Boggar - Bantam Plymouth Barred Rock

Buggar - Bantam Plymouth Barred Rock, originally uploaded by Campobello Island.

Rest in Peace little guy. Died August 16th after an attack by an Osprey.

Dale's Free Open Pollinated Seed Exchange: A little explanation of my plans for this blog

I'm starting a second blog which is very much a work in progress at this point but will be hopefully up and running this fall. Please take a moment to stop by and check it out, make suggestion and comment. Oh yes and please subscribe if you are interested in the seed exchange or want to follow the progress of the new blog. (To get there just click on the highlighted title below.)


Dale's Free Open Pollinated Seed Exchange: A little explanation of my plans for this blog: "This seed exchange isn't an attempt to reinvent the wheel so to speak I know there are several very good exchanges out there and I have us..."

The girls have turned into little Hens

I now hear hens clucking instead of chickens peeping, can a rooster crowing be far behind.

A stage with a pig driving a stake so they can add a fence, simple as can be!!

A stage with a pig driving a stake so they can add a fence, simple as can be!!, originally uploaded by Campobello Island.

I haven't seen one of these in action in years. I used to play on them when I was a kid, when they are not in use they pull them up on the beach. The hammer driving the large pole(stake) into the ocean floor is called a pig because it is made of pig iron and the floating platform is called a stage they are building a fence for a Herring Weir (Pronounced wear).

August in the garden

August in the garden, originally uploaded by Campobello Island.

August is always the busy month in the garden everything seems to mature at once and there are cucumbers to pickle and tomatoes to can and sauerkraut to make and this year it looks like a good crop so far. I'm very pleased with the cabbage, broccoli and Brussels Sprouts I guess the cool wet spring must have got them off to a good start. So far just green tomatoes but there are lots of them and I plan to make Green Tomato Chow Chow this year so they are a welcome sight.









I have made a good start on putting up my new Hoop House which is 16X20 and 8 feet high. Right now it is just the frame while I wait for some lumber to be delivered for the base board once that is installed it should progress quite quickly.

I have also started a lot of cool weather fall crops to grow in the Hoop House, it will be interesting to see how long our season can be extended with an unheated greenhouse, I hope long enough that I get a harvest from most of these seedlings of Brussels Sprouts, cabbage, cauliflower, broccoli, Chinese Cabbage, Kohlrabi, parsley, spinach, lettuce and Swiss chard.

Early August in the First Nations Style Three Sisters Permaculture Garden

Even though the coons got most of the corn the garden continues to grow and it looks like there will be a decent harvest of beans, pumpkins and squash. The permaculture aspects of the garden are paying off the wild plants and flowers are attracting lots of bees and pollinators to the garden.

They have some very strange idea of where to sleep.

They have some very strange idea of where to sleep., originally uploaded by Campobello Island.

I built them a roost with four levels and could hardly wait for them to start using it. Now they just use it as a ladder to get to the top of the wall and out under the eves. One is even roosting on top of the fan and I had to turn it off because I could hear the fan clicking on her toe nails. The bantam breeds might be able to continue this but the six standard size breeds including the Black Jersey Giant on top of the fan are going to find it hard once the are full grown. They might still be able to get in the rafters but I doubt if they will fit on the narrow ledge on top of the wall.

An orchid I guess. Can anyone name it? Correctly identified by two friends Carole and Joyce. Pyrola elliptica Shinleaf "White Wintergreen" Pyrolaceae (Wintergreen Family)

An orchid I guess. Can anyone name it?, originally uploaded by Campobello Island.

I found this growing on my property a few years ago and there are even more of them know I guess it is an orchid but I'm not sure. Can anyone help?

Time Lapse Bumble Bees in the Lavender Bed

Time Lapse Bumble Bees in the Lavender Bed, originally uploaded by Campobello Island.

The Lavender Bed is alive with bumble bees.

Late July in the Square Foot Garden

The wonderful weather that we have had in July has made a big difference in the garden. Lots of Broccoli this year and the Cabbage and Brussels Sprouts are coming along nicely too. Thanks to a comment posted on my last update I discovered that my soil has a Boron deficiency and an application of Boron has made a noticeable improvement in my Beets and Cucumbers. I also give you a look at the monster mystery squash plant that is growing out of my compost pile.

Chickens nine weeks old, lavender and bumble bees.

Just another short look at my little flock, the lavender bed in bloom and the bees.

Dehydrating Food Grapes, Garlic Scapes and Salmon Jerky

I just received an inexpensive food dehydrator and I'm having a lot of fun using it so far I have made raisins, dried Garlic Scapes and made Salmon Jerky . Right now I'm dehydrating blueberries. You can pay a lot of money for these things but I went with the cheapest I could find. $35.00 and it seems to be working very well. As summer goes on I plan to dry a lot of things from the garden such as peas, beans and herbs.

Bay of Fundy Tides at Campobello Island, N.B. Canada

I live on Campobello Island at the mouth of the Bay of Fundy which has the worlds highest recorded rise and fall of the tides. This is a time lapse taken over a 14 hour period which covers one and a half tide cycles.

The girls enjoying their Breakfast scratch feed.

I think the status is in being the highest

I think the status is in being the highest, originally uploaded by Campobello Island.

Ginger has made it to the top roost but she hasn't tried the top of the wall yet. The hen on the right on the top roost is Ginger. Tonight there are five on the top of the wall two of them are even peeking out from under the eves. I left a quarter inch space all along the eve and covered it with window screen, for ventilation, so maybe it is cooler out there. Whatever it is great fun checking ever night to see where they are roosting. I don't think the larger breeds will fit up on the wall much longer, they are only about half grown.

Eureka Ginger is on the roost with everyone else

Eureka Ginger is on the roost with everyone else, originally uploaded by Campobello Island.

I'm pleased to report that ginger was able to get up on the roost tonight with all of the other girls. I put a little makeshift ramp up to the bottom rung but I'm not sure that she used it. I will leave it there for a while just in case she needs it. Also as you can see we are now roosting on three levels Ginger and a friend on the third roost, eight more on the fourth roost and two of the bantams have out smarted everyone they have gone to the top of the wall next to the fan which is running. Maybe they like the breeze.

Time Lapse of my 3 Sisters First Nations style garden

This time lapse was taken between June 29, 2011 and July 18, 2011. The camera was watching one of the six mounds in my First Nations Style three sisters permaculture garden. During that time span the mound was attacked twice by raccoon the first attack tore down one of the two large corn plants and the second attack last night got the other corn plant so I decided to end the time lapse experiment at this point. Obviously I'm not going to get any corn but the pumpkins, squash and beans are still struggling on so there is still hope for a harvest of some sort. I will keep you updated on the progress. Hope you enjoy the time lapse.

Island Hopping in the Bay of Fundy

The title tells it all a day on the ferry boats in the beautiful Bay of Fundy.

The score is now 11 to 1

The score is now 11 to 1, originally uploaded by Campobello Island.

Last Ginger was the only one not sleeping up on the roost, all 11 on the top roost I guess I didn't need the other three roosts although I doubt if they all fit on one when they are full grown. There was a lot of squawking out of just one chicken when they were going to bed and I suspect it was her trying to get up on the roost. I don't think it is anything serious, this morning when I let them out she came running out with everyone else.

The score is 10 to 2.

The score is 10 to 2., originally uploaded by Campobello Island.

The score tonight is 10 to 2. The 3 hens who roosted for the first time last night have been joined by 7more and once again they are all together on the top roost. Just Ginger the Road Island Red and the Barred Rock Bantam on the ground. This little Bantam hangs around a lot with Ginger so I suspect it is just down there to keep her company. Ginger has developed a problem with her left leg and roosting might not be too comfortable for her right now. If she walks slowly you don't notice a problem but if she tries to run she has a noticeable limp. I caught her this afternoon and examined the leg I don't think anything is broken or dislocated so hopefully it is just a sprain or something that she will grow out of. An interesting thing happened when I was examining her it took her a while to settle down so I held her and talked to her then once I had finished my examination I just sat her on my lap so she could leave whenever she wanted to and she hauled her feet up under herself and settled in for a chat sat in my lap for almost 10 minutes.