Honey Bee on Cilantro flower - note the beautiful purple Cilantro pollen in her "pollen baskets"
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Introducing the newest buzz word at our house...
BEES!
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Echium wildpretii being visited by a well-traveled bee - note the tattered wings
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Sweetwater is now home to a bustling hive of 25,000 (and growing) honey bees. We have had our "Nuc" for about three weeks, and already Steve has started treatment for the dreaded Varroa Destructor, an external mite that attacks honey bees.
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A visiting bee pollinating our tomatoes, 2014
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“If the bee disappeared off the face of the earth, man would only have four years left to live.”
~ Maurice Maeterlinck, The Life of the Bee |
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Amazing photo of our bee drinking from a rock in the water fountain Steve built for them - look at his orange tongue!
Started from "scratch". It used to be just a hill behind our house, now it contains a heart of gold.
An even dozen
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Three different sized eggs laid by the above hens.
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Date My Eggs?
Julian dates, pack dates, sell-by dates and use-by dates - what does it all mean?
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How long are eggs usable?
Egg cartons are marked with a Julian date, which is the day of the year the eggs were packed, with January 1 being "001" and December 31st being "365". From this, the "sell-by" date will be approximately 30 days beyond the packing date, and, although it's not generally printed on the cartons, the "use-by" date will be another 21-30 days beyond the sell-by date. All of this assumes proper refrigerated storage of the little protein-packed wonders. |
Fully enclosed run - fence goes into the ground to keep girls safe and critters out
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First time free-ranging
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That's free ranging. When not enjoying the view, they are head down and eating everything in sight.
The chicken whisperer
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Labor of Love - Our coop was hand-crafted from both recycled and new materials. Ample accommodations for our current 10 hen occupants.
Early Birds
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Morning ladies
Amusing to watch: Kneckles making a dash
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If they CAN get on it - they WILL get on it!
Settling down for the night.
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Farm-Fresh Eggs
- vs. - "Cage Free" Eggs Beyond the amazing taste difference, improved texture, and yolk color, farm-fresh eggs are more nutritional than store-bought "Cage Free" eggs. Farm-fresh eggs provide 4 times more Omega-3 fatty acids, twice as much Vitamin E, 6 times more beta carotene and ... are you ready ... HALF the cholesterol! |
Amelia looking for attention
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Cat's eye view - on top of the "cat cage"
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Beautiful Ameraucana hens
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Groundhog Day Sunbathing - Relaxing and enjoying a moment of sunshine. Happy that Punxsutawney Phil predicts early Spring for 2013!
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©2013 Laura Delanty, Wife With A Knife - All Rights Reserved