Melba Corbett

Better than great! Awesome. Timely. Relevant. Keep the good stuff coming!

Thank you so very much for your efforts in this.

Melba

Back when I raised rabbits, I converted them over to homegrown feeds. Lots of variety, I think, is key to their health. At first, they lost a little weight and had smaller litters until they adjusted, over a month or two. Then the litters were bigger, grew rapidly and I noticed their eyes were shinier than they were when they were just getting pellets. I did dry some of the mulberry and raspberry leaves and fed them hay so they were not just eating green. fresh forage. Very important to clean up behind them when feeding fresh, so it doesn't mold. I fed them fresh forage twice a day and hay in a rack so it was always there for them. Fresh water and a salt lick were the only other things they got. Mulberry is high in protein, so is clover and plantain. As mentioned by other people on the forum, dandelion is one of their favorites. Dandelion is loaded with all kinds of nutrients. To produce meat, milk for babies and have a healthy pregnancy, they must have enough protein and carbs. Hay can provide the carbohydrate. Also important they have twigs to chew on to keep their teeth filed down and there is something in bark they seem to need.

The human body needs sodium, (found in lots of vegetables) to balance the potassium (think bananas, strawberries, melon, carrots, etc). You probably have adrenal fatigue, in which case you are feeling tired a lot, especially in the morning when you awake and may be craving salt at that time. It can cause the low blood pressure. Your sodium/potassium balance may be off. There is a world of difference between refined, kiln dried salt (which is indigestible) and real sea salt, the unrefined kind or that found in the vegetables. The licorice is a good choice for adrenal support. So is American Ginseng.

Carrot tops and parsley, dried, then made into a tea, are nourishing and healing for the kidneys.

I think 5 paddocks are probably enough. A lot of mine are small, so don't have a full rotation allotment.

Running chickens after goats can help, but remember, they can carry coccidiosis. A lot of parasites are supposed to be species specific, but not all are. Joel Salatin has some videos out on Youtube about pasturing stock. He recommends fowl as it mimics nature. Keeping all the stock healthy is important. A healthy chicken, with plenty of green forage is not likely to have coccidia.

Dan,
I've never actually mowed it. I break it off by hand and just store it loose in the barn for hay. Don't put up much of it that way. I ordered S. Lespedeza from a forage/pasture seed supplier, don't remember name now. I do have 9 pasture/paddocks to rotate on, and that also helps parasite control. While other farmers in the area I live in were losing huge numbers of animals, primarily to parasites being out of control, I never had a problem at all. Mortality last two years was zero, even in babies. Very healthy animals, but I do an intensive program with organic feeds/minerals like coral calcium, kelp, a good mineral mix free choice, etc., and I feed garlic to my goats sometimes, at milking time so it does not flavor the milk. Any other time would, as the odor stays in the body a certain number of hours. Check around online before you order seed. A reputable feed/seed dealer will usually charge a fair price. Goats can digest lespedeza, cows not so well. Goats are amazing animals.

Melba

Ryan,
I'm about to move out your way in the spring. Selling out my organic homestead in North Carolina mountains. Haven't picked a spot to land yet, but ultimately would like to have my own homestead (smaller version than present) and build a small, energy efficient, off grid green home. I'm retired, but still farming/gardening. I'm an herbalist, Naturopath, owned several businesses, and have a lot of friends who are dear to me, in both Oregon and Washington, who are calling me to come there and I am ready to go.

Melba

Sucking the ascorbic acid off the berries or soaking them in water, straining and then gargling with the "lemonade" can often stop a sore throat in less than a minute. This is a good plant to dry berries for the winter for a source of Vit. C.

Heifer was sold.