Had to do a google search as I was not familiar with 321 cake. Sounds like a plan to satisfy the NEED for a sweet desert w/o filling the house with lots of sweet deserts! Thanks.
It is daylily time. I am finding all the garden beds that are overgrown and weedy, lol.
I need to get out there and pull some weeds. I would like to fire up the chipper/shredder and see if I can get the weeds chopped up for the compost pile.
Still looking at getting chicks. Just found a hatchery 2 1/2 miles away that has a reasonable price on Barred Rock chicks, just need to contact them and see if/when they have some available. They have a few breeds to choose from, Buff Orpintons are another possibility.
Our new pool is out of commission. After a week of filing it up, we set up the pump and filter and started treating the water. 3 days later, the pump won't work. GAH! Now, i need to find out where DH put the manuals, so I can call the manufacture and get this straightened out.
Tractor Supply has chicks today. Not quite what I wanted, but they will do. I bought 5 Sapphire Gems and 3 easter Eggers. The sign said that Sapphire Gems are a cross between a Blue Plymouth Rock and a Barred Rock. Since I was thinking of getting Barred Rock, I guess they will do. Only time will tell.
TSC has chicks? Do people usually pick up chicks this time of the year? It seems late to be picking up chicks now.
I guess maybe they're hoping these will start laying about the time that the days are getting longer? But that means you're having to feed a lot of non-producing mouths all through the winter. I hope these work really well with your flock.
I'm not critcizing, as I'll have chicks hatching soon here. I AM surprised. I've got two hens sitting on nests now (one hen and her chicks will be going to friends with kids that want to see them grow up. Their coop was almost finished and then a tree blew down in a storm and landed on the coop. )
I don't have the hard winters here that you do. But even here, I'll be doing a big cull before winter to reduce my winter flock. I've been busy emptying my freezer, making room for this year's meat.
We have a few barred rocks, and I have a partridge rock that has been a really good hen. Most of our flock is mixed with only a few of each breed. No sapphire gems, so I can't comment on those, but I think @Beekissed had some last year. I've been watching for white rocks but haven't found any here yet.
Good luck with your chicks. I'll be interested to see how well they do, and will look forward to pictures.
They are decent layers and foragers, but they are the most troublesome birds in the flock....they persist on getting into the garden as often as possible, so much so they had to get the prison cut...ALL primaries and secondaries on both wings.
Then they started haunting the cat food bowl, driving the cat away from her food and taking it...I had to start feeding her after they all went to roost. Two SG chickens and they create all the trouble in the whole flock. One will be culled in the fall cull due to having had issues with a defective shell gland in her first year.
This time of year, people DO buy chicks. Yep, they start laying winter/spring. You are feeding but, they eat less than the large ones right now. Seems to work out.
I've done it. Besides, then you have your new flock going to replace those you cull for Fall freezer fill. And they are coop trained. My TSC has some, also. They really are selling pretty well per the mgr. Mostly pullets, not many straight run now. There's the egg planning thing.
Thanks -- for the fall hen cull reminder. Not fun. But, I have a couple that I will not miss -- troublemakers. I also have some young ones that are prob roos...I am thinking I will pen separately -- away from current flock -- to just grow out for soup.
I had 2 Australorp roosters, 1 was meaner than a blind snake. It was mutual hatred. He showed up doornail dead, I guess the other rooster got tired of his crap. Must have been an epic battle, there were feathers everywhere. Life is so much better when you don’t have to put up with a mean rooster.