It appears I need to do a bit of "adjusting" to my turkey containment idea. We came home this evening to find the turkeys in the orchard. I chased them back to their pen, which was pretty easy to do. But then not an hour later we look over the pasture to see turkeys in flight heading back to the orchard.
Apparently at this age the turkeys still have no trouble flying when there is a perceived need. They are beautiful when in flight, but its a disappointing site none the less.
When we come up with a new idea on this, we'll share it. for now, I will keep chasing them back when they "fly the coop".
Follow along our adventure as we make the transition from corporate city life to the world of natural farming. Each day brings a new experience and brings us to a deeper understanding about the life and spirit that made America great. At our farm we do our best to give the animals we raise a natural, free, happy, stressfree lifestyle. Our mission is to learn and share how to manage a farming operation that is both profitable and humane.
Sunday, October 3, 2010
Friday, October 1, 2010
Natural tick control needed again
I noticed this evening that there are a few ticks in the pig pen again. This is the first time any have shown up in almost 2 months, which is surprisingly good for southern Oregon. This seems to be tick central! It must this weeks unseasonable heat that brought them on.
Fortunately we now have an easy, effective, inexpensive and non-poisonous control method! We have a large bag (50 lbs) of food grade diatomaceous earth and a hand powder sprayer. The diatomaceous earth is apparently composed dried skeletons of tiny "pre-historic" water animals. Food grade means it is absolutely pure and therefore is OK to ingest by animal or human. It works through a mechanical method. When the extremely fine powder is "fogged" onto the pigs, the powder sticks to their hair and skin. When the tick crawl around it sticks to them. Any bug with an exoskeleton like ticks literally gets ground to bits by the sharp edges of the tiny crystal in the powder. They bugs actually fall apart or at least dry out within 2 days after treatment.
We dust the animals and the bedding and within 48 hours not a live tick is to be found. After a a few days we dust again to get any newly hatched eggs, and if necessary a third treatment in another few days. If the pigs ingest any it is actually healthy as it can kill any internal parasites and supplies minerals. It is actually recommended to mix a small amount is stored food to kill insects that would live in the food.
This product also works well to control fleas that attack dogs and cats. It is a great general purpose insect control product with no negative side effects on the animals or environment.
One word of warning: NEVER use the diatomaceous earth intended for filters such as swimming pool filters. This type is NOT the same product and can be very harmful to animals and humans. ONLY USE FOOD GRADE diatomaceous earth to control insects.
Fortunately we now have an easy, effective, inexpensive and non-poisonous control method! We have a large bag (50 lbs) of food grade diatomaceous earth and a hand powder sprayer. The diatomaceous earth is apparently composed dried skeletons of tiny "pre-historic" water animals. Food grade means it is absolutely pure and therefore is OK to ingest by animal or human. It works through a mechanical method. When the extremely fine powder is "fogged" onto the pigs, the powder sticks to their hair and skin. When the tick crawl around it sticks to them. Any bug with an exoskeleton like ticks literally gets ground to bits by the sharp edges of the tiny crystal in the powder. They bugs actually fall apart or at least dry out within 2 days after treatment.
We dust the animals and the bedding and within 48 hours not a live tick is to be found. After a a few days we dust again to get any newly hatched eggs, and if necessary a third treatment in another few days. If the pigs ingest any it is actually healthy as it can kill any internal parasites and supplies minerals. It is actually recommended to mix a small amount is stored food to kill insects that would live in the food.
This product also works well to control fleas that attack dogs and cats. It is a great general purpose insect control product with no negative side effects on the animals or environment.
One word of warning: NEVER use the diatomaceous earth intended for filters such as swimming pool filters. This type is NOT the same product and can be very harmful to animals and humans. ONLY USE FOOD GRADE diatomaceous earth to control insects.
Building the Solexx Greenhouse
We are now about 7 hours total into building the new Solexx Greenhouse. There are LOTS of pieces! Its much liking building a full size structure out of lincoln logs!
Overall I am pleased thus far with the construction. Virtually all of the frame is made of a really strong and hard non-bendable composite material. Only the foor frames are PVC to allow them to bend across the top. The connections are very sturdy metal pieces with a thumbcrew to hold each composite pipe in place. As you can see in the pics below the frame is very strong!
It will likely take a couple of weeks until this is ready to use, expeically working only evenings after the "day job". What we accomplished thus far in two shifts is building hte frame of the front half. We still need to build the duplicate back half and the connecting walkway, four doors, then put it place and add the floor and covering. Its a lot of work but will be worth it in the end. This thing has lots of room inside and is warranted for 10 years!
Here are some pics of the last 2 evenings of work.
Overall I am pleased thus far with the construction. Virtually all of the frame is made of a really strong and hard non-bendable composite material. Only the foor frames are PVC to allow them to bend across the top. The connections are very sturdy metal pieces with a thumbcrew to hold each composite pipe in place. As you can see in the pics below the frame is very strong!
It will likely take a couple of weeks until this is ready to use, expeically working only evenings after the "day job". What we accomplished thus far in two shifts is building hte frame of the front half. We still need to build the duplicate back half and the connecting walkway, four doors, then put it place and add the floor and covering. Its a lot of work but will be worth it in the end. This thing has lots of room inside and is warranted for 10 years!
Here are some pics of the last 2 evenings of work.
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| Someone left an extra piece here! |
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| I know this goes in here somewhere! |
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| The supervisor looking over our work. |
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| Almost done! |
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| Weight Testing! |
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| Does this double as a jungle gym? |
Whew.. how many pages are left in these instructions?
By the way... While we are working on the greenhouse the PigCam is turned off becasue I need the power cord to run the power screwdriver.
Moving deeper into understanding plants
Now that our animals are mostly settled and growing nicely, it is time to turn some attention to the growing of plants, specifically fruits and vegetables. The Farm that we ultimately wish to create will be based on both plants and animals in our own controlled ecosystem where all species are interdependent and coexisting in a set of symbiotic relationships. This seems to be the true nature of a successful farm.
The growing of plants is perhaps even more important than the raising of animals, since animals life fundamentally relies on plants for existence. The health of nutrition of plants is one step below the health of animals in the food chain.
My research so far has been into the history of modern farming of plants (which seems wrought with as much problem as the modern raising of animals). There are fundamental problems that I see already in the commonly accepted and taught approach to raising plants. At the root of all the problem is a similar problem as that seen int eh raising of farm animals, shortsighted and narrow vision of nature by man. I am becoming convinced that the last few generations of mankind (at least in America) are suffering from a sever case of more information than we have the wisdom to apply.
Here's some of the problems in plant growth discovered so far:
A generation ago, valid science conducted by a respected scientist virtually proved that many of man's ailments could be cured through the proper treatment of the plants that provide for man's existence. Serious health problem such as cancer, hardening of the arteries, even genetic dispositions to particular diseases were corrected through careful and natural raising of plant food. Although published, this information has gone mostly unnoticed in today's "modern world" for whatever reason, but it is still as valid as ever.
To heal America, we have to heal her land. It is truly that simple. At Little Sprouts Farm we are dedicated to rediscovering these truths and learn to apply them in today's world to make a positive impact on our health, our environment, and have a wonderful life while doing it!
Stay tuned for more!
The growing of plants is perhaps even more important than the raising of animals, since animals life fundamentally relies on plants for existence. The health of nutrition of plants is one step below the health of animals in the food chain.
My research so far has been into the history of modern farming of plants (which seems wrought with as much problem as the modern raising of animals). There are fundamental problems that I see already in the commonly accepted and taught approach to raising plants. At the root of all the problem is a similar problem as that seen int eh raising of farm animals, shortsighted and narrow vision of nature by man. I am becoming convinced that the last few generations of mankind (at least in America) are suffering from a sever case of more information than we have the wisdom to apply.
Here's some of the problems in plant growth discovered so far:
- mono-cultures - raising an abundance of one crop without the offsetting influence of other species
- belief that plants only take 3 nutrients from the soil (NPK) and nothing else matters
- hybridization of plant genetics to suit man's shortsighted goals (genetic inbreeding of plants) at the expense of nutritional value
- lack of application of the system nature has to renew and preserve the soil
- application of chemical pesticides to control the bugs that nature sends to attack unhealthy plants
- removal of weeds intended to help regenerate the soil
A generation ago, valid science conducted by a respected scientist virtually proved that many of man's ailments could be cured through the proper treatment of the plants that provide for man's existence. Serious health problem such as cancer, hardening of the arteries, even genetic dispositions to particular diseases were corrected through careful and natural raising of plant food. Although published, this information has gone mostly unnoticed in today's "modern world" for whatever reason, but it is still as valid as ever.
To heal America, we have to heal her land. It is truly that simple. At Little Sprouts Farm we are dedicated to rediscovering these truths and learn to apply them in today's world to make a positive impact on our health, our environment, and have a wonderful life while doing it!
Stay tuned for more!
Thursday, September 30, 2010
12 little chicks so far
There are a dozen little chicks in the nursery so far. There seems to be four different types here. As they grow older we will be able to see what breeds they are.
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