Gardening progress and baby chicks

My elbow is almost back to normal.  It's so nice to be able to use my arm without that constant bone pain.  What a relief!

We had chicks hatching this past weekend.  They started on Thursday morning and the last one hatched on Saturday.  They're so cute.  Little balls of fluff.  And when they're not sleeping, they're chirping and looking for something to eat.

Chicks in the brooding box

We have 14 in all, 7 Rhode Island Red (the darker "brown" ones), 3 Brahma Cochin (yellow) and 3 mixed (Copper Maran and RIR).  The RIR chicks are destined for some friends.  The others will be additions to our flock.

When chicks are very small, you need to put rocks in the water dispenser so they can't drown.  I have only had that happen once, but it's very sad.  I hate seeing a small death that could have been prevented. 

I really dote on my babies.  I check on them often.  The brooder box is located on our back porch.  That way they're safe from predators and out of the weather.  Depending on the weather, they'll stay on the porch for 2 weeks or so.  They have to be able to regulate their own body temperature and large enough to withstand any exposure before I move them to a larger cage. 

If their mama had been taking care of them, she'd protect them and they'd nestle into her plumage for the next few months.  Until they're too large to fit under her any more.  But I don't have any plumage, so they have to be protected from the weather by my cage location and a lightbulb.

It's been fairly wet (thankfully), so it took us awhile to get the garden planted. 

I started our seeds in yogurt cups and had them on the back porch next to the brooder box.  They got a good start.  And so, yesterday, we got them all in the ground.

Seed starts and brooder box

I got all our seed for this year from Baker Creek.  They are nice folks.  The catalog is beautiful, and full of information!  http://www.rareseeds.com/

We're growing several varieties of squash and melons, 2 varieties of blond cucumbers, 2 varieties of red heirloom tomatoes, carrots, beets, okra, asparagus, onions, garlic and potatoes.  I'm sure I'll find a few more things to stick in the garden because I still have room left!

Garden before planting

The little section on the upper right that isn't plowed is the asparagus bed.

Garden after planting

Notice, the asparagus bed is now center left.  The tomato in the foreground is a small yellow that I overwintered in the house.  The plant in the pot in the background is a red chili that we've dug up and overwintered every year for the past few years.  It's not toooooooooooo hot.  Just right for our family.

The boxed in area is for the carrots and beets.  I'll be planting marigolds and nasturtiums along the border, as bug deterrent.

Last week when I was out taking pictures, a small garter snake was checking out the garden.

Can you see him?  Green  and yellow in the center of the picture

 My husband and son had seen it earlier in the day.

Our landscaping is looking very nice.  I "stole" the tomato cages my husband made last year and have them around my peonies.  We won't need tomato cages for some time yet, but I need to get those peonies staked before they start to bloom.  We can make more tomato cages. 

Peonies with commercial cage support

The lilacs are getting ready to bloom.  I love the smell of lilacs.  At my parent's homestead, 2 large light purple bushed had grown together to form a "cave".  My aunt and I used to play in there and pretend it was our fort.  Our dog Herkimer would be forced into playing in there with us.  Those are fond memories for me.  So when we bought this property, I got 4 different colors of lilac and planted them in a square.  Now they will form a nice space for someone else to cherish (who know, I may be the one crawling in there!)

Ok.  That's all for today.  I'll discuss more gardening, landscaping and chickens as the spring and summer progress.

Go outside and enjoy the beautiful day!