there hasn't been an egg found. At what age do chickens usually start laying? I thought it would be by now, but then I heard somewhere that Buffs don't lay until they are 5 months old (that isn't until November - yikes). Anyone know about Leghorns, Dominics and Redstars? I do know that Bumblebee won't be laying, but if he doesn't be nice, he will become dinner. He has gotten such an attitude lately. Boys!
Growing up on a decent sized farm (in those days) in west central Wisconsin, there were so many wonderful and not so wonderful smells come autumn. Most of what I remember are wonderful. The most distinct is the smell of silage. For those who aren't familiar with it, it is chopped up corn (stalks and all) and deposited into a pit silo (at least on our farm) and then covered with black plastic and old tires to hold the plastic down. To me, that is a wonderful and inviting smell that says "home!" My second favorite smell of autumn is of the drying and falling leaves and fortunately I can still smell that here on our little corner of the world. There is also the smell of apples, pumpkins baking and other canning/baking that happens in the autumn. This time of year is just so aromatically pleasing. What are some of your favorite autumn aromas?
This fall has been busy for all of us here on our corner of the world. Trying to get the garden put to bed, things canned and preserved, project to-do lists done, duck boat up and running, getting hunting licenses and bow target practises, getting kids to school and preschool, teaching preschool and just spending time together that I have not been on the computer. Yikes. I can't say that the next few months will be much different, as we are in the "hunting season" time of year that runs from Sept 1-mid December, and as our meat freezer is getting empty we have to organize our priorities. Wish us luck in filling it. :)
Oh - update on our lazy chickens. Well they are still lazy as there hasn't been an egg found. At what age do chickens usually start laying? I thought it would be by now, but then I heard somewhere that Buffs don't lay until they are 5 months old (that isn't until November - yikes). Anyone know about Leghorns, Dominics and Redstars? I do know that Bumblebee won't be laying, but if he doesn't be nice, he will become dinner. He has gotten such an attitude lately. Boys!
Monday, May 30, 2011
Chicken Coop ~ A Reality
This weekend my dream of having a chicken coop and chickens started to become a reality. Once again plans changed and instead of building the coop in conjunction with the green house and dog kennels we decided to make chicken tractors. This way we can move them around and help out our lawn and other areas with good fertilization.
Scott has been looking online for ideas and found a fun looking one on craig's list I believe, so that is what we are building. We are trying to recycle materials we have and that some friends have also. We are getting some old ceder siding from one of Scott's co-workers and we have a ton of fencing that was around the back yard when we moved in, to make the run. We also have some shingles that we found in the old "out building" that we got rid of last year.
Yesterday I ordered my first batch of 7 babies from My Pet Chicken which is where my sister orders her chicks from. I wanted chickens that were winter hardy and good layers so I chose Red Stars, Buff Orpingtons, Leghorns, and Dominiques. They should be here the week of June 13. There are a few other breeds that I want but they were not available until later in the summer. Those are Australorp, Wyandotte, Easter Eggers and Salmon Faverolles. I'll get those later on.
We are building 2 tractors and each will hold 8 chickens. We plan on having layers and fryers so I also tried to choose breeds that are dual purpose. The Red Stars are great layers and the roosters make good fryers so I ordered more of them and also did a straight run (which is cheaper) that way if we get some boys we can use them for meat. I know for some people that is a hard concept, eating your pets, but I'm not getting chickens for just pets. We are getting chickens to be more self sustaining and also we know how and where the chickens were raised. Being a hunting/fishing family our kids are used to that process and can see animals for their beauty and for their food possibilities.
So far in the building process we have the bottom run areas framed in and stained. Next we are going to put the fencing on them and work up. We have spent a lot of time on the layout of the tractors, trying to make them efficient and easy to maintain. Seeing as how we did not have any green treated wood on hand, we used the 2x4's that we had and stained them the same dark brown as our garden fence frame. That way the wood that will be exposed to the elements and the ground for the run will be protected. I'll try and get some "Progress" pics posted soon. Now I need to start looking for chicken feeding/watering supplies and a heat lamp to keep the babies warm.
Scott has been looking online for ideas and found a fun looking one on craig's list I believe, so that is what we are building. We are trying to recycle materials we have and that some friends have also. We are getting some old ceder siding from one of Scott's co-workers and we have a ton of fencing that was around the back yard when we moved in, to make the run. We also have some shingles that we found in the old "out building" that we got rid of last year.
Yesterday I ordered my first batch of 7 babies from My Pet Chicken which is where my sister orders her chicks from. I wanted chickens that were winter hardy and good layers so I chose Red Stars, Buff Orpingtons, Leghorns, and Dominiques. They should be here the week of June 13. There are a few other breeds that I want but they were not available until later in the summer. Those are Australorp, Wyandotte, Easter Eggers and Salmon Faverolles. I'll get those later on.
We are building 2 tractors and each will hold 8 chickens. We plan on having layers and fryers so I also tried to choose breeds that are dual purpose. The Red Stars are great layers and the roosters make good fryers so I ordered more of them and also did a straight run (which is cheaper) that way if we get some boys we can use them for meat. I know for some people that is a hard concept, eating your pets, but I'm not getting chickens for just pets. We are getting chickens to be more self sustaining and also we know how and where the chickens were raised. Being a hunting/fishing family our kids are used to that process and can see animals for their beauty and for their food possibilities.
So far in the building process we have the bottom run areas framed in and stained. Next we are going to put the fencing on them and work up. We have spent a lot of time on the layout of the tractors, trying to make them efficient and easy to maintain. Seeing as how we did not have any green treated wood on hand, we used the 2x4's that we had and stained them the same dark brown as our garden fence frame. That way the wood that will be exposed to the elements and the ground for the run will be protected. I'll try and get some "Progress" pics posted soon. Now I need to start looking for chicken feeding/watering supplies and a heat lamp to keep the babies warm.
Thursday, March 10, 2011
One Year of Blogging
Today marks one year and 10 days of blogging our family adventures and what nots. We have accomplished a lot. Beautiful garden built, wood stove purchased (it was fun getting calls from the gas company asking if we needed any propane and us saying "No Thanks") and paid off (as soon as taxes come back), trees cleared around house and barn, learned how to can along with many other things.
As 2011 moves forward, so do our plans for becoming even more self sufficient. This year I fear is going to see some hard times in our state and community for many people. Gas prices are rising at a rapid rate which is not only going to make filling our vehicles painful, but it will also drive up the cost of everything else around here. I am glad we have the wood stove and our garden. We may also see some major fallout from our Governor's new budget balancing bill that he is working on. Don't get me wrong, we really need to get control of the state's budget, but the way he is going about it is going to hurt the education of our children and hurt a lot of us financially. Seeing is how he is pretty dead set on "His Way", I am going to try to plan and prepare for the worst.
Now that we have gone through one year of gardening, I know what I need to plant more of and what I need to can more of. I am going to get over my fear of pressure canning and borrow my Grandmother's pressure canner (she already gave me her hot water bath canner) that way I can can veggies and other things with a lower acidity. I am going to try and produce more potatoes so we can actually store them for the winter instead of just only getting a few meals out of them. We will have chickens so we'll have our own eggs eventually. I am going to do everything I realistically can to make us more able to be self-sufficient off of these 20 ac. we have. I will not get a cow! Here is to better days despite impending trials and tribulations, to looking for the silver lining in every situation, to having a positive & productive year with lots of learning.
As 2011 moves forward, so do our plans for becoming even more self sufficient. This year I fear is going to see some hard times in our state and community for many people. Gas prices are rising at a rapid rate which is not only going to make filling our vehicles painful, but it will also drive up the cost of everything else around here. I am glad we have the wood stove and our garden. We may also see some major fallout from our Governor's new budget balancing bill that he is working on. Don't get me wrong, we really need to get control of the state's budget, but the way he is going about it is going to hurt the education of our children and hurt a lot of us financially. Seeing is how he is pretty dead set on "His Way", I am going to try to plan and prepare for the worst.
Now that we have gone through one year of gardening, I know what I need to plant more of and what I need to can more of. I am going to get over my fear of pressure canning and borrow my Grandmother's pressure canner (she already gave me her hot water bath canner) that way I can can veggies and other things with a lower acidity. I am going to try and produce more potatoes so we can actually store them for the winter instead of just only getting a few meals out of them. We will have chickens so we'll have our own eggs eventually. I am going to do everything I realistically can to make us more able to be self-sufficient off of these 20 ac. we have. I will not get a cow! Here is to better days despite impending trials and tribulations, to looking for the silver lining in every situation, to having a positive & productive year with lots of learning.
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