Wednesday, June 2, 2010

Fowl Times

Our baby chicks have arrived!

We received 25 day old Barred Plymouth Rocks. This is a very old breed of bird that lays an abundance of large, brown eggs. They are considered dual purpose - good for laying eggs and good for meat. We like them because they are a calm, friendly, and usually problem free chicken - and they look good.



Here's the chicken coop where they live - inside for now. When they get a bit bigger they can run outside in their fence and enjoy the fresh air & green grass! It would be nice to let them run free, but their are too many dogs and other animals wandering the farm so they would not last long. Their run is divided into 2 areas so they can be rotated to keep the grass from being totally destroyed.


We kept 7 hens from last year's flock through the winter for eggs. These girls just moved to their summer home, to make room for the new flock. This portable coop or chicken tractor as it is commonly known is pulled to fresh grass each morning. The hens catch on to the routine quickly and trot along as the cage is moved. There is a roost for them to sleep on, and a nest for egg laying. It's a great system - fresh grass for them, no danger from predators, and no clean up for me!

1 comment:

  1. Hi Thiessens,
    We enjoyed our first produce of the season, and my kids surprised us by really liking the pea shoots! Richard takes a few almost every time he walks past them in the kitchen. We did not know pea shoots were so yummy. Looking forward to this weeks offerings.
    The Pauls family.

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