Chicken poop Tea

The chicken is lauded for many wonderful qualities. Fresh eggs, natural pest control, entertainment and of course being able to create wonderful all natural fertilizer for your garden.

Until now I haven't even really ventured to try to use the chicken droppings that have been accumulating. After a little research an alternative popped up.
Chicken Poop Tea. First I thought oh no that sounds like it would taste terrible. No silly me-- it's for fertilizing your plants.

 
While my research is limited to the time it limited to the length of time it takes for my children to be engrossed in a Spongbob Squarepants episode-- I think the idea is solid.

I'm going to give it a try. Here is the excerpt I found from a website on the matter.

  Chicken Tea

"To make fertilizer tea, scoop the chicken manure into a burlap bag. 

Then, throw a rock into the bag to weigh it down and place the whole thing into a 35-gallon garbage can.

Fill the garbage can with water and let it sit for about three weeks. Once the three weeks are over, you will have nutrient-rich chicken manure fertilizer tea as the water becomes infused with the nutrients from the chicken manure. You can use this fertilizer tea to water your plants to give them a vitamin boost." 

I read later on a website that I shouldn't pour the tea directly onto the plants. It should be around the area of the plants to soak into the roots. Ok. Will do. 

Update on Winnie and her chicks: Winnie had her chicks-- all five eggs hatched. Three of the died at the hands of other chickens in the yard who wanted chicks of their own. Even after separating Winne and her chicks from the other chickens 3 chicks died when Lola and Clara snatched three of the chicks away.

Poor Winnie-- this is her first try at momma-hood and the bigger chickens are too big for her tiny banty silkie size or her quarter sized chicks.
Two of the chicks remain and will be set in a brooder.  

baby chicks in infant sock

My new silkies are all doing well-- as you can see.

Huckleberry

Heat, Death and Eggs.

It's been freakin hot... and I've been busy getting our little suburban micro farm ready for the heat. Soooo... that's my excuse for the long absence. Not a very good one eh?

Well the green house is up, the new shades are in place, the a/c is getting a tune up and we've invested in a water-evaporator cooler to try to relieve the power meter from running round and round and burning a hole in our budget. Anyone else who  has done anything to prepare their house for summer? Tips, Idea's? Please do tell!

The chickens are doing well. Here is nut shelled update.

A dog we were fostering killed Ferdinand and Isabella my Rosecomb Pair and Ruby our big reliable Easter Egger. Children crying, feathers everyone, dog gone the next day.

RIP Ferdinand & Isabella





This silver lining was that now I deserved a trip out to Schwartz Farm in Parma Idaho.

Martha was out back and  I picked out a mottled blue banty Cochin, (Fluffy). Martha was good enough to let me buy her gorgeous Japanese/Serama Rooster ( Henry), and his mate- a petite grey Japanese bantam (Anne).

All are happily enjoying the backyard and all the bugs they can eat.

Oh oh!! The first chicks we bought from Schwartz Farm back in February are now laying eggs! For the last two eggs we've been finding a big beautiful soft suede colored egg in the coop.

Winnie our partridge silkie hen has become broody and is sitting on a clutch of eggs-- all of them are Henry and Anne's. She only leaves her nest twice a day to eat drink and indulge in a quick dust bath. This is her first try-- so I'm not going to get my hopes up. :(

My summer of failure ended in a happy note with finding a breeder in Ohio who sold and shipped me her beautiful blue silkie hen and some black silkie chicks.   I am still on the hunt to find some Showgirl chickens...

The chickens got under the solar tarp on my garden and made quick work of all the leafy greens, sparing only the prickly bush of the zucchini-- making it necessary to build a  greenhouse. Crafty chickens--- all my greens gone from our raised beds.

Still at the end of everyday I look forward to sitting on the lawn and watching the girls come running at me, heads bobbing back and forth to noodle out any treats in my hand.

They talk and parp at me and each other as if they are asking me questions then settle in next to me and nap at my feet.