Chicken coop residents

Don't they look overjoyed?

Chicken Coop

After three weekends of working on it, the Chicken coop is finally finished! No more turkey poop on the porch! No more chickens getting eaten by dogs!

Ryker

Sunrise

Lettuce Roots, nutrient change

A shot of the root system from the underside of the lettuce raft. Today was the first nutrient change for the lettuce system.

Hydroponic lettuce

We are very pleased with the lettuce raft system. It just keeps growing! A small aquarium pump runs 24/7 to keep the nutrients aerated, and we have two regular fluorescent fixtures on a timer for light. As far as human intervention, all we have to do is change the nutrient solution every once in a while, and pick and eat the lettuce!

Tomatoes in their new home!

Here's the tomatoes in their new home!

A new home for the tomatoes!

I finally finished the new ebb and flow tomato system. The long rectangular pieces are a 12' piece of PVC fence post cut in half with caps on both ends. The right side has flood and drain fittings fitted to each. Underneath is the 28 gallon nutrient reservoir. It contains the submersible pump ($10 from Harbor Freight) and the supply and return lines. It rest on a PVC frame that serves several purposes. It elevates it above the nutrient tank so it will drain, it is slightly higher on the left so all the nutrients drain out, and it serves as an anchor for the trellis system that comes down from the middle. The lighting system is also new. I bought 4 fixtures from Wallmart for $8 each, and hacked them together to make two ultra bright fixtures. Each individual tube is receiving twice the current from it's own electronic ballast. The only downside is that the bulbs only last 1/2 as long, but at $3 each, it's not a huge issue.

Winter's Setting In

We have had some really cold days here - down to 8 degrees one night! Brandon's new dog, Ryker, got a bit exuberant and killed a chicken, so Brandon got to do the honors of cleaning it and becoming a "chicken plucker". Then we had two more disappear in a week, so we are down to three, and the turkeys. We are in the process of building them a small run around their coop - no more "free ranging" for them! (And no more turkey poop on the deck to clean up or worse, to step in when I walk out the door...)

Our hydroponic garden is coming along well, but we really need to separate the tomato plants, which have taken over the basil and squashed it. The lettuce just grows and grows! We are having some great salads with it.

I love the peace here. I am looking for a job and know I am really going to miss my mornings with my coffee when something comes through. It is beautiful when there is a bit of snow on the ground, and it brightens my day immensely to see the dogs run and play in it. We have also had freezing fog for the last few days, and it forms the most beautiful crystals on everything - fence wire, tree branches and leaves and things. When it builds up more I will get some pictures of it and post them.