The bugs are here. Tiny gnats, big flies, spiders, moths, even small grasshoppers – the bugs have reappeared after winter’s retreat. Well, maybe winter hasn’t fully retreated yet – there’s snow in the forecast for next Sunday…but it’s also supposed to be 48 degrees. The emergence of bugs means the chickens and ducks will eat as many creeping, crawling creatures as they can catch, and be less reliant on their premade feed. The ducks are worm, tick, and fly-eating machines, too. It’s in their nature: ducks and chickens are omnivorous, and bugs are a great protein source.
A downside to warmer weather and the reappearance of bugs is that most of them seem to bite. In no time, we’ll be sporting welts, bumps, and scabs all over any exposed skin (especially legs) from mosquito bites and other bloodthirsty insects. Continue reading “Spring Showers Bring…Bugs”
When you buy bread at the grocery store, you probably think it contains flour, water, salt, sugar, butter, and yeast, right? That’s really all that’s needed to create a nice loaf of bread, but there are actually a lot of additives in store-bought bread. Check the label.
Basically, the ingredients are mixed (sugar dissolved) and then chilled. Once it’s chilled from a couple of hours to overnight, it’s poured into the ice cream maker’s special bowl, which has been pre-chilled in the freezer. Turn it on, let it mix for 20 minutes, and viola! Soft serve ice cream…sans carrageenan. If you prefer hard ice cream, it firms up with time in the freezer. With summer coming, the possibilities are endless: peach, strawberry, blackberry…all sound delicious. 
The kits can now exit and enter the nest boxes at will, and are typically out of the boxes in the morning. In just a few days, we’ll remove the nest boxes entirely. That means the poor does won’t have respite from the always-hungry kits, and those youngsters are relentless.
The PRIME (Processing Revival and Intrastate Meat Exemption) Act is a step toward allowing consumers to obtain the food of their choosing right from the source; specifically, meat. Currently, in order for small farmers to sell poultry (for example) to consumers, it must be processed at a USDA-inspected slaughterhouse. This creates stress on the animals often being transported long distances to the facility; additional costs for the farmer; and removes the farmer’s ability to employ the most low-stress, humane slaughter method.
The rabbit kits are 2 weeks old now and very active. Well, they actually sleep a lot (still) but since their eyes are open, they can often be seen peeking out from the nest box, looking to get into mischief.
It’s been warm here – upper 60’s to 70’s. Sounds comfortable, right? Sure, and it would be ok if it was late May or June. It’s not, though – it’s only March. Our big old silver maple is showing buds and will soon sprout leaves. The grass is also turning green.