Over the weekend we decided to try something new on the Rabbit barn. Since we haven't had rabbits for a few years keeping the barn cooler wasn't a big deal. Now that we have 15 rabbits in their it is again time to be keeping them cool. We have a mist system installed on the barn from the last time we had rabbits, we just needed to clean some misters. During the winter we put cardboard around the outside so it will stay warmer for the goats and chickens, but after we took all the cardboard off the rabbits just got too much sun! So after some thought on what we should do, we thought tarps, tin, plywood but this next idea was just what we needed! Landscape fabric!!! Breathable, air can move through it and water can get it wet! So we happen to have some so we attached it to the side of the barn under the mist system with screws with large washers. Now that fabric when wet acts like an air conditioner but it still lets air move through also! It worked so well on the side we redid the front with it also!

We also added some shade cloth to the new chicken run that we built a few weeks ago out of used snow fence. The cloth we put on top is called a planket size 10x20, it is for covering plants when the weather is getting cooler. I found this on clearance for $4 and it has grommets like a tarp so worked awesome for this project!

When things get tough around here sometimes we take stuff in to the local metal recycle center. Since we cant burn copper off i spend hours setting in my recliner stripping copper. The only thing i hate about that is all the insulation casings that have to be cleaned up! But it always makes it worth it when i take it in and they give me more money since my copper is clean. I see right now that short iron in my neck of the woods is down right now along with some other prices. Whats great it just some time sorting thru things and loading them up and taking them there you can make a decent tax free paycheck!  I took what i made and paid a bill then bought our animal feed for the week, it sure is nice when it seems like it is free since it doesn't have to come out of the weekly budget! This posting is just to remind people that there is money to be made out there if you have it laying around, don't throw it out cash it out! I even save my tin cans as for every 100 lbs of them pays out between $7-$9 just as well make money on our veggie cans! So here is a scan of what I took in and what i made off of them. I took in a load last week that paid out $200 so just in a week i got $363.42! Take a look around you never know what you have that will pay well!!

The insulated  #2 copper is old extension cords! They don't strip well so we just throw them all in a bucket and they go too!

We recently got a tractor and Mr ingenuity wanted to get a bale mover for it. Of course they are several hundred dollars at any farm store so he went digging through all of his junk piles and came up with parts to build one that would fit on a 3 point tractor, a flat bed truck and a regular pickup. Of course looking at his plans that he had drawn out i thought he had lost his mind. I sure couldn't see what all of those lines were gonna come together and make. I am glad that he knew what he was doing as if he was dependant on me to make some of the things he does we would be in debt as i would have to go purchase all these things!

What seems like weeks but was just a few days he got all of his parts welded together, parts painted, truck modified and this is what he came up with.

He has built it so that he can haul 2 different sizes of bales. He also included a ball mount to tow a trailer behind it if needed, or another bale mover..lol. Here is a side view

I have no idea how he comes up with these things, but I'm sure glad that he does! It sure helps around a farm to just look at something and come up with an idea to fix it, build a new one or improve somethings!

Its been awhile since i have posted. Just been keeping up with the garden and the animals. It is starting to get hot and the garden is showing it! The cucumbers here are pretty much done but have another planting coming up soon. I have made several batches of salsa so far, have enough tomatoes to make a few more. I dont know how many of you check out craigslist.com but i was pointed in the direction of a great deal the other day. Any of you with animals know that fence is always in need. I have all the perimeter fencing done and some cross fencing, but i still have some pockets that are not fenced and would love for the animals to be able to eat it instead of mowing it. Well here is what we got. 2000 feet of orange snow fencing. Now in states that it doesnt snow it is called safety fencing. I checked the price on this fencing and it runs $30 for  a 4'x100' roll. I got it for $5 used!

Now i have no excuse for the goats to not be eating down the back areas that i dont have fenced. It goes up fast and since it is temperary we didnt install alot of posts.

Here is a picture of my first batch of homemade chunky salsa. It has yellow pear toms, roma toms, banana peppers, jalapenos, cilantro, chives, onions, lime juice, salt. Everything except the onions we grew here on the farm. I bought the onions at a farm stand~

How is every ones gardens doing so far this year? I have planted a second run of cucumbers so far and need to be starting some fall items in the greenhouse. I want to start cabbage, cauliflower and broccoli at least. The garden harvests are in full swing now, we are getting alot of banana peppers and the tomatoes are finally changing colors!

This is the first year that we have watermelons! We have grown them before but they just never did well at all. We changed the location of them this year and i guess that is what we needed as there is watermelons setting on everywhere! I know son is excited as he LOVES watermelon and he has been checking the size of them almost everyday and so he wanted to take some pictures so everyone could see them.

I have been reading alot of magazines on what we can use herbs for besides cooking and have come across alot of good recipes for alot of different ailments. Here are a few that i have found!

Lavender and catnip dreamtime tea

For a deep, restful sleep, end your day with the healthy benefits of decaf green tea,combined with calming soporific herbs serves 1.

2 cups boiling water
1 decaf green tea bar
1/2 teaspoon fresh lavender buds
1/2 teaspoon catnip
honey

1. Pour water over tea bag, lavender and catnip, cover and steep 5 minutes. Remove tea bag

2. Pour mixture through a fine wire mess strainer into a cup discarding herbs. Serve with honey.


Here is a stress relief tea!

1 part Valerian
1 part chamomile
1 part passionflower
1 part skullcap
1/2 part lavender
1/2 part orange peel

1.Mix the herbs together in the amount you need. Use 1 teaspoon of the blend for each cup of water.

2. Pour boiling water over the herbs and steep for 10-15 minutes.

I know that for most of us it is prime garden season. Now i know that i am not alone in the bug problem so when i was looking for some organic ways to treat bugs i found some of the following recipes that help with some of these problems!

Ant repellent her and soap spray:

Ant herd aphids, mealybugs, and scale acting as hosts so they can harvest the other insects secretions. Control the ants with this spray and you will inhibit these other common pests.

1/2 cup fresh tansy leaves
1/2 cup fresh santolina leaves
1 quart boiling water
1 tablespoon Murphy oil soap
10 drops vetiver essential oils

1. add herbs to boiled water,cover and steel until infusion is cool.
2.Strain out herbs, Stir in soap and vetiver oil.
3.Before use shake mixture well then filter it into a sprayer. Spray ant trails, counters, soil surfaces or wherever ant are a problem.

Garlic and Chile insecticidal soap spray:

10 to 12 large cloves of garlic
4 to 6 hot Chile peppers, dried or fresh
Generous 2 cups of water
1 tablespoon liquid castile soap
10 drops cinnamon, vetiver or eucalyptus essential oil, optional

1. put garlic, chiles, and water into a blender and puree contents until foamy
2.let mixture stand at least 2 hrs or overnight. When mixture settles, you will have a coral colored liquid with sediment at the bottom.
3. Pour through a strainer lined with fine cheesecloth to remove particles that could block the spray valve.
4.Pour concentrate into a jar with a plastic lid, add soap, stir and label.
5. Store in a  cool, dark place until needed, up to a few months. For a 1 quart or 1 liter spray bottle use 2 tablespoons concentrate and fill the rest of the bottle with water.
6. Spray plants late in the day so the hot sun cant burn the plants. Cover the top and bottom of leaves. Reapply as often as needed but allow several days between applications.


I hope that these may help someone in their garden this season!!

Happy Gardening!

What a week it has been! This last week the other half has been on vacation, we have spent it cutting down dead trees from last years drought, stacking the wood from said trees and hauling off old junk!
We scrap any metal that we can find as it is great for the environment and I really like the extra cash flow! For everyone that doesn't know it is worth your time to recycle even your pop/soda cans! The first load we took in was 5 items and they weighed 1600 lbs! To get the prices per 100 that your local recycle center pays you will need to call and ask what it is paying. The above load was paid out in long iron price at $10.50 per 100 lbs. Now before you go make sure that you call and ask what they take if you have never taken stuff in before. I go to one that will not take any fence wire, but another one will take the fence wire. Today we took a load in and it weighed 850 lbs at $9.50 per 100lbs. This was all items that we have kept or picked up along side the road. I also recycle all of my vegetable cans, at the rate now they would pay out $9.50 per 100 lbs of them. I wash them out and take the labels off and smash them. Why not get paid back from an item that you are buying anyway? That old washer that you replaced can be taken in and you can get paid for recycling it, why not make some money off that old washer? We try to keep things stacked and ready for when we need some extra cash like at holiday time! Now copper wire is a good return on your time, you don't have to strip it but it does pay more if you do. Last time i took copper in #1 was $3.15 a lb! All items that you plug in has copper wire, before you discard cut the cords off and take any motors out. Now that you know or got reminded why don't you go out to see if you can find some hidden treasures to recycle!