BatonRouge Bill wrote:
I like the no dig stacked tower idea but will used mixed soil and compost. The compost boxes are made form old 1x6x6 dog eared fence boards and are 3'x6'x 2 boards high. I will go up using the stacked tower method that people seem to like maybe 3' tall then let the plant green out.
I really like this method too... have been experimenting with different hardware to effect this. There is a place against a north-facing wall near my back door that they really do well but I have not been able to go as high as I want and the wood boxes I have used have worn too quickly. I might just build brick sides against the wall quite high and then stack the front higher and higher as I need to as they grow up. Could do a whole lot of towers this way and probably look prettier too. I love growing potatoes!
How high do you think a potato plant can go?
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The quail are doing fine. I kept around 2 dozen each white and brown. I get the occaisional egg from the browns but expect them to start laying in the spring. My brothers and I ate a dozen of them at the deercamp buffalo style. mmmm!
They really are such productive little birds! And cute...
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I don't know how the pellets will keep thru winter. My grass only stops growing in winter for about 1-1/2-2 months so I think I can keep the pellets fresh and possibly retain as much nutrients as possible.
I would like to dry and pellet mulberry and moringa leaves through the spring and summer as carry over for winter... but maybe just growing a winter pasture would make more sense. Was the pelleting machine expensive?
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I only had one rabbit have probem with sore hocks as he couldn't get a doe to submit and kept thumping his feed hard on the wire. Keeping rabbits on cement also helps keep their nails in check, have to clip them on wire. Does also have 1/4" wire in nest boxes and plywood top they rest on. Pretty much keep nest boxes in their cages entire time breeding season. Never had a problem with coccidiosis, although did have a few outbreaks of ear mites. Hard to get rid of if not caught early, just keeps reoccuring. Just like fish a quarenteen is good prevention.
Keeping rabbits free of coccidosis is easier in caged animals I think... small area to sterilize... in my colony system I am going to have to have a series of mini-meadows with different plants for them to eat... but keeping good rotation is essential. In between I will put them on concrete cos that is easily swilled down and sterilised. They just fascinate me and I have the space to let them loose and mostly around in the day to keep an eye on them. I went looking about ear-mites for you. I see that Ivermectin is often used, but if wanting a drug-free solution I found this......
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Treatment for ear mites is fairly simple. There are several over the counter treatments that you can use, such as Rabbit RX or a cat ear mite treatment. You may also use any mineral based oil, such as baby oil or even vegetable oil. The oil will suffocate the mites and kill them.
For the oil treatment:
Warm the oil to a lukewarm temperature.
Use a dropper or small plastic syringe.
On day one, place 2-3 drops in ear and gently massage the base of the ear. You may also use a cotton ball to coat the inside of the ear.
Days 2, 4, 6, 8 & 10: repeat day one.
Treat again on days 14, 21 and 28. Mite eggs live for 21 days so be sure to follow through with this treatment.
With this treatment, your mite infestation should be depleted.
Do not remove the crust that may appear in your rabbit's ear. This will leave open, bloody skin that will easily become infected. It will also be exceptionally painful to your rabbit. The crust will come off when it becomes saturated and your rabbit shakes his head.
It would not be unwise to gently wash your rabbits ears on the odd days during treatment. This will help prevent infection and also help in the bonding process. Again, be careful not to stress your rabbit or to pull at any scabs.
http://www.associatedcontent.com/pop_pr ... e_id=62619 Might be worth a try... I like to be able to make better myself if possible.... vet fees have become astronomical here. And the guy doesn't even do AI... I am in the country... but is yuppie country and so he has no real farm animal experience.. o well. I am told to take my animals to the nearest town... go figure. I wanted to import some straws for Cashmere Goat in Oz. Our Boer goat has some cashmere but only a little. Thought I might experiment with getting that side more developed.
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Reason I tried chicken scratch is because my drain to the biofilter drains from the top and the floating gamefish feed I'm using ends up in the biofilter rather quickly. The scratch sinks and it is smaller than the pellets which only the larger fish can eat.
Neat solution. Seems to be working well for you.
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I'm not going to fool with the hides the BSF larva can have them.
They will make short work of them. It is quite a bit of work tanning the hides. Someone on one forum just freezes a bunch until enough and then does them all together. Didn't look too hard... guess I will see! But that is way ahead for now. Wish I had the bucks to have everything built already and could be farming now.
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And yes the New Zealands don't like to be fooled with like many other breeds the the Flemish Giants are quite gentle and make great indoor pets. They are larger than the New Zealands but take a couple weeks longer to grow out. The new Zealands are 2/3 adult size in 6 weeks and have much larger litters. If crossed should be able to get growout in 7 weeks and a slightly larger animal. Also more gentle.
You will probably end up with a really superb animal.
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Handling the does for breeding is the part they don't like. After you put her with the buck the first time she doesn't want to go back and resists. But you should put her with him 3 times for an hour each in a day of breeding to get your kit numbers up. I also had some black and white dutch show rabbits. Smaller and more compact/rounder, shorter spine, but much more meaty along the spine than the NewZealands. Like a little back strap. GReat batter fried Bunny!
I know the dutch black and whites... nice rabbit. I have heard that rabbit meat is pretty good... its all that slaughtering that I am going to have to wrap my mind around.... figured chloroform and my son's air-rifle to the brain....
... I watched a couple of demos on you tube and hated it... poor rabbits was terrified while they tried to get it right. Couldn't seem to bash the poor animal hard enough on the back of the head. In my John Seymour book he knows how to hang the rabbit down and just pull the neck... very quick and painless... problem is learning to get it right....
Backyard Aquaponics
