Stuck Inside but it's Spring

It's been a wet and stormy week here in NorCal... The picture above is of the South Paddock...the paddock we keep Willow in...I guess, 6 months of the year. This was one of the worst days we've seen. To be fair, this was one of the worst storms we've seen too.


That doesn't keep the chicks from growing another inch! Here they're about 7 weeks old, and really starting to resemble chickens. If you see little blue spots on their shoulders, those are the ones I'm calling roosters so far.


They're pretty people friendly. They don't fuss when we put our hands in with them. They graduated from the Rubbermaid tub, to Jasmine's puppy crate. It's easier to clean when they're finished. The next phase will be a wading pool with wire around the sides. And soon! This one, if I'm correct, is a pullet.

Here's a picture of a couple of the critters you don't see very often...the Chinchillas!

This is Tawny (the dark gray chinnie) and her daughter Prissy (Aprisa, which means fast in Spanish). Prissy is about 2 years old now, and I think that makes Tawny 3 years old. We bought Tawny, not knowing she was pregnant...what a Super Bowl surprise her babies were! They make such a cute Yin-Yang here!

What's a dog to do on a wet, cold night but make an appeal to be top dog? Here's Jasmine trying to get into Bruce's lap because the kitty (very pregnant kitty) is on the sofa...

She enjoys a few pets and pats...sits for a few pictures, but can't believe she's being displaced...

"What do you mean I'm a little big for a lap-puppy?"

And that's us for the time being...see you next time!

Buff Orpingtons at 6 weeks

Here are the 7 Buff Orpington chicks at 6 weeks of age. They're pretty much people friendly...they just need a bit more "hands-on" before they get too much older. I think I may be able to make a reasonable guess as to which are pullets and which are roosters.

What a precious face! Even in the ugly half-feathered state! Okay...but look at the crest at the top of "his" beak. It's far more pronounced than the crests of the chicks in the next picture.


The four chicks from left to center, I believe, are pullets. Their crests are barely visible. The "boys" are also developing color on their cheeks already.


Hey...it's a theory. There are distinguishing markings at this stage of the game, so I'm recording my observations... I also marked each of the 3 "boys" with a permanent blue marking pen, on their feet and a spot on a wing, so I could track them a little easier.

The chicks have really...really grown! We need to move to a larger brooder, but the weather is no help! We've had so much rain and snow pack in the mountains this year that everything is at capacity...including the ground! The following picture shows that the stream has come over its banks and is literally flowing through the narrowing between the pasture areas in the South Paddock.


The next picture is showing the stream flowing high on the left, behind the berry vines, and on the right you can see the same stream well over its banks, flowing in front of the big willow.


Once again, the shady summer area is under water. Within 10 minutes of this shot, the water had risen up to the fence post on the far right. When the reservoir is full...it's full. Our stream is fed from the reservoir's overflow. There has never been a time when I've seen this area dry...but it gets interesting to see how high this water will come!


Willow is still in the North Paddock, which is extremely wet too, but does have higher, drier areas. It looks like we're going to need to drop a ton of rock or two in there to get it to be safe. The same on the other end...We need a way to keep the drainage open. Oh what fun... I think I need to buy a bale of 3 way hay and a couple bales of straw, spread it out in both paddocks and let Mother Nature work!

Buff Orpingtons at 4 weeks

It's been 7 days since we added these kids to the family. Everyone is doing well...well enough that we had to step up the tub size this week. These Rubbermaid tubs get a work out around here. They can be used for so many things! I may give serious thought to turning this batch into a plastic pool before they're ready to be out on their own. That has a lot of merit with this many babies. It would be a good way to introduce them to the other hens as well.

They're socializing pretty well too. I try to handle them daily...the cat has met them...that was hilarious, wish the camera had be available! I had put the chicks in the bathtub while I cleaned their tub. It's a great little place for them to hang out...and easy to clean up afterward! Anyway...while I was out scrubbing up, hubby came out to talk to me, and Half Pint decided to introduce herself to the chicks. When Hubby found her, she was lying on the floor of the tub with the chicks climbing on her...that's how this house rolls! Jasmine has bathed all of them at least once.

There are some other things going on here... My peas are up about 2 inches inside their cloche. I'll let them get a little bit taller before I remove the frame and plastic. I'll remove the plastic as soon as the chilly weather gives up. I probably could take it off now...but it helps keep out curious kitty cats. I picked up rhubarb plants and asparagus plants...some day-lilies and I'm not sure if there was anything else...I got a little carried away as it was. I put the rhubarb and some of the asparagus in the beds today, and I put one package of day lilies in a barrel. There's another barrel right beside it...I think I have another package of the same kind...or there's another color too...I'll have to think about cluster or contrast!!

When we built our beds in the very beginning, we covered the bottoms of the beds with hardware cloth. I can't tell you how incredibly smart that has proven to be! All around the garden, we're constantly stepping into gopher tunnels...that collapse beneath our feet. I want to know where they're tossing all this dirt! I want it back!! LOL!

Our perennials and bulbs are blooming. So far we've seen the camellia bloom, the paper-white narcissus, snow-bells, and some of the daffodils. The thyme...I'm finding thyme in a lot of areas all of a sudden... I'm not sure if I bought that much more, or it's spreading some on it's own... Interesting. Not that I mind. I love the thyme and use it regularly.

My climate here is supposed to be a Zone 9...if that means hot and dry, seasonally wet where it usually doesn't get too cold...not much below 32°, then that's pretty much what it's like here. I'm finding my herbs do much better in the shade here. The summer heat is just too much for most plants. Container gardening only works well with clusters of pots with almost constant drip irrigation. The transpiration rate is just too high in the summer. Containers get too hot and become cookers here in the summer. On the other hand...solar cooking is incredibly easy (I'll bet!)!