Another Day on the Homestead

It might be just another day on the homestead, but this one is only 43* so far! BRRR! How easily I get use to temps in the 50's. We have frost warnings for tonight and I hate that as my apple trees and lilacs are in bloom or budded. A heavy frost does them all in. My daffodils are done for the season. I hate that short daffy season! At least the trees are a greenish tinge in the distance and the grass near to needing mowing.

I've been pulling weeds from my garden plots and tossing them to the chickens. They LOVE that. If I walk anywhere near the pen they are all at the fence begging and looking at me with hopes for a treat. After all, grab some grass and run and the chase is on. Get a bug out of the dirt and roots and the whole gang is on your tail chasing you. It's a regular chicken derby! They seem to realize that it's also milk season and they are at their gate watching me and hoping I'll give them a bit of milk too. Being the 3 bucklings left, I did give them about a cup of milk poured on their grain yesterday and they were estatic about that too. The nice thing is that it helps the adhere to the finer particles of the ground feed to the whole grains and makes it easier for them to swallow. I've always wondered how they can stand to eat all the finely ground feed. It would leave my mouth terribly dry while trying to swallow! So I like when I can give them some milk to wash it down.

Patches has moved out to the barn with the rest of the kids. He seems very happy to have them to run and play with. I was hoping to get the other 2 bucklings to their new home this week. I'm not sure I can get that done as I've not caught up with the gal. She's quite busy helping hospice with volunteer home respite care for some families. It's very quiet without any goat kids in the house. In a way it's nice, but then I kind of miss them too. They are just out to the barn and yard so it's not like I have far to go to visit them!

Being the beginning of May, it's almost time for me to start planting. I need to finish up the weeding and preparing the garden beds to get that done. I'm hoping to get some planting started this week! I want to get my squash, chard and some spinach seeds in to start with. That usually makes getting the rest going easier for some reason!

The last incubator hatch was only 3 chicks. One hasn't been doing well and will be put down. The other 2 are going to the barn tomorrow. I've been leaving the light off now but the house is warmer as I still have to start an evening fire. So I'll take them out tomorrow which is suppose to be warmer out and the night temp better too. I'm sure they are both little roos. I have chicks starting to hatch now in the incubator and they need the brooder. I sure hope I have a much better hatch this time!

My 2 turkey hens have gone broody but they have mostly chicken eggs under them. The chickens keep going in and laying with the turkey hens in the crate! There will only be a couple turkey eggs there and I hope they are fertile being the tom was injured and moved in the barn so the hens would quit pecking on him. I sure hope some of the turkey eggs will hatch in the incubators as there won't be many, if any, out side! If nothing else, it maybe quite cute to see a couple turkey hens with the chicks instead of them having poults!

I also have a couple hens who have gone broody and are sharing a nest and eggs!

Yes, it's a busy Spring time on the ole homestead!