Chickens Don't Just Make Eggs...

...they also make manure.

 We are amending the soon to be herb garden with a mixture of straw, manure and half broken down food scraps. This is a very rich mix and helps hold water as well as bring nutrients to the soil. We are still building up this garden (the one we buried pots in last year and grew chiles) We are planning on planting mostly perennial herbs here.

Seeds

We went to Plants of the Southwest this afternoon and picked up some seeds. A great place for native trees, shrubs, veggies and herbs. The Santa Fe location is very nice, complete with an adobe building and a rammed earth/ log beam building. Also a really nice adobe retaining wall as you drive in. They also have an Albuquerque location we have yet to check out.

Seeds we picked up today include:

-Purple Podded Pole Bean (100 seeds)
-Carrots- Chantenay & Touchon (200 seeds ea.)
-Early Wonder Tall Crop Beets (200 seeds)
-Mizuna (100 seeds)
-Dwarf Blue Curl-leaf Kale (100 seeds)
-Lettuce Cutting Mix (500 seeds)

Perennial Herb garden:
-Echinacea Angustifolia (50 seeds)
-Oregano (100 seeds)
-Chives (100 seeds)
 -Perennial Arugula (100 seeds)

To be started in trays inside:
-Cherokee Purple Tomato (50 seeds)
-Genovese Basil (100 seeds)

Mailorder Chicks

Ordering chicks at the end of the month. Just trying to decide on which ones.


We want some flock diversity and right now it is just the seven Australorp hens.



Murray McMurray Hatchery has some nice birds at good rates.

I think we might go with fifty of their "Rainbow Layers" as well as another dozen or so of something else that should lay well.

We're splitting the birds with the neighbor so hopefully that'll help on shipping.

Earthships

We visited the world headquarters of Earthship Biotecture in Taos, NM. Some cool concepts for off the grid living and sustainable building. We put up a photo album on Picassa here. Enjoy.

Winter Time

These lucky hens get a serious variety of fresh produce from a few places around town.

Goodbye Twenty-Ten

From the table at thanksgiving:

 

 Freshly dug carrots:

First Snow

Our first snow was pretty late this year; also very minimal coating. We usually get a pretty good snow by around Halloween. Our last four winters have been pretty intense and I've heard people say last winter was the best powder/ boarding/skiing season ever. So it makes sense we are getting a tame winter. Seems we are starting off winter true to the Farmer's Almanac's prediction of a drier and warmer one. Global warming is a hippie scam. Just pay attention to nature's cycles.

Homegrown Squash Soup

 Very tasty.

Recycling Lumber

Feeding Chickens Out of Dumpsters

This was just one day.

Redesigned Cold Frames

New design is way more passive-solar. Up against the footings of the house the sun's energy is much better utilized.

Look Out Future Generations of Garden Pests!

 This pregnant Praying Mantis had been hanging around our front door for a few days so we relocated her to the 3 Sisters garden area.