Patricia Boley

Maple syrup, local raw honey or sorghum syrup.

Roosting is what birds do! It is important to have roosting bars in the coop.  It is the final defense should a predator gain access to the coop at night.  They should be about 4-5 feet high.  I use some plywood to block my nest boxes in the afternoon when collecting eggs.  I have 9 nest boxes and sometimes leave some blocked depending on how many layers I have and what time of year it is.  If you leave them open chickens will sleep and poop in them.  I used to put straw in the boxes, but the hens always managed to push it out.  I finally settled on cut pieces of astroturf held in place by a staple gun.

My current favorite is buttermilk-banana.  I make my own buttermilk after getting the culture.
Recipe:
1 cup AP flour
1/2 t. salt
1/2 t. baking soda
1/2 t. nutmeg or cardamom
Mix together and add:
1 beaten egg
1/2 t. vanilla
2T. melted butter
1 c plus 2 T buttermilk
1 mashed banana ( freeze and thaw works, too)
Mix all with wisk and cooked in butter or ghee
Makes 8-9 medium pancakes.

Chorizo does it for me.  Closely followed by cheddar beer brats.  Umami overload!

I've had ducks for 8 years up until last year.  My market for eggs dried up and I was getting too many, even with 3 ducks.  Khaki Campbells are good layers, but very skittish and noisier than all the rest.  Cayuga's are bigger and very striking but don't lay very often.  Silver Appleyard were the last ones I had.  Big and much calmer and quieter.  They lay quite often, too.  I have used a baby pool for ducks but the last one got a hole in it.  I wish I had a pond.  Duck meat and eggs are delicious and the fat is amazing.  I love watching the ducks forage in my yard but they are loathe to come in at night.  I used to have to round them up.  They stay in clicks unlike chickens. Drakes are rapey and even try to mount my hens.  This could kill the hen.  I miss having them and wish I could find regular egg buyers.  I would have to say I liked the Silver Appleyards the best, although years ago we had a very sweet muscovy that would let you pick her up, which is very rare for ducks.

Emmett Ray wrote:

Matt McSpadden wrote:I typically use a two stage feeder... ;)

It's definitely the best way to mimic the way they naturally feed.

I scatter the feed on the ground.  Wouldn't that be the best way to mimic how they naturally feed?  I've never used a feeder for adult chickens, just chicks growing up.

Anne Miller wrote:We moved a few years back and left our chicken house with our daughter.

She fell in love with chickens .... (same with most animals).

She feeds fermented feed so I guess that would be whole grains.

I like the sprouts or microgreens for chickens.

I have been using sprouted grains for years.  I have a 4 bucket system, soak the grains (barley, black oil sunflower seeds, cracked corn) with a bit of cider vinegar, drain the next day and put back in the bucket strirring once a day.  When it gets to the fourth day, a lot of the grains are sprouted and that's what I give them along with some kitchen waste (fruit peels, etc).  

I do give them a small amount of commercial pellets to which I add oyster chips and gravel/grit.

I have used ketchup and mustard recipes from "Nourishing Traditions" for over a decade.  They are far superior and you can tailor the recipes to how often you use them.  The ketchup recipe goes south a bit earlier.  The mustard lasts a long time

I start my seedlings in March and use grow lights.  If the plants get too crowded (usually tomatoes and cucumbers) I put them in 3-inch pots or peat pots.  To harden them, I start gradually with 1-2 hours of later afternoon sun for a few days eventually building to all day in the sun on my back deck. I have seen a bit of sunburn.  Whenever I end up having to buy seedlings, this is the question I always ask "Have they been hardened?"

Dan Fish wrote:Germinating carrots.

Retaining moisture, especially in regards to wind.

I cover my carrots with the white agricultural barrier for about a month.  It really improves the germination rate.  I use little sticks to make a long tent out of it.