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| So far we have gotten some heavy and fast hail which turned most places white in 8 minutes. |
The cold has come to Little Utah Farm. The temps range from 30s to 12 degrees. Taking care of the animals is much different in cold temperatures.
The girls (hens and ducks) are hungry in the morning and I find having it all ready to put down in the morning works best for all of us. In the evening after I put the ducks and hens to bed, I prepare their morning feast of scratch, feed, and sunflower seeds and a few dried mealworms and put in the feed bin with a tight lid. I fill the water buckets and put them inside by the back door for next morning, so they do not freeze. I feed again in the afternoon around 2:30pm well before the sun goes down and the colder temps set in.
Those dried meal worms are eaten up fast. They miss their moths, and other bugs that they eat in warmer weather.
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| The chickens and ducks are snug in their coop during the winter. |
The infrared lamps in the coop were dusted off tightened into position and connected. That gets turned on at 15 degrees. Some chicken owners say wait till below zero but I draw the line at 15 F. Some of you might even gasp at that temperature but the girls run really hot. If you bury your finger into their feathers you can feel the heat they give off. Those feathers are like a super down coat. They fluff their feathers out to insulate the cold from coming in. The hens and ducks have a big coop. They roost in a small compartment which blocks the icy winds and rain and snow. Chickens do adapt to cold weather just like the swallows, robins, and doves who winter here.
Just a note: I raised my first hens in Southern California. I did not know much about them. When it got 60 degrees I turned the lamps on for them. Which is crazy wrong. But we learn as we go along. When I got to Utah I turned the lamps on at 40. then the following year, 30, then later, 20. Now it is 15. I see that the more adapt I am to the cold the more I realize the hens are too. I also came to this by reading many articles on the subject.
The heating element was placed inside the water trough for the llamas. Llamas have a common dung pile and 90% of the corral stays very clean. In the cold, rain and snow those lines get out of the normal parameters and the llamas manure pile extends out to the north east of the corral. Come summer the manure pile shrinks back to the southeast.
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| The whole herd of llamas fits ncely inside a 3 sided shelter. |
Llamas have a 3 sided shelter to keep out of the elements when they need to. the shelter is big enough to house 6 llamas comfortably.
The way we deal with the water and hoses is much different in the below freezing temperatures. After using the water, I have to drain the hose, disconnect it from the spigot, and put a special cover to keep the water from freezing.
As for me I have outfitted myself with nice thermal under layers. 3-4 layers of clothing keeps me warm in single digits and below freezing. These are not heavy layers at all. I can move about quite freely. It is the gloves I feel clumsy with. So hard to manipulate tiny jobs with those heavy gloves. An ungloved hand can get real cold, numb and painful so I keep those gloves on.
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| A nice big red barn. |
I would love a nice big red barn that is connected to the house by an underground pass. I have that picture in my mind always and it makes me happy. I love to dream.
After all, dreaming got me here to Little Utah Farm.
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| Frost gathered on the alfalfa and the drying corn stalks. |
I take advantage of the mild waves of remaining warmth during the day to finish cutting the cornstalks and making a corn shock from my field of dried cornstalks. I am also layering cardboard, manure, kitchen scraps and leaves for good garden soil and no weeds. It did wonders for the clay soil.
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| Layers of cardboard, manure, kitchen scraps, straw, and leaves. |
Here is my blog post Winter Layers For My Garden which shows how to layer cardboard, manure, leaves and straw to keep the weeds down and also make rich soil.
That is it for now...
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| Deborah Moen Little Utah Farm |
Thank you for visiting us at Little Utah Farm
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Until next time,
Enjoy your life, gather your blessings, and cherish each day.
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| Flexzilla Garden hose Life warranty. This is our garden hose hanging outdoors near the barn. |
We use Flexzilla Garden Hoses.This one is 50 ft long. We keep ours handy outdoors. This hose does not tangle, or freeze and has a lifetime warranty.
