Red Dirt Farm and Studio

Ramblings from a small farmhouse.

Our neck of the woods dodged a bullet with the blizzard that passed through the beginning of the week.  We had a coating of ice, which thankfully melted quickly with the return of the sun.  It was beautiful, all glistening and sparkly in the sun.  Really, I can’t complain about the weather we have had this winter, all in all it has been a mild winter.  Still, I have a strong desire for spring weather to arrive and stay.  How about you?

The first day of spring is on Monday, there are signs that it is just around the corner.  The robins are busy dancing out in the lawn and tree tops.  Blue birds are choosing their houses to build nests in.  Their song is so beautiful.

 The Cowbirds have returned.

Each March Cowbirds arrive in large flocks to our homestead.  There are so many of them, that their song fills the trees.  They take over the bird feeders with gusto, knocking half the seed to the ground. Not to worry, the chickens quickly swoop in and gobble every morsel that is dropped.  Cowbirds are brood parasitic birds, meaning they lay their eggs in the nest of other birds, and expect those other birds to raise their young for them.  Usually, by June or July, the cowbirds leave the area.

TC says – yum cowbirds make a tasty snack.

Out in the hen-house, Little Winter discovered her reflection in the mirror this week.

Hmm, I think I’ll just lay here staring at myself…

Momma Daisy admired her reflection too.

Daisy and Winter are still roosting on the back porch at night and that is where Daisy insists on laying her egg each day.  They refuse to integrate with the rest of the flock, come roosting time.  We have tried repeatedly locking them in with the other girls at night.  It isn’t a pretty scene.

We are at the halfway mark in the 21 days of setting for broody Dottie.  While I was hanging out in the hen-house the other day taking photos, Dottie got up and stretched her legs, drank some water and ate a little.  I took advantage of that opportunity to look at her eggs.  I thought Dottie had six eggs.  Much to my surprise, I discovered that she had ten.  Yesterday I was in the run when Dottie got down for her daily stretch and eat.  I checked on the eggs again.  There were 12!  THAT LITTLE THIEF, has been getting out and stealing eggs from the other girls and adding them to her nest.  I know this because, I can count to ten or twelve and the extra eggs are all blue, she lays brown eggs.  I’m now debating getting an incubator because of the difference in age of all the eggs.  Of course, if I was smart, I would just toss them out after the first eggs start hatching.  But, I’m such a sucker.

Dottie – the egg thief apparently wants a large family.

Did you know that a chicken will tuck eggs under their wings and carry them to the spot they want them – like their nest when they already have enough eggs and don’t need to hatch more.

If you are new to this site, thank you for following along – please feel free to say hello.  I’m running behind this week catching up on all of your blogs, I’ll be by soon.

Thank you for being here today.

xo Kim

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Red Dirt Farm

Coral Cottage is now Red Dirt Cottage