A well-designed landscape can transform your garden into an extension of your home, offering an attractive and productive outdoor living space. For our feathered friends, a well-designed garden can offer protection and safe shelter as well as food for them to forage. While landscape design is probably not the first thing you think of when […]

Poultry conservationist Marissa Buchanan knows that Chinese geese are excellent guard animals, weed eaters, and all-around useful homestead birds. When looking for a goose breed for your farm, consider the Chinese goose. One of the most popular breeds, it has an amazing and culture-rich history, and makes an excellent addition to the homestead. This popular […]

Christine Heinrichs, veteran chicken writer, walks you through how to successfully show your poultry to judges at shows and fairs. The idea of keeping chickens may have occurred to you while you were walking the aisles at a local poultry show. “All these beautiful birds! I could do this.” People like to participate in shows […]

From circumventing coyotes to outsmarting opposums, Maat van Uitert has 7 practical suggestions to protect ducks from predators. We used to think we just had a couple of predators on our farm, until I put out a game camera one night. Boy, were we wrong! Even if you think your flock is safe, you might […]

Ever wonder why eggshells have odd bumps or discolorations? Learn how eggs develop, and troubleshoot eggshell problems with chicken owner and writer Elizabeth Diane Mack. For small poultry flock owners, eggshell abnormalities can be a bit scary. The internal shell development process occurs in less than 24 hours, and during this time, even minor upsets […]

Matthew Wilkinson shares the early lessons he learned about raising and processing chickens. That Initial Excitement As soon as my daughter had blown out her fifth year birthday candles, I saw my opportunity. I approached my wife, knowing she was in a weakened state from this joyous celebration. I did not hesitate however, blurting out […]

Second in a three part series. Dr. Jacquie Jacob shares her research on how to effectively use heritage breeds for small-scale meat production operations.  As discussed in Part 1 of this three part series, we ran a study at the University of Kentucky poultry research farm comparing three heritage breeds (Black Australorp, Barred Plymouth Rock […]

Quail are small, but delicious mouthfuls. Here are two recipes for Roasted Quail from “Culinary Birds” by John Ash.     COFFEE-SPICE ROASTED QUAIL WITH A VANILLA SAUCE MAKES 6 SERVINGS Ingredients 12 bone-in quail 5 tablespoons (75mL) olive oil, divided Coffee-spice Rub 1 tablespoon white sesame seeds 12 black peppercorns 20 coriander seeds 3 whole […]

Kelly Bohling explains how to handle quail eggs and delicious ideas for eating them. Delicious and Versatile Quail Eggs Quail eggs are small, speckled gems that you’ve likely seen in your local co-op or Asian food market. They come in tiny, clear plastic egg cartons. You’ll be tempted to buy them for their cuteness alone, […]

While we often think of herbs in terms of cooking, they’re also an excellent tool for keeping your flock healthy. Amy Fewell shares tips and specific herb information to help you heal wounds and protect your chickens. Holistic Living We started our homesteading adventure in 2010 when our son was diagnosed with childhood asthma. Herbalism […]