Brand New Baby Chicks in HumblevilleUSA – Good Friday 2016

Chickens

Welcome back to Humbleville, USA! This past Good Friday, the girls and I went to our local farm supply store and brought home three Buff Orpingtons, one Silver Wyandotte and one Rhode Island Red baby chicks! We are so looking forward to having our own farm fresh eggs in the convenience of our back yard. Yes, we’ve had dogs and cats and fish and even earthworms … but this is our first foray into raising chickens in our backyard.

The girls are really excited. Mrs Humbleville is less so, but she does love fresh eggs and her daughters. So chickens it is!! We aren’t expecting them to be laying eggs until late summer or early Fall. We’re setting our expectations to September.

Keeping the chicks dry, clean, watered, fed, warm and safe are the primary considerations. In this video we have set up a small, temporary home. A friend of ours will lend us her larger cage unit so the chicks will be able to spread out and grow.

Notice something we are doing wrong? PLEASE let us know! It keeps us humble and learning. Please like the video, share it with your friends and do us the honor of subscribing to our humble channel. God Bless!!

Luke 13:34

“O Jerusalem, Jerusalem, the city that kills the prophets and stones those sent to her! How often I wanted to gather your children together, just as a hen gathers her brood under her wings, and you would not have it!

Vermicomposting (worm castings) Adding Worms to the Worm Factory 360

Vermicomposting

Welcome to Humbleville !!! After getting your Square Foot Garden (SFG) going, the best thing you can do for future crops is to add great organic material to your soil. Worm castings are one of the BEST soil amendments around. And you can get tons of great worm castings for virtually free by learning and trying vermicomposting yourself!

In this episode we will be introducing 1000 Red Wiggler worms (approximately 1 full pound of worms) to their new home in the Worm Factory 360. See the unboxing of the worm shipment. See the wigglers wiggling as they make their home in the prepared bedding. See us give them their first pile of food.

If you missed our video on how to set up your new Worm Factory 360, you can see that in our Humbleville play list.

Please continue to join us on our journey by SUBSCRIBING to this channel. SHARE the video with your friends who may be interested. At a minimum, can we humbly ask you to LIKE the video? It really helps. Thank you and God Bless !!

Mushrooms in the Worm Bin!

Vermicomposting

Mushrooms in the Worm Bin

Surprise, surprise, surprise!  Looks like we have a crop of mushrooms growing in our worm bin.  After doing a little online research, it appears that mushrooms are not harmful to this vermicomposting process and is evidence of a healthy microfungal system.  If you have differing information, would you be so kind as to comment below.  In the meantime, we will just allow our worm friends to munch on this occasional snack.

Getting 5 Chicks on Good Friday 2016

Chickens

New Chicks

And five new chicks have moved into Humbleville, USA and Spooky the cat is rather curious.  We were able to borrow this cage from a friend which will make this chick rearing a bit nicer.  They have plenty of room and even a place to perch.  If they get cold, they can huddle under the heat lamp, and if they are cold they can move to the other side of the pen.  We ended up selecting three Buff Orpingtons, one Rhode Island Red and one Silver Wyandotte.

So far the Wyandotte seems to be the most active and energetic, and when we hold her she seems to poop on the holder every time.  The Rhode Island Red has started getting the reputation for not pooping on the holder, and just pooping where she is supposed to.  The Buffs are hit and miss in the category.

Statistically we have 1/2 of a rooster in this lot of five chicks.  I’m hoping this gets round down and not up.  We are not seeking to own a rooster, and I think our neighbors would agree.  But we shall see.

2 x 3 Aquaponic Bed – April 2016

Aquaponics

IMAG0101

And here is an update on our fairly newly established 2′ x 3′ aquaponic bed.  Some of the houseplants are still in the bed to help eliminate the nitrates from the recirculating water, but they will come out soon enough as we expand our edible vegetation.  The green onions (started from the root end of the store bought variety) are quite tall and the girls enjoy eating them right out of the aquaponic bed, although I’ve been using mine in my morning omelettes.  Delish!  The spinach and cilantro that have been transplanted in are doing well and I’ve harvested a bit of the cilantro already to add into homemade guacamole. Also Delish!  I’m hoping that the potted plant you see in the left side of the picture is a tomato plant.  This mystery plant was growing in a pot within which I was attempting to grow more thyme.  Only time will tell if this will bear fruit or not.  We shall see.  Stay tuned and God Bless!!

Vermicomposting (worm castings) Setting up Worm Factory 360

Vermicomposting

Welcome to Humbleville !!! After getting your Square Foot Garden (SFG) going, the best thing you can do for future crops is to add great organic material to your soil. Last August (8/8/2015) we received our Worm Factory 360 in the mail (cost about $100 on Amazon) and started our adventure in keeping worms.  Worm castings are one of the BEST soil amendments around. And you can get tons of great worm castings for virtually free by learning and trying vermicomposting yourself!

We are doing our vermicomposting by using a Worm Factory 360. In this video you will see how we set up the worm farm in advance of getting our worms so we can create the proper bedding and environment for our red wiggler worms. The Worm Factory 360 comes with almost everything you need to set up a great bedding and a new home for your hard working worms (you will need some water, and some of your local garden soil or regular compost). So easy even a child can do it!

Please continue to join us on our journey by SUBSCRIBING to this channel. It really helps. Thank you and God Bless !!

Job 25:6 ESV

How much less man, who is a maggot, and the son of man, who is a worm!”

SFG Square Foot Garden 2015 08 – bolting greens, peas, dill, heirloom watermelon, tomatoes & peppers

Square Foot Gardening (SFG)

Welcome to Humbleville !!!  In this video we will give you an update on the progress of our six 4×4 SFG raised bed gardens from August 2015. The peas are browning but still producing at the beginning of August.  The green beans and wax beans have seemed to have paused.  The dill is truly devine and the cucumbers are starting to grow.  Peppers and tomatoes are coming online nicely and we are already enjoying some of the small ripe ones.  The heirloom watermelon has started to fruit as well.  The spinach and other greens have bolted in the summer heat, but the kale and swiss chard are holding up well.   And the marigold we started from seed are looking great.  Please continue to join us on our journey by SUBSCRIBING to this channel.  It really helps.  Thank you and God Bless !!

Deuteronomy 32:2

“Let my teaching drop as the rain, My speech distill as the dew, As the droplets on the fresh grass And as the showers on the herb.

2015 SFG – How to Build a Trellis to aid vertical gardening – Square Foot Garden

Square Foot Gardening (SFG)

Welcome to Humbleville !!  In this video we will show you how to build your own trellis for your Square Foot Garden (SFG).  Going vertical can help you grow more food in less space, and that’s one of the objectives of this gardening method.  Make your trellis using two pieces of rebar, 3 sections of electrical conduit, 2 90 degree connectors and some nylon trellis netting.  Train up your vining peas, cucumbers, tomatoes, zucchini, watermelons and other vining vegetables.  It’s relatively inexpensive, durable, stable and easy.  If you have any comments or questions, please do so in the comment section.  Thank you and God Bless !!!

Isaiah 61:11

For as the earth brings forth its sprouts, And as a garden causes the things sown in it to spring up, So the Lord GOD will cause righteousness and praise To spring up before all the nations.

SFG Square Foot Garden 2015 06 After – Bolting spinach, Raspberries, Washing Greens

Square Foot Gardening (SFG)

Welcome to Humbleville !!  In this video we will give you an update on the progress of our six 4×4 SFG raised bed gardens from last June 2015.  We just got back from a week’s vacation in Texas.  How did our garden beds hold up?  Have a visit to Humbleville to find out.  In this update we can see that “Muchie” has been back and enjoying the Swiss Chard this time.  Also see what bolting spinach looks like.  We have ripening raspberries that my twins seem to enjoy along with pretty large amount of snap peas.  The green beans are starting to come in nicely.  But our cilantro is going to seed which could provide us some decent coriander seeds, although we would rather have fist fulls of cilantro.  The dill is coming in nicely as is several varieties of lettuce.  I’ll show you how I do a quick wash on the greens to get the dirt and dust off of the leaves in addition to helping them crisp up and rehydrate a bit.  Please continue to join us on our journey by SUBSCRIBING to this channel.  It really helps.  Thank you and God Bless !!

1 Corinthians 3:6

I planted, Apollos watered, but God was causing the growth.

Getting a late start on an early jump on spring

Square Foot Gardening (SFG)

On of our new additions to our gardening projects is this relatively inexpensive 15′ greenhouse.  This will be our first experience with using a greenhouse to try to extend our growing season.  The assembly of the frame wasn’t too difficult, especially when I had Cassie’s help.  Now the next trick will be to slip the greenhouse fabric over the frame, and then secure it all down so the wind won’t topple it.  I may also reorient the directional placing of this small greenhouse.  I can’t wait to get a jump on the tomatoes and peppers this season.  Better late than never.

greenhouse frame
Getting a late start on an early jump on spring