by Meredith Chilson Photos by author Finally.  There are beginning to be a few more eggs in the nest boxes.  The older hens are finishing up their molt—the new feathers are looking lovely, all strong and shiny.  I’ve been adding a bit of protein to their diets in the form of mealworms, and I think […]

by Jennifer Sartell Photos by author I thought I liked chickens… until I raised turkeys. And while chickens will always have a special place in my heart, if I had one piece of advise to give to people who are wondering if they should raise turkeys, my answer would be YES! They are wonderful! If […]

Salmonella is most often contracted from un-cooked or under-cooked eggs and raw chicken.  Most often contracted by chickens who come in contact with feces from infected rodents, the bacteria can then be transmitted to humans who eat improperly cooked meat or eggs or who put their hands in their mouth after touching chickens or eggs. […]

by Meredith Chilson Photos by author Do you remember those days in late spring when the daylight stretched so long into evening?  Those days when your chicken girls were greeting warm weather with egg after egg after egg?  The days when omelets and custards and frittatas were the norm—when you tried to come up with […]

by Rebecca Nickols It seems that this time of the year a lot of time is spent in the kitchen…  Whether it’s preparing Thanksgiving dinner or just spending time with family and friends–everyone always gravitates to the warmth and comfort of this room. I doubt that many of you ever think of a potential chicken […]

by Jennifer Burcke Photos by author Fall has arrived at 1840 Farm.  The temperatures are becoming cooler each evening.  The daylight hours decrease each day.  Dusk is settling in earlier with every day that passes on the calendar.  I find it more difficult to embrace fall and the resulting winter season each year.  I understand […]

by Kathy Shea Mormino, The Chicken Chick   In the past decade, the popularity of backyard chicken-keeping has elevated the status of chickens from expendable, barnyard livestock to valued family pets. Unfortunately, many of the earlier poultry-keeping articles and books were written with livestock in mind; frequently in those writings, culling is the proposed solution for certain injuries, behaviors and […]

by Jennifer Sartell Photos by author Well, the deed is done. Just as hard as I expected … just as hard as the year before. If you read my post from last week Thankful for Turkeys, you’ll know we were processing some of our turkeys and chickens this past weekend. The day started out cold […]

by Meredith Chilson Mrs. Parsons, a lady who consistently reads this blog and often comments on posts, sent me a suggestion for a blog topic a while back. I’ve been thinking about it, and it seems to me that it’s appropriate for this month of politics, reflection and thanksgiving. Mrs. Parsons feels that “some of […]

by Jennifer Sartell Photos by author I’ve heard it said that Thanksgiving is loosing it’s value as a holiday. In retail stores, it’s smashed between the ram sacked clearance isles of Halloween candy, unworn costumes and the new glitter of Christmas items that sweep the shopping centers seemingly overnight. But like most things in the […]