Tuesday, May 31, 2011

Spring at last, planting and transplanting in the square-foot garden.



Spring at last, planting and transplanting in the square-foot garden. After weeks of 10 degree weather the sun came out, yesterday morning, and the temperature hit 25 degrees by noon time. So I spent the day working in the garden transplanting broccoli, cabbage, Brussels sprouts, lettuce, parsley, chard, kale and fennel plants and planting bean seeds. The weather is supposed to be good again tomorrow so hopefully I will finish most of the planting then.

When I got up this morning I went out to check the garden and one of the two rows of beans, the one that is outside the fencing, has been dug-up from one end to the other. Coons would be my guess some of the beans were laying on the surface so I don't know if they ate the rest or not, anyway I will replant them today.

Planting in the Square foot Garden

Planting in the Square foot Garden

Sunday, May 29, 2011

One week old today.

One week old today enjoying their new feeder and new bedding.



The girls are a week old today and growing like weeds. This was also their first day on wood shavings for bedding and they are having a lot of fun throwing it around and playing on there new feeder. The feeder is a better design than the first one was it is much more difficult for them to scratch the feed out on the ground to be wasted with this model and they are having a lot of fun climbing all over it.

One week old today enjoying their new feeder and new bedding.

Friday, May 27, 2011

Five days old today and some of the girls have names.

Everyone seems healthy and strong and growing every day, some have been named by friends on Flickr and YouTube in this photo we have Matilda named by an Australian friend and Ginger named by me. Matilda is the almost white bird and of course Ginger is the red head and Marianne named by a friend here in New Brunswick, she is standing in front of Matilda.

Five days old today

Martha named by a friend in Spain is front and centre in this photo. Anyone else with a name in mind ???

Most of the chicks are breeds selected by the hatchery so it will be fun watching them grow their feathers and trying to decide what breeds I have. Two breeds I selected so they are out of the game.

This little guy ( front and centre)is a Slikie just not sure what colour he/she might be when fully grown.

Five days old today

And I have three Mottled Cochins like this little chap.

Five days old today

If anyone recognizes a breed by the markings on the chick please leave a comment.

Thursday, May 26, 2011

The Saga of the International Travelling Chicks



It's all in the video but what a day this has been. The chicks missed the mail truck in Bangor so they would have had to sit in their box in the postal plant in Bangor until tomorrow morning, which would have been three full days without food or water. Needless to say I did a road trip and brought them home. Hope you enjoy the video they are settling in nicely in their new home. Subscribe to the YouTube channel if you are interested in watching there progress over the next few weeks. There is an assortment of different varieties of both standard size and bantam chickens and most were selected by the hatchery so it will be a lot of fun figuring our just what breeds I have, once they start to feather out.

The girls are home and in the Coop

The girls are home and in the Coop

Tuesday, May 24, 2011

The finishing touches


The finishing touches, originally uploaded by Campobello Island.

The finishing touches. The power of positive thinking for the girls and the evil eye for the predators. The little box on the door below the Fresh Eggs sign is called a Nite Guard Solar. It is a solar powered little red flashing light that automatically turns on after dark and shuts off when daylight returns. according to the advertising animals like Raccoon and Coyote stop as soon as they see the light and leave they perceive it as another animal or human. If this actually works I will buy another one hoping that I can put out a bird feeder that the raccoon won't tare apart.

The birds didn't arrive today, not surprised they were shipped less than 24 hours ago but I have a feeling they will arrive in the morning.

Monday, May 23, 2011

All ready here for the big event and the chicks left Polk, Ohio this afternoon.

My chickens are on there way here. They left the hatchery in Polk Ohio this afternoon and should be here either tomorrow or Wednesday. The brooder is all set up and running to make sure it is nice and warm and since it is out in the coop I'm also running a quartz heater to warm the air because it is still cold here only 7 degrees C. today. I went to the post office this afternoon and the lady said she will call me when they arrive. It could possibly be tomorrow but I think it will likely be the day after.

Friday, May 20, 2011

Three Sisters Permaculture Garden



Three Sisters Permaculture Garden is something new for me but has been around North America in our native culture for thousands of years. Rather then me trying to explain something that is new to me too I will quote Wikipedia:

From Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia


The Three Sisters are the three main agricultural crops of some Native American groups in North America: squash, maize, and climbing beans (typically tepary beans or common beans).

In one technique known as companion planting, the three crops are planted close together. Flat-topped mounds of soil are built for each cluster of crops. Each mound is about 30 cm (1 ft) high and 50 cm (20 in) wide, and several maize seeds are planted close together in the center of each mound. In parts of the Atlantic Northeast, rotten fish or eel are buried in the mound with the maize seeds, to act as additional fertilizer where the soil is poor. When the maize is 15 cm (6 inches) tall, beans and squash are planted around the maize, alternating between beans and squash. Milpas are farms or gardens that employ companion planting on a larger scale.

The three crops benefit from each other. The maize provides a structure for the beans to climb, eliminating the need for poles. The beans provide the nitrogen to the soil that the other plants utilize and the squash spreads along the ground, blocking the sunlight, which helps prevent weeds. The squash leaves act as a "living mulch", creating a microclimate to retain moisture in the soil, and the prickly hairs of the vine deter pests. Maize lacks the amino acids lysine and tryptophan, which the body needs to make proteins and niacin, but beans contain both and therefore together they provide a balanced diet.

Native Americans throughout North America are known for growing variations of three sisters gardens. The Anasazi are known for adopting this garden design in a more xeric environment. The Tewa and other Southwest tribes often included a "fourth sister" known as "Rocky Mountain bee plant" (Cleome serrulata), which attracts bees to help pollinate the beans and squash.

From Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia

Permaculture is an approach to designing human settlements and agricultural systems that are modeled on the relationships found in natural ecologies.

Permaculture is sustainable land use design. This is based on ecological and biological principles, often using patterns that occur in nature to maximise effect and minimise work. Permaculture aims to create stable, productive systems that provide for human needs, harmoniously integrating the land with its inhabitants. The ecological processes of plants, animals, their nutrient cycles, climatic factors and weather cycles are all part of the picture. Inhabitants’ needs are provided for using proven technologies for food, energy, shelter and infrastructure. Elements in a system are viewed in relationship to other elements, where the outputs of one element become the inputs of another. Within a Permaculture system, work is minimised, "wastes" become resources, productivity and yields increase, and environments are restored. Permaculture principles can be applied to any environment, at any scale from dense urban settlements to individual homes, from farms to entire regions.

The first recorded modern practice of permaculture as a systematic method was by Austrian farmer Sepp Holzer in the 1960s, but the method was scientifically developed by Australians Bill Mollison and David Holmgren and their associates during the 1970s in a series of publications.

The word permaculture is described by Mollison as a portmanteau of permanent agriculture, and permanent culture.

The intent is that, by training individuals in a core set of design principles, those individuals can design their own environments and build increasingly self-sufficient human settlements — ones that reduce society's reliance on industrial systems of production and distribution that Mollison identified as fundamentally and systematically destroying Earth's ecosystems.

While originating as an agro-ecological design theory, permaculture has developed a large international following. This "permaculture community" continues to expand on the original ideas, integrating a range of ideas of alternative culture, through a network of publications, permaculture gardens, intentional communities, training programs, and internet forums. In this way, permaculture has become a form of architecture of nature and ecology as well as an informal institution of alternative social ideals.

Needless to say what I'm doing is "my version" of the Three Sisters Permaculture Garden as you can see from my video and these photos. I will start with one corn plant in each mound from the seedlings that I have in the greenhouse and I will also add a few corn seeds to each mound. Hard to say at this point how successful this will be but it will be something interesting to follow throughout the summer so stay tuned.

Three Sisters Permaculture Garden (I will be adding a link to my blog which will further explain what I'm doing, later today.)

Three Sisters Permaculture Garden (I will be adding a link to my blog which will further explain what I'm doing, later today.)

A couple of really great gardening sites that I'm pleased to recommend.

If you are looking for great sources of information for the Canadian Garden you can't go wrong with two sites which are run by Mark Disero. His YouTube Channel a sample video:



And his website Garden Toronto. I hope you enjoy these fine resources as much as I do.

Wednesday, May 18, 2011

Maybe I'm loosing it................................



I was in Walmart and couldn't resist the window boxes. I have them planted with lettuce, spinach and Swiss Chard which will be fresh greens for the chickens as they grow. Also a few nasturtium seeds for flowers later on.

Maybe I'm loosing it..............

Chicken coop window boxes

Success With Poultry Blog

I subscribe to the Keeping Chickens News Letter which is great information for amateur poultry keepers and comes out twice a month. Like most chicken enthusiasts I read it from cover to cover as soon as it arrives. It is a wonderful resource and free so click on the link and give it a try.

I recently submitted my YouTube videos on how I built my Chicken Coop for publication in the newsletter but at this time videos are not included in the newsletter for technical reasons however Gina, newsletter editor, did me the great favour of adding my videos to the Success With Poultry Blog. This blog is a wealth of information on keeping poultry and I have referred to it often and I'm sure I will be there almost daily after my day old chicks arrive next week. Two really great resources that I highly recommend.

Monday, May 16, 2011

Warbler recovering from a window collision.

Poor little guy hit the glass in my garden door and then sat on my deck for about a half hour recovering. I laid on the floor and talked to him and took pictures. Eventually he flew away so I guess he is alright but he must have a bad headache.

Warbler ??

Sunday, May 15, 2011

Pathfinder's day trip to Asticou Gardens on Mount Desert Island, Maine M...

Pathfinder's day trip to Asticou Gardens on Mount Desert Island, Maine May15, 2011

A bit of a wet day but I had a good time visiting the gardens with friends from the Pathfinders walking group.


Spring 2011 Planting in the Square Foot Garden

Getting the Square Foot Garden ready for another season. Transplanting the onion seedlings that I started in the house on February 6th., planting Peas, Beets and Spinach. A look at some of the seedlings that I have grown in the light garden and are now out in the unheated greenhouse to harden off before they are transplanted later in the month.


Friday, May 13, 2011

Vegetable Seedlings in the light garden

Seedlings in the light garden ae coming along nicely. Hope to have them ready to go in the garden by the 24th of May, Victoria Day. Your not a good Canadian if you don't plant on Victoria Day.

Thursday, May 5, 2011

Building A Chicken Coop

Be it ever so humble there's no place like home....

I have ordered day old chicks to arrive in late May so I have been busy building a chicken coop. First time I've ever built anything so it has been quite a learning experience but I'm satisfied with the job and I think the Chickens will be comfortable. I have been making video clips as I go along and now I'm putting them together into a small series of short videos.