by Rebecca Nickols Photos by author Inside a nesting box in this coop resides Henrietta, the broody hen … I should have known this would eventually happen. Buff Orpingtons are famous for their diligence and dedication when it comes to sitting on eggs. Even so, I was still surprised that the mother instinct seemed to happen […]

by Rebecca Nickols Photos by author This week I added three new little chicks to the flock! These new pullets will not only add more color to my flock, but they’ll give me a colorful egg basket also! Fortunately, my town has a local hatchery (Estes Hatchery) where I can purchase and pick up my […]

by Rebecca Nickols Photos by author This past Easter my daughter said that she had seen a link on the Internet on how to make a hard-boiled egg in the oven. She said that it was supposed to be a fast and easy way to boil an egg. I simply said, “That’s interesting.” What I was really […]

by Rebecca Nickols Photos by author It is officially spring now, but for southern Missouri the weather has been unseasonably warm for months. We’ve had one of the warmest winters on record and during the last several weeks the temperature has averaged in the 70s and 80s°F. (I hope we won’t be zapped by an […]

by Rebecca Nickols   This spring the Master Gardener chapter that I’m a member of is doing a series of gardening classes, and I’m excited that I will be doing a presentation titled “Gardening with Chickens.” In my previous posts for Community Chickens I shared the first three portions of my presentation:Why Chickens?,The Setup and […]

by Rebecca Nickols Photos by author   This spring the Master Gardener chapter that I’m a member of is doing a series of gardening classes and I’m excited that I that I will be doing a presentation entitled “Gardening with Chickens.” In my previous posts for Community Chickens I shared the first two portions of my […]

by Rebecca Nickols Photos by author   This spring the Master Gardener chapter that I’m a member of is doing a series of gardening classes and I’m excited that I will be doing a presentation entitled “Gardening with Chickens!” Before I start proclaiming the joys and benefits a gardener can expect from having a few […]

by Rebecca Nickols Photos by author The Master Gardener chapter that I am a member of is doing a series of gardening classes this spring and the speakers bureau asked if I would do a PowerPoint presentation on chickens … Of course I accepted! What a great opportunity to spread the news on how easy […]

by Rebecca Nickols I’m going into my second winter of chicken-keeping, but this is the first molt I (or my chickens) have experienced. What I have observed is a splotchy, tousled appearance, and it may be my imagination but it seems that they’re more nervous, panicky and fearful of everything. However, the most apparent observation […]

by Rebecca Nickols Photos by author My husband and I had both been dreaming of tractors … His dream was of a tractor that he could attach things to (front loaders, back hoes, augers, brush hogs). My idea of a tractor, however, was a movable coop that I could strategically place in my yard or […]