Adventures of an urban homesteader growing greens, preserving the harvest and tending a backyard barnyard
This marks my 600th post about our little homestead and this morning we received a special, rare gift to help us celebrate: a little blue egg from a very old hen. Pearl, an Americana, was part of our original flock of hens that moved into our backyard in 2007. She was at least two years old back then, which makes her at least nine years
It is mighty quiet on the homestead right now and I’m enjoying every chilly moment. It’s my one time of year to get ahead of the garden. Most of my chores of late include cleaning out dead leaves, setting up new trellis for maturing vines, and working the compost. But there are a few things to harvest when I look carefully. Our onions are best
Happy new year friends!ย It’s that time of year when we take stock of what we have and dream about what will be. That includes the homestead – is it growing in the right direction and is everyone as happy and healthy as they can be? Today was the perfect time to ask that question about our backyard flock of chickens. We currently have eight hens
The days are growing darker and there is a bite in the morning breeze. Before the first frost hits, which for Portlanders is around November 15th, the homestead needs to be prepped for winter. We have had some fierce rain and wind storms already, so when we had a clear weekend I jumped on my garden to-do list. As we all know, vegetable plants suck
Having backyard livestock is a joy, but it’s not all eggs and sunshine. Chickens, ducks and other backyard livestock can attract flies, mice, rats and other undesirable critters. The rodents love the free food, so keeping poultry feed in a hanging feeder off the ground can help. Dealing with flies, however, is a bit harder to control. Disclaimer: Don’t read this post while eating your
Our new flock has settled in comfortably to life in our city garden. The older chickens are still separated from the younger ones, but that will soon end as we combine the two flocks into one. The young gals are about four months old now, except for the bantam who was fully grown when we got her. The bantam is officially the most productive layer
It was strange and sad not hearing the quacking of ducks outside our living room window when we re-homed them a couple weeks ago. I realize that most people would find quacking outside the living room window incredibly odd, but that just became the new norm here. Our plan was to replace the ducks with more chickens, adding to our existing flock. I am happy
I am fortunate to live in the mild climate of the Pacific Northwest, but even we have had some pretty chilly days of late. When the temperature dips around or below freezing, the backyard birds need a little extra care. There are water warming trays on the market for backyard livestock, which come in handy in a cold climate. I have never quite gotten around
The duck and chicken coops get cleaned once a week, but a deep clean a couple times a year will help keep pests and disease at bay. Our weekly cleaning process involves raking out used bedding, cleaning out food and water dishes, refilling grit and oyster shell, and laying down fresh dry bedding. Dirt and grime builds up over time though, so this twice annual
