Is Turmeric Good for Chickens?

Post author By Lisa Steele
Post date January 15, 2015
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Is Turmeric Good for Chickens? - Photo by Lisa Steele (HobbyFarms.com)

Lately, it seems that everyone is talking about turmeric. It’s the new “it” spice. Of course, turmeric has been around practically since the beginning of time and is most commonly used to color and flavor curry and mustard, but it also has some wonderful health benefits for both humans and animals.

Turmeric is in the ginger family and the rhizome, aka dried root,is the usable part of the plant. It contains curcumin, which accounts for turmeric’s bright orange-yellow color. Curcumin has been credited with everything from preventing heart attacks to fighting cancer, but as with much herbal and holistic medicine, few actual scientific studies have been done.

A Natural Healer

One thing that seems to be agreed upon, however, is turmeric’s anti-inflammatory properties. Several years ago, when our aging German Shepherd was suffering hip problems common to the breed, our vet, knowing I leaned more towards natural treatments, recommended adding turmeric to her diet as an alternative to the cortisone or steroid shots he normally would give to dogs with joint pain. We started sprinkling some turmeric onto her food and it seemed to reduce the swelling, giving her some relief from the constant pain.

These same anti-inflammatory properties are beneficial to other animals, as well. Chickens and ducks can be prone to leg and foot injuries from hard landings off the roost, as well as bumblefoot, a staph infection that can lead to foot and leg swelling. Turmeric is also thought to aid in the treatment of baby chicks or chickens suffering wry neck, a condition that causes the bird to be unable to hold its head up, by providing Vitamins B and E.

Turmeric also aids in digestion and helps maintain healthy skin, eyes and brain functions. It’s a powerful antioxidant and antiviral, which helps boost the immune system. The National Institute of Health suggests that adding turmeric as a dietary supplement can increase resistance to avian necrotic enteritis.

Applied topically, turmeric is a natural antiseptic, offering antibacterial properties, which also speeds healing and helps repair damaged skin. Making a salve of turmeric and honey—another natural wound healer I always keep in my chicken first-aid kit—could be beneficial when applied to a chicken’s injuries from pecking, a predator attack, a cut or infection.

Safe Feeding

Despite its many benefits, take care in feeding turmeric to your farm’s poultry. In excessive amounts, it’s a blood thinner and can slow clotting. The recommended daily dosage is 1 teaspoon for every 10 pounds of the animal’s weight. (An average standard-sized, full-grown layer hen weighs approximately 4 to 7 pounds, so 1/3 to 1/2 teaspoon per hen would likely be a safe dose.)

Make a Turmeric Paste

Is Turmeric Good for Chickens? - Photo by Lisa Steele (HobbyFarms.com)

Studies have shown that mixing turmeric with coconut oil and fresh cracked black pepper can help increase the absorption rate of the curcumin. Black pepper contains a compound called piperine, which increases nutrient absorption in general, and the coconut oil coats the turmeric, keeping it from being destroyed as quickly by stomach acids.

Make a paste by whisking the turmeric into some warmed coconut oil. Add in some pepper, and then let it cool. Feed the paste free-choice to your flock. If they aren’t keen on the paste, you can also mix some of it into a pan of warm oatmeal or scrambled eggs to feed as a treat. Alternatively, you can mix some turmeric right into their feed, in a ratio of 0.5 percent turmeric to feed.

The use of turmeric, as with other spices and herbs, has not been extensively studied relating to chickens or other animals, but all signs seem to point to the successful treatment of inflammation, as well as other various health benefits gained by incorporating this spice into your chicken keeping. As with all animal care, consult with your vet before administering any treatment—herbal or otherwise—if you have questions or concerns.

Learn about other herbs from HobbyFarms.com:

Tags chickens

Crops & Gardening

15 Tips for Growing Perfect Eggplants

Post author By Jessica Walliser
Post date January 15, 2015
No Comments on 15 Tips for Growing Perfect Eggplants

15 Tips for Growing Perfect Eggplants - Photo by Jessica Walliser (HobbyFarms.com)

Eggplants are a staple crop in many gardens, but growing them isn’t always easy. Members of the tomato family, they’re subject to many of the same diseases. However, if eggplants are on your garden short-list for this year, here are some of my favorite tips to help you grow beautiful fruits.

1. If you’re growing eggplants from seed, start the seeds indoors under lights eight to 10 weeks before the last expected spring frost. Starting the seeds too early can lead to leggy transplants.

2. Bottom heat helps speed the germination of eggplant seeds. Use seedling heat mats beneath each flat of seeds and leave them in place until the plants produce their first true leaves, then remove all bottom heat to prevent leggy growth.

3. Most eggplant varieties require a fairly long growing season, with larger selections taking upwards of 75 days to fully mature. Be sure to select varieties that are appropriate for your region. Northern gardeners should pick varieties with a shorter maturation rate.

4. Like other warm-season crops, including tomatoes and peppers, eggplant seedlings should not be moved out into the garden until the daytime temperatures regularly reach up into the 60s and 70s, and nights remain above 50 degrees F.

5. Before transplanting your eggplants into the garden, work organic matter, such as well-aged manure or compost, into the soil. Eggplants grow best when the soil pH ranges between 5.5 and 6.0.

6. Locate your eggplants in an area where they’ll receive a minimum of six to eight hours of full sun per day. Too much shade leads to leggy plants and minimal fruit set.

7. Eggplants prefer warm soil. You can speed up their growth, by laying black plastic over your garden soil a few weeks before planting or mulching the plants with dark compost.

8. The first few flowers may drop off of each plant and fail to produce, but the remaining flowers will each yield a single fruit. Eggplant flowers are self-pollinating, meaning they don’t need insects for pollination to occur. If you have poor fruit set, hand-pollinate the flowers to help increase production. Use an electric toothbrush to vibrate to flower stems (not the flowers themselves) for a few seconds each to help the pollen move within the flowers.

9. The more frequently the fruits are harvested, the greater the fruit set. Pick eggplants daily.

10. During flowering and fruit development, be sure to supply the plants with adequate moisture, about 1 inch of water per week either via rainfall or supplemental irrigation.

11. Fertilize weekly with an organic water-soluble fertilizer, such as kelp emulsion, fish hydroslate or compost tea.

12. Protect young eggplant plants from flea beetle damage with a kaolin clay-based spray, neem or spinosad. Row covers can also be effective against flea beetles. Mature plants can withstand significant damage will little ill effects, but young plants can easily die from excessive flea beetle damage.

13. The fruits are ready to harvest when the skin is glossy and the pad of your thumb does not leave an impression on the skin.

14. When cutting the fruit from the plant, leave the calyx and an inch or so of stem intact to prevent rot.

15. Harvested fruit can be stored between 50 and 55 degrees F for up to two weeks before use.

Get more gardening tips from HobbyFarms.com:

How to Grow Beans
How to Grow Tomatoes
How to Grow Brassicas
How to Grow Okra
How to Grow Pumpkins

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Tags eggplants, garden, Lists

Recipes

3 Ways to Start Enjoying Fermented Vegetables

Post author By John D. Ivanko
Post date January 14, 2015
No Comments on 3 Ways to Start Enjoying Fermented Vegetables

We farmers sometimes treat our soil better than we treat our own bodies. We nurture our growing beds with compost, cover crops and other healthy amendments, but too often, our health takes a backseat thanks to busy farm schedules.

The slower months of winter offer the perfect time block to rekindle efforts to your wellbeing. An easy way to do this is to add fermented foods into your daily diet.

“Fermentation may be all the popular rage right now, but it really is one of the oldest, most historic ways of keep our body systems healthy and add some of those ‘good bugs,’ the healthy bacteria, back in,” says Angelica Hollstadt, owner of Angelica’s Garden, a 44 acre farm and fermented-foods business in northern Wisconsin.

If you dig back in history, just about every culture has a form of fermented food that regularly appeared at meals, from German sauerkraut to Greek yogurts. Hollstadt crafts a variety of live-fermented vegetables in her on-farm kitchen, including kimchi, a traditional vegetable ferment from Korea, and kvass, an Eastern European fermented root beverage made with grains, vegetables and other flavorings. She began exploring fermented foods as a way to address digestive health issues she experiences.

“Finding fermented vegetables was truly my saving grace,” Hollstadt says. “Cultured vegetables provide an array of beneficial bacteria and enzymes that aid in digestion. Once I started eating just a small amount daily, my health improved and I developed a palate for the taste and said to myself, ‘Holy moly this is good stuff.’ That motivated me to start the business, as I wanted others to experience the same healthy properties.”

But even enthusiasts admit fermented foods don’t have the same appeal as a chocolate cupcake—at least not initially. However, by approaching fermented foods with an open mind and health-motivated curiosity, and you just find yourself craving them. Here are some tips from Hollstadt to get started with a daily fermented-food routine.

1. Start with What’s Familiar

“If someone is new to ferments, it’s best to start with a more familiar food like sauerkraut or cultured dills,” Hollstadt recommends. To readily experiment and see what you like, see what live cultured foods are available in your area. As interest in fermented food grows, just about every area of the country has it’s own “Angelica’s Garden.” Look for ferments in the refrigerated section of your health-foods store or co-op, as shelf-stable foods will have lost the probiotic health benefits.

2. Take Two Bites

Remember, a little goes a long way with fermented foods. You don’t need to eat a lot of reap the benefits. “A daily forkful or two of cultured vegetables will contribute to overall health,” Hollstadt explains. “Sometimes more is better if one is feeling under the weather.”

Think of your fermented food addition as small, crunchy side salad and you may find, as Lisa did, that you come to expect the flavor as part of your meal. After an overabundant cabbage crop last season, Lisa took on making fermented sauerkraut. She started just adding one large spoonful to her lunch plate and while she admits the first couple of bites didn’t rock her taste buds, after a few days she found herself yearning and looking for that salty crunch.

3. Make Your Own

Once you identify what you like and want to explore fermentation further, try making your own ferments. “For folks starting their own fermentation projects, I would suggest looking at Sandor Katz’s book Wild Fermentation,” Hollstadt says. “That offers a comprehensive look at fermentation basics and gives good recipes.”

Fermenting may be the a hot foodie trend, but we share Hollstadt’s belief that it’s not a fad but here to stay.

“People are looking at alternatives to modern medicine for wellness,” she says. “Cultured veggies provide many great health-promoting properties. I think the cultured vegetable revolution is at its infancy and will continue to grow.”

Start making your own fermented foods with these recipes:

How to Make Sauerkraut
Ferment Your Own Vinegar
How to Make Yogurt at Home
Lacto-Fermented Cranberry Salad
How to Ferment Everything

Tags ferment, fermentation, fermented food, fermenting, Lists, sauerkraut, yogurt

Crops & Gardening

Dreading Winter? Grow Parsley (and Other Crops) Indoors

Post author By Dawn Combs
Post date January 14, 2015
No Comments on Dreading Winter? Grow Parsley (and Other Crops) Indoors

Dreading Winter? Grow Parsley (and Other Crops) Indoors - Photo by Crishna Simmons/Flickr (HobbyFarms.com)

The cheery holidays have come and gone, and our crisp white snow is turning to muddy slush in the bleak days of January that remain. If you’re like me, the last few forlorn Christmas cookies are in the cupboard, and you’re trying to encourage yourself to get off the sofa and do that new yoga workout you promised to do. Blah!

It’s so easy to get pulled down this time of year. The holiday letdown leaves us with little anticipation. This past weekend my daughter had her birthday party, and it’s the last holiday we’ll celebrate for some time.

She’s 4 and runs around the house excited about anything and nothing all at the same time. I so appreciate our friends who come to my children’s parties. They’re kind and generous with their thoughtful gifts, but this year, we kept the party small and had a really wonderful time. My daughter wound up with some very fun and educational toys that were perfect and didn’t add to my now free-from-holiday-clutter home. One friend brought something in particular that has become a gift to me as much as my daughter and is sure to brighten up these last days of winter as we wait for the ground to thaw.

Winter Gardening

Dreading Winter? Grow Parsley (and Other Crops) Indoors - Photo by Dawn Combs (HobbyFarms.com)

This week I will be salving my green thumb with a child’s window garden set. What a great item to sell for a child’s gift! This set of three pots comes complete with its own soil, seeds and trowel. It even has it’s own coasters so you don’t soak your furniture when you water. I think this will be a new tradition in our house.

There are many flowers and herbs that can be grown in a windowsill in the winter to brighten up your house and your mood. This particular set contains basil, zinnia and sunflower seeds. I can already imagine the cheeriness emanating from the flowers as I pass by. I can taste the bright, fresh basil in our evening meal.

I was so inspired by this gift that I sent my husband rummaging through our seed bin. Do you have one? I can’t be the only one who keeps five seeds in the bottom of a packet that weren’t planted, can I? Anyway, we have some great seeds. I am particularly keen to grow some parsley.

Indoor Parsley

Parsley (Petroselinum crispum) is particularly nice to grow indoors. It comes up easily from seed that has been soaked for 24 hours before planting. Once it gets going, you can cut a bit here and there on an almost constant basis. Keep it in a sunny, warm location and water it properly for a lush crop all winter long.

If you have a house water softener, be careful that you aren’t using the water from your faucet to irrigate. In very short order, your plants will die off from the salt overload. Instead, collect snow to melt, set a bucket outside for rainwater or simply get water out of an outside faucet that bypasses your softener.

Parsley is rich in vitamins A, B and C. It’s a digestive aid and natural detoxifier. It’s vitamin profile tells us that it is a support for our immune system—just what we need at this time of year! Only those who are pregnant or nursing need avoid large amounts of parsley on a daily basis. I love to add this fresh plant to my smoothies. Try it, and see if you don’t feel it’s green brightness come over you immediately, lifting you passed the dreaded January doldrums.

Get more indoor growing help from HobbyFarms.com:

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Tags indoor gardening, prescription gardener, seed-starting, winter

Urban Farming

Rosemary Spiced Nuts

Rosemary Spiced Nuts - Photo by Judith Hausman (UrbanFarmOnline.com)

Do you ever find yourself reaching for a salty snack, but cringe that eating the bag of potato chips in the cabinet will cause you to renege on your new year’s resolutions? Nuts are a healthy alternative to the greasy, overly salted snacks found in grocery store aisles, and this recipe, which includes a bit of sweet, salt and spice, is completely addictive.

While I like the combination of ingredients used in this recipe, there’s room for creativity. Customize the nuts to your own palate and incorporate the herbs you saved and dried from your garden this summer. Other flavorings to try include dried thyme or sage, grated lemon or orange rind, or ground cinnamon.

It’s often cheaper to make the nut mix yourself than to buy “mixed nuts.” Use whatever you prefer: Walnuts, cashews, almonds and hazelnuts are all delicious. I like to start with unsalted ones so I can add the amount of salt I like, but roasted or raw nuts don’t seem to make a difference in the recipe. If you add sunflower or pumpkin seeds add them near the end of the pan-roast, as they can burn more easily. Dried fruit, such as cherries, currants, date pieces or yellow raisins, make a natural pairing with the nuts, as well. Add any dried fruits after you turn off the heat to keep them from becoming hard or dried out.

I often serve the nuts along side a bowl of black olives that I’ve dressed up with hot-pepper flakes, orange and lemon peel, and a sprinkle of oregano and thyme. With these two speedy nibbles, you’ll have a fast, savory cocktail hour ready in a jiffy. The nuts even make a much-appreciated hostess gift.

Yield: about 2 cups

Ingredients

2 T. butter
2 T. brown sugar
1/2 tsp. kosher or sea salt (Omit if using salted nuts.)
1/2 tsp. hot chili powder or smoked paprika
1/2 tsp. cumin
2 cups unsalted nuts and seeds, roasted or raw
1 tsp. rosemary leaves

Preparation

Melt the butter in a sauté pan and mix in the sugar and salt. Add cumin, chili powder and nuts, and toss to coat. Cook over low heat for 5 to 7 minutes, stirring the nuts continuously to coat them evenly and prevent burning. Let cool briefly, and mix in the rosemary leaves. Cool completely before serving.

Upcycled Pillowcase Tote

Ask any farmers’ market regular and you’ll hear that reusable shopping bags aren’t just green, they’re far more convenient to carry than their disposable counterparts. They hold more, are much more durable, and are far more comfortable to carry than plastic bags cutting into your hands.

If you are anything like me, you have no shortage of reusable bags lying around, but I am in love with this stylish, upcylced pillowcase tote and can’t help but think of it as the grown-up cousin to the trick-or-treat candy sacks we all lugged around as kids. Whether you want to make one for yourself, for a friend or to sell at your market booth, you’ll find they’re a great way to use up old linens take up space in your hall closet.

To make this low/no-sew tote you’ll need:

a pillowcase (I used the plain ones I had on hand, but this project would be adorable with a cute vintage floral pillowcase.)
fabric scissors
PDF template
water-soluble pen
bias tape
sewing machine and supplies, or heat and bond adhesive

Step 1

Lay out the pillowcase on an even cutting surface, and fold in half lengthwise.

Step 2

Print and assemble the cutting template.

Step 3

Lay the template at the top of the pillowcase, with the straight, flat edge facing the side seams. The point where you start cutting should be touching the top folded corner. Trace the cutting line with your water-soluble pen so it washes off.

Step 4

Along the transferred line, cut through the four layers of folded fabric.

Step 5

If using a sewing machine, hem the raw edges. Otherwise, finish the raw edges with bias tape and heat-and-bond adhesive. To attach the heat-and-bond, first trim it to the same width as the opened bias tape, and iron it on with the adhesive side facing the tape. Cut two strips of bias tape long enough to line the edges.

Once the heat-and-bond has cooled, remove the paper backing, fold the bias tape around the raw edges and adhere it with an iron, following along the edges until all raw cuts are covered. It helps to start on one side of the top point and finish along the other, trim overhang and repeat along the other side of what will be the armhole.

Step 6

Once the raw edges are finished, gather the two points of fabric and tie them together with simple square knot leaving about 1 to 2 inches of overhanging points.

Tip for Use

This bag folds up easily and can be tossed into a purse or car trunk to have on hand for your next shopping trip.

Tags craft, farmers' market, sew, The Craft Hub, tote

News

Poop is Pollution, Wisconsin Says

Post author By Dani Yokhna
Post date January 13, 2015
No Comments on Poop is Pollution, Wisconsin Says

Poop is Pollution, Wisconsin Says - Photo by John Loo/Flickr (HobbyFarms.com)

What a load of crap Wisconsin farmers are dealing with. The state’s highest court ruled manure found in wells neighboring a farm field as a pollutant—rather than a farm resource. General farm-insurance policies tend to rule out pollutants from their coverage, so if the manure from your farm causes a problem for someone else, you can be held responsible with no insurance safety net to catch you. You can fall into—or up, as they say—”Shit’s Creek” without a paddle.

The Wisconsin Supreme Court came to this decision because of a lawsuit from 2011 that alleged dairy farmers sprayed cow manure on a field and contaminated neighbors’ wells. (Incidentally, the farmers had a nutrient-management plan designed by a certified crop agronomist and approved by their county land and water conservation department.) The farmers’ insurance company said it didn’t have to pay because manure is a pollutant. The Wisconsin Court of Appeals said the insurance company did have to pay because manure is not a pollutant, but just now, the state supreme court reversed that decision. Imagine being the farmer who’s been put on this roller-coaster ride!

Poop: Friend or Foe?

The lawsuit points out that farmers don’t view manure as a pollutant, rather as a valuable resource. At this moment, it’s a giant liability. Now that Wisconsin has taken this stand, other states can follow. The insurance company doesn’t cover manure-related damage under the farm-chemical clause in its policy, because manure isn’t a chemical. And it doesn’t cover manure contamination of a well because at that point, manure becomes a pollutant.

I see where the insurance company is coming from—water pollution is caused by pollutants—but to not have manure covered in some form under a farm policy seems pretty ridiculous. Reading the language in the policy, though, it’s kind of obvious that manure isn’t covered. It says the company doesn’t pay for bodily injury or property damage if it results from “the actual, alleged, or threatened discharge, dispersal, seepage, migration, release, or escape of ‘pollutants’ into or upon land, water, or air.” And it defines “pollutant” as “any solid, liquid, gaseous, thermal, or radioactive irritant or contaminant, including acids, alkalis, chemicals, fumes, smoke, soot, vapor, and waste. ‘Waste’ includes materials to be recycled, reclaimed, or reconditioned, as well as disposed of.”

Yep, we do refer to manure as waste.

Check Your Insurance!

We’re farmers, not lawyers. (Well, I’d imagine some of you are lawyers, but overall … ) This makes it really important for someone who understands the law and understands farming to look at your farm business documents, especially your insurance policies. These ag-lawyer/lawyer-farmer types are not always easy to come by, but you might know of one in your area, or you can find help through the American Agricultural Law Association, Farmers’ Legal Action Group or Farm-to-Consumer Legal Defense Fund.

Also, be smart about your manure management. (I’m not saying the farmers in this case weren’t smart about it—I know nothing about their individual situation. Clearly, they did at least some of what I’m about to suggest.)

Learn about how manure runoff effects the environment and water sources.
Work with your county conservation department or department of agriculture to develop a nutrient-management plan for your farm.
Employ responsible water-protection techniques like riparian buffers.
Get to know the sensitive environmental features on and near your farm.

If you’re doing these things, you’re on your way to keeping your farm safe and your neighbors happy. Tell me in the comments below, what manure-management hurdles have you experienced on your farm?

Learn more about manure management on HobbyFarms.com:

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Tags farmers, manure, Wisconsin

Farm Management

7 Winter Projects You’ll Thank Yourself For This Spring

Post author By Jesse Frost
Post date January 12, 2015
No Comments on 7 Winter Projects You’ll Thank Yourself For This Spring

Winter is a hard time to farm. The ground is often too wet or frozen to work, the days are short and cloudy, and the temperatures are hardly inviting. But then spring comes and suddenly you find yourself overwhelmed with projects. However, there are plenty of helpful things you can do during the colder months to prepare for spring planting, many of which don’t require getting into the soil at all. They’re easy enough to do in nearly any weather, and when the spring comes, you’ll want to send yourself a thank-you card.

1. Soil Mix

If you don’t already make your own soil mix for seed-starting, winter is a great time to start. Homemade soil mix helps improve germination but also allows you to add important nutrients to your garden every time you plant. Soil mix is typically one part soil, two parts compost, two parts sand and three parts peat moss with a handful of amendments, such as lime, greensand, fish or crab meal, and rock phosphate—all finely sifted, of course. Follow one of these recipes or look to gardening books like Eliot Coleman’s New Organic Grower (Chelsea Green Publishing, 2nd edition, 1995) for tips and ideas on how to make a soil mix that best suits your practices.

2. Mulch

The winter is an excellent time to mulch your garden, especially if you want to try no-till gardening in the spring or summer. Mulch (especially wood mulch around shrubs) sucks up nitrogen from the soil. Laying it in winter prevents it from robbing plants of this important nutrient and preserves some of it the nitrogen through the wet winter. Right as the plants begin to grow, the mulch will start to release the nitrogen. Something fun to try is inoculating your mulch with wine cap mushroom spawn in late winter. Wine caps are edible, but they also make great companion plants—er, fungi—by helping increase yield, protecting soil structure and providing fertility.

3. Mushroom Logs

Speaking of mushrooms, use your winter downtime to inoculate mushroom logs. Order a mushroom-supply catalog, such as Field and Forest Products, to find what mushrooms would fit your climate. It’s a fun, easy project you can do in the comfort of a shop or barn. If you don’t have logs available for this project, don’t worry. You can grow oyster mushrooms on straw in or wine caps in mulch instead. Mushroom logs require a few tools, but shiitake and oyster mushrooms need very little attention and will be great sellers on your market table.

4. Garden Fencing

If you get a dry spell during the winter months, erect a garden fence to protect against rabbits, moles, voles and gophers. Dig down 6 inches or so under the fencing and bury woven chicken wire. The barrier should last several years and will save you a lot of frustration throughout the growing season.

5. Cold Frames

You will definitely thank yourself later for anything you do to help extend your growing season, whether it’s building small cold frames or putting up a small greenhouse or high tunnel. Use these season-extending structures in early spring or late fall for growing lettuce, carrots, spinach and other small greens. You can also use them for seed-starting in the spring.

6. Clean and Organize

This activity cannot be overstated. Sometimes so much—OK, too much—of farming is spent searching for the tools you need. Take the winter as an opportunity to get all of your tools, seeds and amendments organized and to make a garden plan, so that by the time spring hits, you aren’t left frantically trying to find your tools in the mounting weeds and grass.

7. Compost

Turning your compost pile is a great way to provide oxygen to your compost (and all the microorganisms in it) and to redistribute the heat so that you’ll have a soil conditioner ready for spring planting. It’s also an excellent opportunity to examine your pile to decide if you need to add any carbonaceous (hay or straw) or nitrogenous material (plant, animal matter, food scraps). If you’re like so many farmers and only get around to turning your compost once a year, the winter is as good a time as any.

Get more winter farming tips from HobbyFarms.com:

Tags compost, garden, Lists, winter

Homesteading

Frozen Bird Feeders

Frozen Bird Feeders - Photo by Tessa Zundel (HobbyFarms.com)

As winter sets in on the farm and homestead, it’s natural for children and grown-ups alike to want to make their furry and feathered friends as comfortable as possible. Each of us has our own livestock chores, of course, but you can make special treats to please the many birds that live on your land, as well.

Whatever avian species you’re trying to feed, Jenny Wrens or your prize flock of layers, these bird feeders can be put together with what you have in your kitchen or garden. They’re perfect for the colder months because they’re frozen and provide birds both a treat and entertainment on a dull, winter’s day.

What You’ll Need:

Bundt pan of any size or shape*
water to fill the pan
collection of berries, rinds, pine needs, seeds, herbs and any mom-approved snack a bird might like to eat
butter or oil
freezer
string or baling twine

*If you don’t have a Bundt pan, get any sized glass or metal dish (like a deep pie plate) and place a similar but much smaller dish (like a ramekin) inside, weighed down with marbles or beans. The smaller dish will create a hole in the middle or your finished bird feeder, reminiscent of Bundt a pan. You may get a sheath of ice that forms underneath your smaller dish if the weight isn’t heavy enough to keep it out, but you should be able to break through it easily.

Step 1: Assemble Your Feeder

Frozen Bird Feeders - Photo by Tessa Zundel (HobbyFarms.com)

Smooth a small amount of oil or soft butter inside the Bundt pan; this will help you remove the bird feeder from the pan once it’s frozen. Fill the dish about three-quarters full with water, and place your edible items into the water.

Certain foods, like pumpkin seeds and dried oregano, can be used as medicine for your wintering birds. Pumpkin seeds help control internal parasites and oregano leaves are great for the immune system. Other healthful items, like bits of banana and Rugosa rose hips, are ingredients that any bird would enjoy eating.

When adding in the foods, try to think like a bird. A chicken can especially turn her beak up at certain foods, so try to imagine what might make her cluck with delight. After all, she is the one stuck out there, in the cold and the damp, faithfully laying eggs each day. We always hope our bird feeders will work as a bribe to keep the chickens laying because we really fancy an omelet on these dark, winter mornings.

Step 2: Freeze Your Feeder

After your treats are placed into the water, put the whole thing into your freezer or on an outside porch until it hardens. Once the contents are frozen, turn the pan upside down to release the now frozen ring of treats. If you have any trouble releasing the feeder from the pan, gently tap the dish or run a bit of warm water across the back it.

Step 3: Hang Your Feeder

Use a loose bit of string or baling twine to loop through the hole in the center of your frozen bird feeder, tying a few sturdy knots at the top. For the wild birds, hang it from any obliging structure or tree. If it’s destined for your poultry, hang it right outside your chicken coop.

Frozen Bird Feeders - Photo by Tessa Zundel (HobbyFarms.com)

If you live in a warmer climate, where your frozen bird feeder is likely to thaw quickly, hang it where the dripping water won’t dampen animal bedding or the animals themselves. Don’t worry, your birdies can still eat their treats from the ground as your bird feeder melts.

We live in a snowy place and both our chickens and our wild birds keep occupied by pecking at these bird feeders until they’re simply eaten away. Make sure to make time to go watch your birds figure out how to get to their treasures through all that ice—it’s quite entertaining. Who needs TV when you have birds around?

Alternative: Fats and Flours Bird Feeder

A similar bird feeder can be made by replacing the water with fats and flours. Mix 1 cup lard, 1 cup nut butter, 2½ cups non-GMO cornmeal, 1 cup whole wheat flour and about 4 cups of birdseed. It’s best to use standard birdseed with this mixture so that it will hold together well.

Mix all ingredients and smoosh them into your Bundt pan. The birds will probably eat it up pretty quickly, but if you want to make sure it holds together longer, coil a 1 to 2 foot length of vine in the Bundt pan to create a frame. The mixture will form around the vine as you firm it into the pan. (Vines actually come in quite handy around the farm and homestead. I’ve even made baskets out of them.)

Place the Bundt pan into the freezer until the mixture hardens. Remove and hang.

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Tags craft, project

Urban Farming

All-Access Garden Pass

Perhaps one of the most important aspects of gardening in small urban plots is optimizing space to take advantage of all useful growing space. When you lay out your garden this spring keep in mind not only your crops’ light requirements but also the flow of the space. You’ll need to be able to access each planting to water and weed without trampling neighboring crops or falling on your face.

The Central Walkway

In my small plot, I’ve found a central walkway from the near end of the garden, stopping about 4 feet short of the far end, to be helpful. Because my garden was initially carved out of my previously well-manicured turf lawn, I created the walkway using existing natural grass. It’s about 2 feet wide and roughly divides my plot into three main beds: two 8-by-20-foot beds on either side of the walkway and a 4-by-18-foot bed at that the far end. If you wanted to install a central walkway in your own garden, it could be made of any number of materials—grass (like mine), a thick layer of hardwood mulch, decorative stones, or something sturdy like large, rounded river cobbles.

Access Arteries

Because the beds on either side of my walkway are so deep, it is essential to create access arteries into the bed to plant, maintain and harvest your plantings. For my garden, I find myself putting in a number of different shallow but stable materials as paths to access these areas: well-spaced brick pavers, broken slate slabs or whatever materials you can find. Feel free to get creative in your material choice, but don’t make them too permanent, as crop rotations in your plot will often require your paths to shift between seasons.

These semi-permanent paths to the sides or corner of the garden do not need to be barren spaces. Think about interspacing stepping stones with low-growing greens or clusters of in-ground offerings, like onions or carrots to increase your gardens yield. Use flowering ornamentals to line the paths to add some vibrant color and pest protection, or make each step a fragrant experience by planting a hardy herb, like thyme, around the individual stepping stones.

Watering Plan

Finally when installing your pathways, think about how you will be watering your crops, whether by watering can or hose. If you’ll be using a hose, consider ways to prevent the hose from crushing plantings near the entrance to your paths by using a short length of bamboo driven into the ground to direct the hose away from plantings.