Fermented grains

I haven't talked about the fermented grain in a long time. So thought I'd do a post about how I do it.

I am using cracked corn, or 3 way chicken scratch, which is what I have now, whole wheat, whole oats and steamed barley. I use the big coffee can and take 1 1/2 half of each grain and dump into a 5 gallon bucket til it'a almost 3/4 full.

Then take some good apple cider vinegar with the mother and I pour maybe 1-2 cups in.

Then fill it up with HOT water. I find hot water makes it plump up faster. Then give it a stir and put a lid on loosely. In the morning, the grain will be to the top of the bucket. I usually make a bucket every other day.

I always drain 2 colanders full every morning and night since the goats don't like theirs wet. For the goats, the milk does get a few qts. mixed with alfalfa pellets, sunflower seeds and kelp during milking.

The chickens get 2 colanders plus 2 big coffee cans full of grower-finisher feed mixed together with kelp too. The chickens get this twice a day. I have 26 Freedom Rangers and about 40 Cornish Cross left. So when all these birds are butchered, I'll just be feeding goats and some laying hens.

I don't know if it's the  fermented grains mixed with the kelp, but my goats are looking great. Nice shiny coats and very healthy.

I did leave a coffee can half full of grains and forgot about it. One day I saw the can and looked in and the grains had sprouted. Lots of sprouts in there. I gave it to the Barred Rock chicks and they loved it. So I may start doing this for them, since they are in the coop right now til I get their run done.

Freedom Rangers at 2 months old

Yesterday, I put the Premier electric net fence around the Freedom Rangers. I thought that might help them to grow, since they are still so darn little. And they are almost 2 months old now.

                  Some of them don't mind getting electrocuted. Then they go back in again. Silly birds.

                                                       I hope this will make them happy!

Some John Henry

https://www.facebook.com/media/set/?set=oa.487380511336949&type=1 (If you go to Open Group at Bedlam Farm on FB, you can see these. For some reason, I can't get links on here..)

I posted all these on FB this morning. He's such a ham, this buck!

Y'all have a great weekend. I'm going to the farmer's market in the morning. Haven't been in a few weeks.

What's not right here?

I mowed today!

 Me and 1, 578 other people. The sun came out and it didn't rain here all day! So on the mowers we all went. Gotta mow while the sun shines, right? And man, was it ever hot too. And humid, with all this moisture in the air. And I slid all over this place on that mower. I was afraid to mow up by the road because it's too close to the pond we get when it rains a lot. And I did not want to get stuck like I saw someone else did. So I'll get it later. And I'll have to trim everywhere tomorrow too. It looks so much better. It was beginning to become quite the jungle out here.

I like this picture of the house, with the sun behind it. It sure was nice to see it today. A welcome sight, indeed. And I feel better with all the high grass mowed now. It was getting to where I was afraid to walk through it. There are nasty creepy scary snakes out there!

And the bees were really active today. I was worried they had all left the hive. It's been too rainy and cloudy to check on them. When I did get close, I could hear bees inside the hive. And I am really smelling honey! I'll go tomorrow and get another super and frames so when I do check inside, I can put new frames in and take the frames with honey. I am really not sure what I'm doing. But I smell honey!

I love the clouds when they're like this. I have seen bunnies, baby pigs, all kinds of cute little animals. Love them!

More fire wood, chickens, blueberries apples and some sunshine

My husband is home for a few days, so we went today and got a truckload of the oak tree wood this morning. This is the bigger heavier pieces. It took both of us to get each piece into the truck. It'll be fall before it can be split. He tried a few of the bigger pieces and the maul just bounced right back off. Plus all the rain we've had made the wood heavier.  But our pile is growing fast!

The old oak tree is going to have to come down. It's 88 years old. Mrs. T was about 8 when her family planted that tree. And she'll be 96 on Thursday this week. I called her tree man who's been working n that tree for 30 years now. he came Friday to look at it and to talk to Mrs. T. She'll listen to him. And he said it needed to come down. It's old and falling and next time it falls, it will fall on her house and her bedroom would be first hit. This tree is huge. It's got to be at least 25 feet around at the base. But I'd rather see it come down than to destroy her house or even kill her.

So we will be getting lots of the wood. About this size. Plus they have a chipper and will bring me all the shredded brush. So it will go to a good use. Keeping us warm this winter. It already is. Loading and unloading wood is a really hot job! I am very thankful for this tree.

My friend up the road called me yesterday and said I needed to come down and pick blueberries at his neighbors house. She has lots of bushes and just couldn't get them all. So I went and we picked til we filled our buckets up. I got a gallon. I put them in qt. size baggies today and got 8. Also put 4 more bags of apples in the freezer.

Then this evening another friend came with their egg eating hen. I was going to be butchering some more of my CC meat birds and he wanted a lesson on butchering. I was glad to show him how. I had caught 7 this morning, but pardoned one because she needed another week. So did 6 more. And his 1.

So another busy Monday for me. I have had my shower and am nice and clean for a little while. It feels good!

Oh, the sun was out a lot today!! And the sky was partly blue too. It rained here and there. And while we were butchering, it came a downpour. But we were under some cedar trees and barely got wet. It was good to see the sun again, if only for a little while.

Rain, rain, go away!

It is STILL raining! This is the 5th straight day of rain. I cannot remember what a blue sky looks like, so I put this picture back up.

It has looked like this since Monday afternoon. Just rain, rain and more rain. Not really heavy rain, but a steady drizzly rain that sometimes goes to a downpour. Everything is soaked. Including my poor chickens. Goats will not come out of the barn at all. The sheep are all huddled under the shed over next door. It's just miserable weather.







I know I should not complain. I know the garden is loving this. I know in a few weeks, I will be praying for rain. And I know we are not the only ones flooding right now. I know God is in control. But it's DEPRESSING to say the least.

I hope someone out there has seen the sun and it's not really missing.