Our Journey to a Self-Sufficient Lifestyle
The concept of pollinator gardens is often overlooked and many don’t realize how beneficial pollinators are to our ecosystem. From an agricultural perspective, the loss of pollinators would be devastating – 35% of the world’s food crop relies on animal pollinators. Unfortunately, we are in the midst of a bee crisis mainly due to Colony …
Like any other animal, chickens need enrichment to live a healthy and happy life. For most backyard chicken keepers, that means coming up with creative ways to keep their flock entertained. In a perfect world, your chickens would be able to forage endless acres of land to keep themselves entertained – But you and I …
Everyone knows that honeybees are a very important part of our ecosystem and provide many benefits to us. There are countless reasons to want to start beekeeping. Do you want more pollinators for your garden? Do you want to produce your own honey or sell honey to make some extra cash? Or maybe you want …
Chickens are omnivores and do require a balanced diet of all types of foods. In the wild chickens would forage for greens (grasses or weeds), seeds, fruits, vegetables, and -yes- meat (usually in the form of bugs and small rodents or reptiles). A diverse diet will lead to happier, healthier chickens. Always remember treats should …
The pecking order is a very serious social hierarchy in any chicken flock. The purpose of a pecking order is to establish an order of dominance to reduce conflict amongst the flock. Every member of the flock knows where they stand in the hierarchy and once a pecking order is established it greatly reduces aggressive …
We’ve all been there: It slipped your mind to close the coop door one night, or you slept in one morning and awoke to your flock still stuck inside and squawking to get out. For us, this was too often of an occurrence due to long or late work hours and I found that my …
After reaping the benefits from your vegetable garden all summer long, it is time to do some Fall clean up and prepare your garden for Winter which will in turn, give you a successful bounty next year. Your garden will need to be thoroughly cleansed of insects and disease, and nutrients will need to be …
This year we ambitiously bought a couple incubators and hatched our own chicks. While we were successful at a 70% hatch rate, there were still challenges and many lessons to be learned. Some of those lessons were learned while the chicks were in the brooder and even when they graduated to the outdoor flock. One …
This is a very popular topic right now in our area as Winter temperatures are fast approaching. It is time to start making preparations to keep your flock comfortable this winter. The truth is, most chickens can adapt and survive just fine in a colder climate (They are covered in layers of insulating feathers, you …
Winter is fast approaching and if you are like me, you do not have electricity in your chicken coop so heated water dishes are out of the question. I have had to find creative ways to stop our chickens water from freezing solid and this method is the most successful so far. You can watch …