The finished Chicken Barn

So here is the finished chicken coop. I am very proud of it.

The chickens seems to like it too. We have 2 black forrest hens, 2 Arucana hens and an Arucana rooster. He is the one on the left. Funny fellow with no rump...

Chicken Coop - Day 5

Today Brian Did a lot of the roof, and we placed the chicken coop in the back of our garden.

 The chickens are going to have the best view.

I couldn't help admiring our work in the late sunlight.

Chicken Coop - Day 2

Here is where we were this morning:

This is where we are now:

We (Brian) have made the upper construction and I have painted the floor boards. This is going to take a while...

Chicken Coop - Day one

We have decided, we want chickens in our garden, and we want to build them a pretty little chicken coop.

I love the look of old fashioned red barns like these:

Last night, we sketched and came up with this first draft:

We began building it today and found the construction more sturdy than we had imagined, so the supporting beams were not nessesary. We changed a few other details in the process as well.

Here is where we are so far:

It took most of the day, because we had to go and buy wood and a few tools. Also Brian was very perfectionistic with everything.

But will you look at that! - I'm very proud of his work.

Self-Watering Pots

I was getting very tired of watching my herbs die because I forgot to water them EVERY day. So I decided to try and make my own self-watering pots for them.

All you need is some cotton string, a tall container and a plant in a flower pot that is just a little to big to fit into the container.

As you can see above I used different containers: An orchid pot, a metal tomato can and a plastic nudlecup. You can paint them, if you like.

Coffee mugs, will do as well and could look very pretty I think.

Soak the string in water and use a knitting needle to stick it into the bottom of the plant.

Measure how far into the container the pot goes. Fill the container with water below this point.

Make sure the string is in the water, as you insert the pot.

Here you can see, how the edge of the flower pot keeps it from falling into the container. The pot needs to be above the water or the roots of the plant will rot.

Check often to see if there is still water in the container. If you use a glass vase or a tall caffè latte glass as container you can easily keep an eye on the water level.

Easy Pine Cone Bird Feeder

Today I made pine cone feeders for the birds.
Here is how it's done:

You will need some bird seed - or grain, seeds and muesli from the cupboard (which is what I used), a pine cone, some string and peanut butter

Mash up the seeds and peanut butter.

Apply to the pine cone (from the bottom up). Hang in a tree and wait for the birds to come. Easy!

Beware Of Dog Sign

We have a small West Highland Terrier, which is often running loose in the garden. The gate is a large black door, and people who come visit have no chance of knowing, if the dog is behind it.

To make sure they will take ekstra care to close the gate behind them and not let the dog out, I cut this sign in fun foam and nailed it to the door.





Feel free to print and use:

Easy pomelo bird feeder

Yesterday I had a pomelo (large citrus fruit) and decided to save half the peel for an easy bird feeder. This morning I woke up to a garden filled with snow - and feeding birds. Here is how I did:

I used a pomelo, but you can use any citrus fruit or other fruits with a hard peel.

Eat the fruit - leaving half the peel intact.

Make a small hole (for rainwater)

Fill with grain, seeds and muesli

Place on branches.

Alternatively hang in strings.