Saturday Bits and Pieces

They tried to break out of the henspa today. 

They're going stir-crazy, too! 

We saw this beautiful old barn on the way to the garden show. 

It is the last of it's kind in an area of warehouse operations and suburbia. 

Tom Bury and Taniya Nayak of HGTV's Restaurant Impossible  (Taniya of many HGTV shows) were presenting at the garden/remodeling show.  If you notice, the same backdrop was used at the Josh Temple (House Crashers) show 3 weeks ago in KCMO.  These two, however, did a really good presentation, not just funny, but very, very informative for me.  I really enjoyed their presentation, and they told us it was the first time that they had done one together.  It was interesting to hear some of the back stories of Restaurant Impossible, and to hear about products you can use in your own homes.

And ladies, Taniya is as slim and trim as she looks on tv!  

However, both Keith and I agreed... there is not enough "gardening" at any of these shows, and next year we will skip them and save our money. 

Our girl Lil stole into the pasture behind me, and saw something right away.  I called her to come to me, as I don't want her in the deep drifts... she will be 8 this summer, and she is slowing down a teeny bit.  She gave up and came right to me.  

Clouds were rolling in after a beautiful day, and we have a chance of rain now. 

Okay, this was one thing I DID see that I really liked.  That's a bubble stone... and it's just the right size for our garden area.  You see, we are afraid if we put a small pond in that Lilly will be in it all the time.  

This bubble stone could do two things... it is artificial rock, so is fairly light... (those were all different kinds of bubblers behind it) and is shallow, so that birds could land on it and drink and clean themselves, and we think the toads could drink from the sides, as well as the rabbits, as the water runs down the side of it. 

Here is how it works... there is a small well, or receptacle underneath it.  You can barely see the lid open to the left.  This is made of some kind of breathable rubber, and can be left out year round.  The pump is submerged in it, and the water recirculates.  You can just see the electric cord on the right.  We would do the same thing, bury it with pea gravel and plants. 

You pull the pump in the winter, then tarp it. 

It runs on a 110 volt line. 

This view shows how it runs over the side... where rabbits and toads could get wet. 

The artificial rock was 199.00, with pump and water well and connecting parts... total of 600.00.  Of course, there would be more if you had them install it, but they have created the kit so that you can do it yourself.  This would satisfy my desire for water in the garden, and also benefit the wild animals and the dogs. 

  As soon as we drove in, I went to the big henhouse to check on everyone, as I do every day around noon or one.  When I went in, Jackson the Turkey was still up on the rafter where he roosted last night.  I went in to ask Keith to come help me get him down.  Keith told me to stay put, and went out alone... when he came back, he told me Jackson was down and eating ravenously.  Tonight I double-checked him, and he was on his old roost, but darting his head up and down and looking longingly at the rafters, as turkeys like to roost high.  Keith mixed the Tylan that we got delivered yesterday, and we have decided to put it in the waterers in the big henhouse, so that everyone is dosed.  We will not be able to use the 8 eggs a day I usually get from there for 2 weeks now, but everyone should get a good dose the next 3 days.  Whether mycoplasma gallisepticus or synovitis, I hope this dose of antibiotics licks it. 

And that's it for today from Calamity Acres!