New worm farmers

Handfuls of worms
Originally uploaded by Beaver w/ a Toothbrush

We went to a wormshop last weekend at the local library.

We got about a pound of red wrigglers. Worm farmer and former Biospherian, Linda Leigh, showed us how to put the worm container together. They live on a base of coconut fiber. We added composted horse manure, coffee grounds, and pulverized egg shells for worm food and grit. After we added the worms and a little water we covered them all over with paper shreds. The shreds help regulate moisture and I think worms might eat them too.

Linda said to leave the light on for the first few days if we kept them inside because there might be some escape attempts. No worms tried to escape the first day but the second day they were poking their heads out of the holes in the sides of the container. Only one got out. We put it back.

The worms make castings that are great for the garden. They can also be fed to the chickens. I want to get a bunch working on composting the kitchen scraps though before we start feeding any of them to the chickens.

Droid smoker

Droid smoker
Originally uploaded by Beaver w/ a Toothbrush

Husband created an ugly drum smoker from a 55-gallon drum. He's calling it The Droid.

We tried it out for the first time today.

He made chicken. It only cooked for about an hour and it was yummy.

He put a dry rub on it first and let it sit for about an hour. The rub was a little strong so we know not to put so much on next time. Overall though, success!

Handsome rooster

Handsome rooster
Originally uploaded by Beaver w/ a Toothbrush

We picked up a rooster in town yesterday. We had been talking about getting one to help keep the hens behaved because they pick on each other sometimes.

Lately one of us gets up around 6 to let the chickens out of their coop. If it's a weekend we let them out quick and then go back to bed for a while.

Yesterday morning around 6:30 I let the girls out and one of the leghorns jumped the fence. She's been doing that lately but she normally waits until mid-morning and by the time we go back outside later she wants back in so she's easy to catch. Since she has just gotten out though, she didn't want back in.

I chased her around for about 15 minutes, thinking the whole time about going back to bed. I didn't want to leave her out by herself but I started to think we should just get rid of their fence and let them wander.

I'm still worried about predators though since the leghorns seem oblivious to their surroundings. So I thought to myself, maybe we can get a rooster to look after them and then just let them have free range on the whole property.

Then I finally caught the chicken and went back to bed.

When we got up a few hours later, I told Husband about my plan. He thought it was worth a try and perused Craigs for some free roosters. There were a couple available around town. I gave one lady a call and arranged to go over.

After we finished our town errands we headed over there. This lady had quite a set of chickens and roosters. The one we got was hatched two weeks before Easter. Since he was younger, some of the old roosters were picking on him.

Me and the lady chased him around her chicken yard a few times and then she finally nabbed him. He is strong. And a lot harder to catch then I'm used to.

We put him in a box with air holes and drove him home. He didn't make much noise on the ride. When we got home it was dusk and the girls where already inside snoozing. I lifted him out of the box and put him on a roost near the others. One of the old girls flipped and landed on the floor at the sight of a new rooster sitting next to her but the rest just bocked a bit.

I was a little worried this morning that he might be mean to the girls but so far he's keeping a cautious distance. He seems to be afraid of the dark colored chickens. When I went out a little while ago, one of the leghorns (they're all white) approached him and, um, made friends.

He got pretty excited and did a funny dance. He dropped one wing then hopped lopsided back and forth a bit before jumping on her back. She gave him a friendly peck or two in return.

Hovel Happenings

Tiny Egg!
Originally uploaded by Beaver w/ a Toothbrush

The chickens have been laying and the bees have been buzzing. Too bad the bees buzzed out.

As best we can tell, the bees we caught didn't have a queen. Or they did and she died and they weren't successful at raising another one. So they stayed until they had sucked all the honey out of the combs and then they left. We're still looking for swarms but we'll probably have to wait until next spring to get some more bees.

The chickens have been good though. We doubled their fenced yard and they like the extra space. A couple of the lighter ones fly over the fence now and then. We have to chase them and grab them because they can never figure out how to get back in even though it's clear they want to.

The spring/summer garden is almost done. The pumpkins and luffas are still spreading. We learned some good lessons. We're going to put the fall vegetable garden right by the house so we see it and weed it conveniently. We are also spreading out a bunch of stray bales to help keep the weeds down.

In other news, I got a job writing for the local newspapers. That might be why I've waited so long to post again. New things are in the works at the Hovel though, so I'll make sure to report them!

Too Bee or Not to Bee

Wild Bee Hive from Below
Originally uploaded by Beaver w/ a Toothbrush

Like many of our friends and family, I was a nervous about capturing a hive of wild bees. I had visions of swarms of angry bees chasing Husband and I around an unfamiliar neighborhood. I feared the possibility that someone was allergic to bees and didn't know it. But we had the equipment and Husband was determined. We were going to catch these bees.

The hive hung in an overgrown citrus tree on a back easement. It was draped over multiple branches. We didn't have the tools to prune the tree, get up to the bees, or contain them on our first trip so we had to go home and plan our return.

We loaded the truck and arrived to collect the bees Monday evening. I was satisfied with our gear and preparations, particularly the bee suits. We suited up and lit the smoker. Some of the comb had fallen since our last visit -- either from wind or record-high heat -- and bees were covering it where it lay. After Husband trimmed a hole in the tree so he could access the hive, he smoked the bees and started moving the broken comb pieces.

The ladder we brought was useless because the tree was too bushy. So Husband balanced on the lowest branches while I stood ready to hand him tools. He lopped away some of the smaller branches around the hive. Then, while holding the branch protruding from the hive with one hand, he wedged the loppers against his chest and used his other hand to cut the hive away from the tree. The bees were agitated by the movements and by Husband being so close to their home but they didn't attack.

He then climbed down from the tree and I helped him carry the hive to the boxes we set out ahead of time. We lowered the hive into the boxes, trimmed extra branches, and waited. We hoped that by dusk the bees flying around would find the hive and go inside so we could take them all. We picked up the rest of our gear and talked to the homeowner (a lady who rescues cats and dogs). Finally, we just sat near the hive and counted bees as they flew inside.



We kept saying we were going to go but there were still so many bees outside the hive. We watched and waited as some bees flew in while others flew out. Close to nightfall the last bee finally found it's way inside and we put the screen cover over the top and blocked the front entrance. Then we put the box in the back of the truck and headed home.

We set the hive box among some mesquites and the bees are beehaving. No bee or human injuries were reported.

They Still Have Peep

They Still Have Peep
Originally uploaded by Beaver w/ a Toothbrush

We got five new chickens yesterday: three leghorns, a barred rock, and a buff orpington. The rock and the buff are only about four months old so they still peep instead of clucking. They are cute and not too shy. I've been picking them up to put them outside regularly (it's too hot to stay inside but they're scared).

The leghorns are a little older and also a little flightier. They are already laying good size white eggs. It's pretty amazing. They seem to tolerate the heat quite well too. They were a little aggressive yesterday but one of our older hens, Peepy, has been disciplining them and I think they're calming down.

Husband picked them up for a good price after he saw an ad on craigs. The lady who had them lived in town and she had been reported for having too many chickens (you're allowed two in residential areas per city code). The chickens don't seem to mind the change.

Scorpions, yay.

Scorpion
Originally uploaded by Beaver w/ a Toothbrush

Scorpion season arrived shortly after snake season. So far I've had scorpions in my mail, on my skirt (that I put on before I noticed what was clinging to it), in my mixing bowl, and in my juice glass.

The video features the scorpion that was in the mixing bowl. The bowls are metal and I store them above eye level so as I brought it down from the shelf I got an eyeful of this guy. I flipped out slightly and squawked while tossing the bowl in the air. Luckily Mr. Scorpion landed in the sink.

From there I was able to capture him on film and then capture him in my high-tech plastic container and cardboard bugmobile. All sorts of bugs have been escorted outside in the bugmobile.