Dairy farmers are now feeling the force of the recession as wholesale milk prices plummet. The fall comes after two years of above average growth owing mainly to exports, which since the recession hit, have dropped dramatically. Organic dairy farmers in particular are suffering due to the rising costs of organic feed, and with more shoppers opting out of buying organic in order to cut costs, supply is now outstripping demand.

Read more on this issue from The New York Times and  Farm Policy Facts.

Dogs are a common sight on most rural properties. There are dogs for watching, herding, protecting and just for petting. There are breeds suited to each job — Border Collies for herding, Great Pyrenees for protecting, shepherds for watching and Corgis for petting. Most “farm” dogs are not confined in any way and are able to roam off their own property, occasionally causing havoc along the way.

Do you think that farm dogs should be kept in a kennel, leashed or in the house when not “working”? And does it depend on the breed when making this decision?

Share your thoughts in the comments section below.

The Community Chickens project is at an eggciting stage: the incubators are filled with a variety of poultry hatching eggs. We’re hatching a bunch of eggs so that people in our office can try raising a few chickens, ducks or quail. You might be interested to know exactly what we’re hatching and in what kind of incubators, so here’s the list.

In the office, we have a GQF 1202A Sportsman incubator provided by Sure Hatch. It’s loaded with 222 chicken eggs!

20 Golden Comet eggs from Ridgway Hatchery
24 Brown egg layer eggs from Moyers Chicks
90 Dominique and 40 Rhode Island Red eggs from Bob Berry Hatchery
24 Buff Orpington and 24 Silkie eggs from Ideal Poultry

These are divided into three separate hatch dates. Plus, we have 13 Coturnix quail eggs from Purely Poultry. Most people would not recommend mixing different types of poultry hatching eggs in an incubator, but we had some leftover quail eggs, and I couldn’t make myself throw out viable hatching eggs.

In a Brinsea Octagon 20 Eco incubator, I have 20 Golden 300 duck eggs from Metzer Farms. I have another 20 Golden 300 eggs, plus 12 Pekin duck eggs from Hoffman Hatchery, in my old Styrofoam incubator. I’ve used that old incubator for about 12 years. It was originally a still-air model, but over the years, I’ve added a fan and replaced the thermostat.

Compared to my old incubator, the Octagon keeps the temperature remarkably stable. And although I’ve always enjoyed the hands-on experience of turning eggs, the automatic turning feature of the Octagon is a real time-saver. The duck eggs are about half way through the incubation process. So far, I’m really impressed with the Octagon.

Helen has 12 White Silkie eggs and  24 assorted bantam eggs from Meyer Hatchery in a still-air incubator from Murray McMurray Hatchery.

In a Brinsea Octagon 20 Advance incubator, Hank has the 20 duck eggs from Ridgway Hatchery. Jim has another 15 duck eggs in a turbo fan incubator from Stromberg’s Chicks and Gamebirds.

Kate has 20 Golden 300 Hybrid duck eggs from Metzer Farms and 22 Pekin duck eggs from Hoffman Hatchery in a Brower Top Hatch incubator.

Connie has 12 Pharoah/Coturnix quail eggs from Purely Poultry in a Brinsea R-Com incubator.

Look for hatch results in future blogs!

PHOTO BY HEIDI HUNT

It’s almost the end of May, and we’ve been in the new house for six and a half weeks. We’ve accomplished so much and really are feeling at home in our historic bungalow. The flowers in the front bed are beginning to bloom, and the roses and peonies have bountiful blossoms. In fact, the peonies are so large and filled with flowers that I was able to cut a large bouquet for the house. You know you are home when you can cut bouquets from your own flower beds!

I do think that growing vegetables will be a challenge. The terrible clay-like “top soil” that was delivered for our garden beds is truly cloddy material. There is no way to gently crumble the dirt around delicate new seedling roots. So, because I have no established compost material, I had to resort to commercial potting soil to cover the roots. When planting and seeding, I added a generous portion of homemade organic fertilizer to the soil. This fertilizer recipe contains all of the nutrients your veggies need to grow into healthy productive members of your garden community — seed meal, agricultural lime, gypsum, dolomitic lime, bone meal and kelp meal. I’ve also spread thin layers of grass clippings each time I mow. The yard is small, so I don’t collect massive amounts of clippings each mowing. But there’s enough to spread on all of the soil, decreasing the likelihood of the clay developing a rock-hard surface no seed can push through. Grass clippings also release nitrogen into the soil, which is good for the new plants.

The only unique garden technique I’ve used in the new beds has been to spread pine branch clippings around the raspberry and strawberry plants. Eventually, the needles will dry and fall off the branches. I am hoping their sharp points will be a deterrent to bunnies and squirrels who love to nibble on ripe, red fruit. Cheryl Long, Mother Earth News editor-in-chief, has suggested using red marbles or red-painted rocks to trick the nibblers. The theory is after encountering the hard, inedible goodies the critters will move on to a new yard to look for a snack. I’ll give that a try as soon as there is some red fruit to tempt them.

Hopefully, the next photo of the garden will include lush veggie foliage — we’ll see!!

It’s not something new. They’ve been around for a long time. But the American Livestock Breeds Conservancy recently defined “heritage chicken” so that consumers have a better idea of what they’re buying when they see meat with a heritage chicken label.

Mother Earth News interviewed Marjorie Bender and Jennifer Kendall, who explain what defines a heritage chicken and how chickens are certified. We also interviewed Frank Reese Jr., who is well known for the production of heritage turkeys. But he's raised heritage chickens just as long. You might be surprised by what Reese has to say about pastured poultry and the economics of raising heritage chickens.

What’s the definition of a heritage chicken?

How are chickens certified as "heritage chickens"?

Why should people be interested in heritage chickens? Isn’t “pastured poultry” good enough?

So, what breeds of heritage chickens do you raise, Mr. Reese, and why did you choose them?

I thought the  American Poultry Association only promoted show poultry. Can raising chickens that meet those standards still be profitable?

You can learn more about heritage chickens by visiting the American Livestock Breeds Conservancy's heritage chicken page and reading these blogs:

Chicken Choosin Decides Dorking Chicken is Best Eating
Best Tasting Heritage Chicken Breed

ISTOCKPHOTO/LEIGH SCHINDLER

If you were faced with a disaster and had to evacuate your home, what would happen to your pet(s)? Many sad stories have arisen from the wildfires in California, Hurricane Katrina and other events, but just a little extra pet preparation could save countless lives. 

The American Society for the Prevention of Cruelty to Animals has a comprehensive disaster preparedness Web page. Among the helpful suggestions is a list of first aid and travel kit items, as well as tips for arranging for temporary housing in the event that lodging or shelters won’t accept pets. Visit the website for more information. The Federal Emergency Management agency also has information on keeping pets safe in dangerous situations. 

Take advantage of these resources and set aside a moment to ensure that your furry friends will be provided for. They’ll never say “thank you,” but you’ll settle for a lick and a tail wag, won’t you?

Farm animals – chickens, turkeys, goats, cows – all need shelter for both summer and winter weather conditions. They need shade in the summer, and a place to be protected from wind, rain and severe cold. Animal feed, bedding and other livestock necessities also need adequate housing.

Do you prefer to have a dedicated space for each animal type with a separate structure for feed, etc., or do you prefer large structures, such as barns, which can serve a variety of purposes? Or, maybe, you have just built shelters as you acquire the poultry and farm animals!

Tell your tale, share your preferences and experiences in the comments section, below.

What’s the new Community Chickens project all about? It’s about sharing the joy of keeping poultry and spreading the knowledge to help people successfully raise chickens, ducks and other fowl.

Cheryl Long, the editor in chief of Mother Earth News, and Hank Will, the editor of our sister publication, Grit, keep flocks of chickens. So do Bryan Welch, the publisher of both magazines, and a few other people around the office. We had several poultry-related products that we planned to test and write about. Then, Hank had a great idea. Why not write about the whole life cycle of chickens (and other poultry) as it’s happening — egg to table — and share the experience with our readers? (Great idea, Hank!)

The Community Chickens website serves as a resource for poultry information. As part of our commitment to poultry enthusiasts everywhere, we will be hatching eggs, trialing incubators, brooding chicks, raising and processing broilers and writing articles and reports that chronicle our efforts every step of the way. Our goal is to get more people raising poultry for food, fun, pest control and profit.

“Community chickens” could mean a lot of things. In some neighborhoods, people take turns caring for the chickens: Someone opens the coop in the morning; another person gathers eggs during the day; someone else may feed chickens. Everyone shares the responsibility — and the eggs. If responsibilities are clearly defined, that's a great idea for the right group of people. But our project is about bringing information to the community of people who are interested in raising poultry. 

If you like lamb, but don’t care to bother sheering sheep, consider raising a few hair sheep. The editor of our sister publication, Grit, just bought two Katahdin ewes (Katahdin Sheep Come To Osage County). Sheep will take care of some of your rough mowing chores, saving time and gas. There are other breeds of hair sheep, too, such as the St. Croix or Barbados Blackbelly.

ISTOCKPHOTO/JIM JURICA

In uncertain economic times, it's just good ol common sense to hone your country skills and reduce your dependence on the grocery store, the department store, the gas station, etc. In what way(s) are you striving to provide for yourself? Maybe you've finally decided to try your hand at vegetable gardening, or sewing. Maybe you finally added more insulation to your home's attic or joined a carpool. Many people just needed that extra economic push to stop procrastinating. Share your stories with us by posting a comment below!

ISTOCKPHOTO/LILLIDAY

Look out filthy, disease-ridden factory farms: There’s a new kid in town. An organization has surfaced to restore law and order, Wyatt Earp/Dodge City-style. 

The Center to Expose and Close Animal Factories (CECAF) was launched April 30, with the objective to “achieve safe, sensible, and sustainable farming and ranching in America through policy development, public education, corporate pressure, community forums and advocacy partnerships.” The launch of this group couldn’t be more appropriate, considering that a Smithfield Foods swine operation is rumored to be ground zero in the recent H1N1 swine flu outbreak. 

Attorneys and co-founders Charlie Speer and Richard Middleton plan to use the experience they gained from the more than 300 lawsuits they helped bring against industrial agriculture giants to mobilize communities in opposition of factory farms, which it says endangers the health of both humans and the environment. With an armory of regulatory, legal and legislative tools, CECAF is on a mission to end the inhumane and dangerous practices of confined animal feeding operations, or CAFOs.   

Don't forget to sign up to receive e-mail updates on CECAF's progress. 

The downtown historical neighborhood I moved into a month ago is beginning to feel like home. Last weekend the neighborhood association held their annual breakfast and plant sale at the Presbyterian church, located smack dab in the middle of the neighborhood. We wandered the half block to the sale and bought a few annuals for our small front-yard garden bed. Right now, there’s not much room for flowers, but I’m sure over the next few years the lawn area will decrease while the gardens expand.

Saturday was a beautiful day and folks were out planting, mowing and walking their dogs. We met half a dozen neighbors and discovered we already knew some of them. Serendipity!! While planting strawberries, raspberries and vegetable seeds, we were offered some thornless blackberry plants from our across-the-alley neighbor. She also has a large patch of iris and I’m hoping in the fall she might be willing to divide a couple of unusual ones for us.

At the end of the day we were sitting on the porch, just relishing the quiet ambience of the neighborhood, when we were invited to join a group of neighbors for an end of the day libation. Wow! We’ve only been in the house for a month and already a party invitation.

Everyone we’ve met expounds on the feeling of community and small-town living this particular neighborhood has developed. This historical area encompasses some lovely restored Victorian houses and some no-so-lovely rental units in need of TLC. I was encouraged to learn that many of the elderly residents are watched over by a group from the homeowners association. If the mail isn’t collected or the newspapers pile up in the driveway, someone stops in to see if all is well.

Despite the fact that my house and yard are much smaller than in the previous location, I have a sense of living in a much bigger space because the neighborhood is so inviting. I grew up in a small town and am thrilled to have “returned,” 40 years later, to a place where I am welcomed and feel a measure of belonging.

Does your neighborhood invite you in or do you feel a sense of isolation? Share your experiences in the comments section below.

We have a broody hen that’s been sitting on eggs for three weeks. Today should be hatch day! For the last few days, though, she’s been off the nest quite a lot. The eggs look dirty. And much of the time she’s simply hovering over them — even standing on them. She still seems broody, though, so I’m not quite sure what’s going. (It’s been quite a while since I’ve used a broody to hatch eggs.) Two things come to mind: 1) The chicks in the eggs are creating enough heat that the hen doesn’t need to sit right on them all the time, or 2) something is wrong with the broody hen and she’s not going to pull off this hatch. I’ll write an update on that next week. In the mean time, share your thoughts on this in the comments section below.

Next week, the Community Chickens project will be off to an exciting start. Duck eggs will be arriving for us to use in our incubator tests. Metzer Farms will be sending 60 Golden 300 Hybrid eggs. We’re getting 35 Pekin duck eggs from Hoffman Hatchery. And Ridgway Hatcheries is sending an assortment of duck eggs.

I’ve been hoping to try a few of the Golden 300 Hybrid ducks for some time. They’re supposed to be excellent egg layers and calmer than Khaki Campbell ducks. A bonus for our project is that the male ducklings are shades of black; the females, shades of brown. We’ll be able to determine the gender of the ducklings easily. (Because they’re hybrids, this characteristic doesn’t continue in future generations.)

Duck eggs can be a challenge to hatch, so this will be a good test of the incubators. Duck and goose eggs require more humidity during incubation than chicken eggs. Another challenge is the wait! The duck eggs will take 28 to hatch (instead of just 21 for chickens).

How we dispose of personal waste is becoming a hot topic, as we become more aware of the fragility of our finite water system. In a previous blog, Would You Use a Composting Toilet?, we queried readers about their interest in compost toilets. You can read the dozens of comments, mostly in favor of their use, along with some commentaries on the health of our water system.

Now Grist, the well-known environmental website, has jumped into the fray with a series on waste — where it goes and what happens to it on the way: Crap Happens: A Grist Special Report on How We Dispose of Our Poop.

You can weigh in on the discussion by posting a comment below.

Let’s address the elephant (or should I say “pig”) in the room: Across the globe, illness is spreading due to completely avoidable circumstances. The link between factory farms and H1N1 is clear. While no one can blame the hog industry for asking the World Health Organization to change the name of the illness to H1N1 (the virus contains swine, avian and human components), I have a really hard time not blaming them for the current epidemic, as well as each and every one of those deaths.   

In fact, some believe the virus can be traced directly to a Smithfield Foods hog farm. Read more on the topic in this piece, “Swine Flu Outbreak Could Be Linked to Smithfield Factory Farms” from Grist.