We have new additions to the homestead. I have had chickens on a regular basis, but our "lovely" Pyr likes to kill them. He is contained now, and I am again free to have chickens. Prairie Husband (PH) and I will be raising chickens to butcher. Like a good little PW I have been wanting to do this for awhile. With the rising food prices, it is proving to be a must at this time.
We bought an incubator today to hatch out some chicks. We have an assorted flock of Rhode Island Red, Buff Orpingtons and two little bantys. The "plan" is to hatch out the chicks, raise them to a good size, then butcher and can the meat.
Our birds currently free range. That wasn't in the "plan", but they escaped from the original coop, and I haven't caught them yet. Trying to lure them into the new coop is proving to be a comedy of errors. Two hens will go in the coop, but the remaining hens and rooster, sleep nearby. This is preventing me from locking them up. I need to consult my "Super Prairie Wife Guide to Tricking Chickens" to find out how to get these little buggers in the coop. I'd love for them to free range, but too many critters around here like the taste of chicken (dogs, possum, racoons, badgers, and cats (not the local mountain lion, I think they like bigger prey).
PH is taking over the garden this year. Which is a big relief, because this PW has a black thumb. Black Thumb is highly contagious, especially to vegetation that we would like to eat. Black thumb normally causes produce related vegetation to wither and die, with no hope of resucitation. Since we plan to can a lot this year, to keep us in food this coming year, something drastic had to be done. So, the garden was turned over to PH, who is a many generation farmer (at heart), and a certified horticulturist from a college and everything!
Our eldest PS (Prairie Son) has luckily inherited his father's gene's, and is learning at the feet of his PP (Prairie PaPa). My FIL grew up on a farm in Alabama. His father grew cotton, plus they had the house garden that they canned up. In the 30's and 40's, if you didn't grow it or raise it, you likely didn't eat it.
My FIL is a wealth of knowledge, which I try to tap, but he isn't too forthcoming.
PS1 is currently living with his grandparents and caring for them in their later years. He planted a large garden for me there, as they don't have goats. So my main food source is about 10 miles from here. We planted potatoes here, as well as, two different types of green beans, cantalope, cucumbers, and mescullin. PH and I will be adding additional items, and planting subsequent crops this year, all in the hope of canning at least 200 quarts of food. I'll let you know how THAT works out.
