...... anyway im ordering some chickens

eggs are the new currency

From the gold thread,






I have actually purchased 6 chickens at the cost of £11 each around mid 2008, and after a few weeks of getting them settled down and feeding them approximately 1 bag of pellets a month (cost of £6.50) I am currently getting at least 36 eggs per week.

http://www.poultry.allotment.org.uk/Chicke...s_economics.php

There are a few very good posts regarding producing food and the cost of it, and it got me wondering if there are many other GEI members who are currently “digging in” and producing home grown food ?


Currently in the greenhouse:

Tomotoes (Bush, Moneymaker & Roma (Seedless)
Sweet corn
Leeks
Beetroot
Courgettes (variety “Gold rush” lol – couldn’t resist growing these)
Runner beans
Cucumber
Strawberries
Various salad leaves

Currently sown in the ground:

Broccoli
Brussels sprouts

Some useful links :

http://www.allotment.org.uk/vegetable/gene...table-chart.php

http://www.poultry.allotment.org.uk/index.php

From the gold thread,

I have actually purchased 6 chickens at the cost of £11 each around mid 2008, and after a few weeks of getting them settled down and feeding them approximately 1 bag of pellets a month (cost of £6.50) I am currently getting at least 36 eggs per week.

I'm on it.

Just planted peas, strawberries, potatoes, onions, garlic, beetroot, carrots. Pruned the peach trees and vines and planting corn next week. Worried about lack of rain though.

Mother in law butchered a pig in the kitchen last Sunday. 150 euro for half a side and the meat will last all 6 months. Sister is trying to breed rare pigs in Lancashire. Council are all over it though. Shuffling paper and stopping things happening.

peaches - are they ok re frost

whereabouts in the uk are you

im in doncaster - mum used to have a peach tree but no peaches made it

hen house arrived

rescuing three battery hens this weekend

will post how we get on

There are a few very good posts regarding producing food and the cost of it, and it got me wondering if there are many other GEI members who are currently “digging in” and producing home grown food ?


Currently in the greenhouse:

Tomotoes (Bush, Moneymaker & Roma (Seedless)
Sweet corn
Leeks
Beetroot
Courgettes (variety “Gold rush” lol – couldn’t resist growing these)
Runner beans
Cucumber
Strawberries
Various salad leaves

Currently sown in the ground:

Broccoli
Brussels sprouts

Some useful links :

http://www.allotment.org.uk/vegetable/gene...table-chart.php

http://www.poultry.allotment.org.uk/index.php

How much space have you got?
Any problems with the neighbors?

Good luck,

The only draw back to rescue chickens is that they'll obviously be past thier "peak production" but i'm sure they'll very much enjoy being outside.

I feed mine on Layers Pellets and a couple of handfulls of corn per day and any left over scraps from the kitchen table. The chickens I got go crazy for leftover dog food if the dog refuses it. I wouldn't throw them any peelings, thats really for either a wormery or a composter.

Look forward to hearing how you get on with the chickens

The neighbours I have are as good as gold, they even suggested to me to get a cockerel, the downside is that they are always trying to buy eggs from me - lol - but I’ve got a good relationship with them, so no hassle there.

The place I’m renting is in a fairly rural location, the garden is a fair size.

Dimensions are approximate (Ft)

Chicken coup 15 x 10
Contains 6x chickens (One of which has recently turned "Broody")

Main Veg Patch 30 x 8
Containing
25x Sweet corn (aiming for at least 50 heads of corn)
8x courgette
Section of Chard
Section of Beetroot
5x Runner beans (I've had 5 failures)

And still a little it of space to put in some more veg


Green house 8 x 6
6x Cucumbers (have started harvesting, 2no so far)
4x Strawberry (First ones are nearly ready)
10x Tomato (Moneymaker and Roma)
4x Tomato (Bush type "Tumbling Tom")
Also...
Tray of leaks ready to go in the ground


The Patio 10x10
6x various Potatoes being grown in tyres
3x hanging baskets of "Tumbling tom"
1x large tub of Carrots
1x trough of lettuce
1x green courgette
1x small Cherry tree (Netted)

Around the garden
8x Tomato (Money maker)
1x White grape (not expecting much from this for at least a couple of years)

Has some failures, both Brussels sprout & broccoli seedling didn't really work out, and first batch of sweet corn also failed (my suspicion on the corn could be that of a rabbit problem) also lost 5 runner beans as the weather hasn't been to good.

Lessons learned this year...... is not to put your seedlings in the ground to early, and don't sow the seeds until very late march. (I started in mid Feb)

got them last week

very nervous at first but now more confident - the hens that is not me

getting three eggs a day from three chickens

..... courgettes did the best last year

May I also ask the question whether any of you have had any tutorship prior to starting your projects or whether you have had to gain knowledge from books, tv progs and/or internet based sources ?

My Grandparents always kept aside an area of their gardens for a veggie patch and greenhouse to produce some homegrown food and they always tried to teach me about growing but sad to say on reflection I did not listen and only paid attention out of courtesy. My parents never kept a stocked garden ..................

It strikes me from observation that the skills and desire to grow fruit and veg on your own land has skipped a generation and with possible future scenarios is a little disconcerting.

May I also ask the question whether any of you have had any tutorship prior to starting your projects or whether you have had to gain knowledge from books, tv progs and/or internet based sources ?

The individuals putting in gardens today are not thinking solely about today’s recession, they are thinking about tomorrow’s possible depression along with probable future food shortages. They are thinking long-term and understand that while today’s cash outflow is a break-even, next years and subsequent years represent independence from at least some portion of the “food system.” They also realize that long term much of our global agriculture system is in real trouble and it may not be very long before capacity of production becomes heavily eclipsed by the most basic need the global population has, the need to eat every day.

So what are the biggest threats we have to our food supply today? They include…

* Grain production has been maxed out and we have failed to meet global grain demands for 6 of the past 9 years.
* Enough U.S. produced grain to feed a half billion people for a year will be converted to ethanol in 2009.
* Many nations are now creating long-term contracts with other nations to lock up the grain being produced by the few remaining large net exporters.
* China, India, The U.S., The UK, Malaysia, South Africa and Japan are now all “net importers of food.” Translation: a combined population of over 2.7 billion can no longer feed themselves without foreign dependence.
* Many shallow aquifers have been fully depleted and the largest fossil aquifers in the world are now being depleted. 70% of global water usage is for agriculture and we are running out of the water used for that purpose.
* Companies such as Monsanto are altering food at a genetic level taking massive risks with our food supply by releasing altered genetics into the biosphere via cross pollination.

These six threats are just the beginning; we have also lost a huge portion of genetic diversity via the practice of “monoculture,” soil is losing fertility faster then it is being replenished and soil erosion is turning previously fertile land fallow. In short global population and demand for food is rising while the long-term trend of increasing food production is flattening and threatening to soon go into a decline.

This is an area where many modern survivalists are finding common ground with an unlikely ally, those heavily into the eco movement. The two sides are sill miles apart on many issues; survivalists tend to be conservatives or libertarians and the eco crowd tends to be quite liberal and tends toward a socialist or statist viewpoint on many issues. Even on the issues of gardening and permaculture there are often huge differences on why the need exists but what is agreed upon is the need itself.

Hence even some of those of the edges of both movements are finding a common bridge in understanding the need to create individually managed sustainable agriculture. In other words it doesn’t mater if it is “global warming” or “incompetent politicians” that will be the cause of a coming food shortage; either way the solution is individual action. That action is as simple as beginning to produce just a portion of your own food. The potential production on even small suburban lots is shocking. One family led by a self-proclaimed “agrarian revolutionary” named Jules Dervaes is currently producing about 6,000 lbs of food per year on 1/10th of an acre! While that is the extreme, if perhaps 30% of suburban homes would produce even 10% of what Mr. Dervaes is producing, can you see how large the impact would be?

(This video of Mr. Dervaes’ home is quite inspiring and well worth the 10 minutes required to view it.)

Here is the real beauty in producing some of your own food via sustainable agriculture and long-term permaculture techniques…

* You can do it now even with containers if you are an apartment dweller
* It has an immediate impact on your personal situation
* It has a positive impact on your health and property value
* It provides insurance against a future shortage of food (personal or global)
* Entering into your second year the savings of cash is significant
* It reduces your dependence upon several systems (agriculture, distribution, etc.)

radish have just disappeared. Not sure what's happened to them.

We always have foxes around so I am wary about letting them run free during the day.

thought this was worth posting

6,000lbs of food from 10% of an acre

http://lewrockwell.com/orig10/spirko5.1.1.html

I don't have a dog unfortunately. But the foxes are so common and unafraid round here now it's astonishing.

Another tactic is, I am told, to pee nearby but it doesn't really seem to work.

25x Sweet corn (aiming for at least 50 heads of corn)

any luck?

all mine have either 2 or 3 cobs this year; I'd say about 2.75 on average.

...
If the cider works out well, tempted to call it "Incyder trading" or maybe the "Sussex Incyder" any other suggestions are welcome of course.
...

What has been successful this year for you ?

If you get any spare cider then stick it outside in a covered bucket during Winter and each day take the ice out. When the frosts stop filter what is in the bucket to remove the bits. The remainder is AppleJack but FFS if it is a cold winter be careful as it can get a bit powerfull

Has anyone made mead?

turns out spinach (although not really food ) has a good yield and is particulary useful if you want to grow a leafy salad type crop in an area which is too shady for lettuce.

.........

my tomatoes are shite also . this is the 2nd year running they've been shit. I won't bother with tomatoes next year.

I have never heard of Applejack before....... Wikipedia has got this on it.

http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Applejack_(beverage)

Yep, I can see me giving this a go, Thanks id5
...

Interesting to hear of peoples approaches to minimising their footprint, getting closer to nature and securing their own quality food source. As a regular reader, it inspired me to my first post.

If the cider works out well, tempted to call it "Incyder trading" or maybe the "Sussex Incyder" any other suggestions are welcome of course.

got them last week

very nervous at first but now more confident - the hens that is not me

getting three eggs a day from three chickens

any luck?

all mine have either 2 or 3 cobs this year; I'd say about 2.75 on average.

How are those Chickens working out for you? I hope everything is still going well.

well I'm glad I didn't bother planting a winter crop; it would have been ruined by this weather!

We always have foexes around so I am wary about letting them run free during the day.

Victor,

My problem is the total oposite really, it's the hight of the chicken wire thats of more consern to me really, I recently "lost" a chicken as she decided to fly over, and my golden retriever didn't really appreciate the "invasion" of his area and delt with her in a simular fashon to how he deals with rabbits.

Chicken Wing Clipping

We found out that in order to keep them within your garden you need to clip just one wing on each bird. Be careful though - only clip the primary feathers. Do not clip down too far as you will hit blood vessels which can lead the the chicken bleeding to death. Seek advice from a VET or professional if in doubt. Our chickens wings were successfully clipped they and now no longer escape.

Have you thought about getting one of their wings 'clipped'.