by Jennifer Sartell Photos by author I opened the garden gate the other day with a little tinge of sadness. I wasn’t going in to pick a delicious fruit or vegetable, but instead, rallied the chickens toward the door. The rusty horseshoe that we found while plowing has kept the gate closed to the chickens […]

by Jennifer Sartell Welcome to Cluckingham Palace, a beautiful coop and story by Karen Driscoll of Cabot, Pennsylvania. I love the story behind the construction of Cluckingham Palace! It started as a desire from the memory of a childhood pet duck and then in 2009, stemmed to a beautiful coop. What makes this story so […]

by Meredith Chilson Have you ever noticed how people with similar interests just naturally seem to gravitate toward each other? I’ve made some friends while standing in line at the feed store; for example, when they’ve noticed the chicken feed or pine shavings I have piled on my cart. Conversations have started in the library, […]

by Rebecca Nickols This month’s “Cool Coop” is guaranteed  to bring a smile to your day! The on-going theme of this series of unique, creative and inspiring coops is–recycling, re-purposing, reusing… I think that everyone would agree that a reclaimed school bus chicken coop is about as cool as it gets! I love the idea of […]

You wouldn’t spray chemicals in your baby’s crib to clean it, would you?  Of course not.  Nor do you want to use chemicals when you clean your chicken coop, no matter how dirty it gets. Products such as Sevin Dust, household bleach, aerosols sprays, creosote and other potentially hazardous products have no place in or […]

by Jennifer Sartell Photos by author The other day I was at the grocery store. I hate grocery shopping, so I always make a list so I can get what I need and get out of there as fast as possible. Sometimes I feel like grocery shopping is like bumper boats with shopping carts, only […]

by Jennifer Burcke Photos by author Chickens have been decorating the landscape at 1840 Farm since our first chicks arrived in 2010.  I always believed that chickens were beautiful.  Becoming a chicken keeper has only served to deepen that feeling. I now find myself surrounded by chickens.  My friends and family all know how proud […]

by Meredith Chilson Photos by author …when’s she gonna lay an egg? Not so very long ago I was waiting for the mailman to bring my box of baby chicks.  Now, I’m waiting again—for the very first egg from those same chicks.  They’re no longer considered chicks, though—they are “pullets”—the proper word for female chickens […]

by Jennifer Sartell Photos by author When I received the photos of Dickie Bird Farm, it was the rural ambiance that attracted me to this entry. The rich monotone browns of the barn wood and the sunlight through the chinks in the boards gives it an almost candlelit glow. Our barn is like this, and […]

by Meredith Chilson Photos by author Dusk.  I think it may be my favorite time of day, especially this summer.  The intense heat has eased a bit, the crickets and tree frogs are tuning up in the hedgerows, and as I head out to close in the chickens for the night, I often stop at the […]