The County Fair

I won some awards at the 2013 county fair:

My buttermilk biscuits won 1st place and Best of Show!!!
My salted caramel lollipops won 3rd place.
My apple pie won 2nd place.
My energy bars won 2nd place.
And my Italian herb bread didn't place at all.

For 2014 I was out of town, and so I only entered things I could make ahead and have a friend enter for  me.  So I entered canned items, a gift basket and some candy.  Out of 12 entries, here are the results:

My dill pickles won 2nd place.
My bread and butter pickles didn't place at all.
My green beans won 1st place.
My spicy pickled green beans won 1st place.
My muscadine jam won 1st place
My peach preserves didn't place.
My pear preserves won 1st place.
My apple jelly won 3rd place.
My "Gift of the Season" basket won 1st place.
My plum jam won 1st place.
My peach honey won 1st place
My candy "turtle bites" won 3rd place

Essential Oils - What brand is best?

For the past year or so, I'd kept seeing articles about essential oils, and I was interested in them. Finally last fall, I wrote a post on Facebook asking which of my friends used essential oils, and if so, what brand. The response was my first inkling of the competition between various brands. People were quite adamant about which EOs were best.

A friend of mine sells doTerra essential oils, and invited me to a class to learn more. So I attended the class.  I found out about diffusing essential oils and I learned about how to use oils for various problems. Since it was a doTerra class, there was a lot of information about doTerra oils and how wonderful and pure and concentrated and perfect they are.  While they were careful not to diss other brands, there was little doubt that, to them, doTerra was the only essential oil company worthy of their allegiance.  There was no pressure to buy, but I placed an order for a home physician’s kit from doTerra because I wanted to get started using EOs.

And I loved them. Several months later, I still diffuse essential oils daily in my home. I have a calming blend that I diffuse while I have my devotions each morning. As I watch TV, I have a diffuser going with a citrus blend next to me. I go to sleep with the diffuser running on the bedside table. I sleep great with an immunity blend, a breathing blend and a sleeping blend in the diffuser.  Whenever I get an upset stomach, I use a digestion blend of essential oils to ease the upset. Any time a medical issue comes up, I check my essential oil book and try an oil or create a blend for it.  Essential oils work.  They don't replace modern medicine in many cases, but in some cases, they're a great and natural alternative.

I use oils only in the diffuser or topically. doTerra recommends ingesting them, but medical people I completely trust advise against that. So I don’t do it.

Despite my enjoyment of essential oils, doTerra's prices bothered me. Still, it was hard to shake the “doTerra is the best” litany of the class. So I joined doTerra’s Loyalty Rewards Program (LRP) and ended up placing a pricey order in November and another one in December. When I say “pricey” I’m talking about more than $200 each. That’s when I realized that I couldn’t spend that much money on essential oils every month. Really – $20, $30 and more for a small bottle of essential oil just didn’t make sense to me. It wasn’t reasonable, and it wasn’t responsible use of my money. So I called the company and cancelled my LRP status, although I kept my “preferred customer” status which meant I could still order oils at a discount but with no requirement for spending a certain amount of money each month. Even with the discount, though, the prices were prohibitive. The only way to get the prices anywhere near reasonable was to sell the oils and/or recruit more people to doTerra. I’m not a salesperson; so that was out of the equation.  I've seen too many people lose friends by trying to push something they're selling.

I started thinking about those high prices. doTerra HAS to charge outrageous prices because it’s a multi-level marketing company. Since my friend introduced me to doTerra, I was “under” her in the multi-level system. She made money from each of my purchases. The person that introduced her to doTerra had to make money off my friend’s purchases and the purchases of each person my friend introduced to doTerra (me!), and so on. The term “multi-level” means that there are MULTIPLE LEVELS of people who must get a piece of the action each time a purchase is made. No wonder the prices are so outrageous.  I could make money IF I was willing to recruit people to be in my "downline."

I quickly found that Young Living (another MLM essential oil company) users were similar to doTerra users in their loyalty to their brand and their insistence that only their brand was truly pure. The general attitude was that all other brands were inferior. However, I didn’t see any proof that their EOs were better. Everything was opinion-based, not fact-based. And since Young Living is an MLM company, their prices are, of course, inflated too.

In my Google searches, I found bloggers that did “studies” of essential oil companies – some of them long and drawn out over the course of numerous blog posts – with a final decision of the “best” essential oil company. The funny thing, though, was that almost all of them ended up, in the last post of the series, recommending one company and then letting their readers know that because they were so certain of the high quality of that particular company, they were now a representative of or distributor for that company – and they conveniently had links so their readers could order the recommended essential oils – and of course the blogger would receive a cut for each person that followed the link. Each time I got to that last post and saw that link, I completely dismissed the recommendation. You can’t be “unbiased” when you’re making money from one of the companies being reviewed!

I wore out Google and Amazon, reading about other EO brands and looking at different buying options. I went to Whole Foods where there’s a selection of essential oils. I also looked at Mountain Rose, Queen Homeschooling, Rocky Mountain Oils, and others. I bought a few bottles from each outlet in order to see if any particular brand stood out to me.  Most of the brands had affiliate programs which meant that people could make money by selling their products or by mentioning and linking them in their blog/website and having people click that link. That, in itself, meant there were at least two levels of profit there – profit for the company and profit for the person writing about the EOs.

One company I kept seeing on Amazon was Eden’s Garden. I mostly noticed it because the prices were so much less than what I was accustomed to with doTerra.  I ordered a bottle of their lavender from Amazon. When I got the oil, I really liked it, and in the box with the oil was a brochure with information. I visited the Eden’s Garden website. Since the prices were so good, I started reading more about them. They don’t offer an affiliate program. Although Amazon sells the oils, the prices are the same as on the Eden's Garden website, and the oils are shipped from Eden's Garden - not via a third party.  There are no multiple levels. You can't become a “preferred customer” where you can get discounts by buying more. It’s a straightforward business model.

Their prices were so significantly less expensive than most of the others, that after reading all the “you get what you pay for” hype on the other EO websites, I was hesitant to buy more, but went ahead and bought several more bottles anyway. I wanted to try them for myself. I quickly found that Eden's Garden's “Four Thieves,” “Good Night,” and “Breathe Easier” blends work just as well as doTerra’s “On Guard,” “Serenity,” and “Breathe” for helping me sleep well and long at night. And for a fraction of the price. I truly could tell little difference. And the differences weren’t in the quality of the oils but in the combination of EOs that went into the particular blend.  Other people wrote about cheaper oils being thinner and less concentrated.  I noticed no differences between the pricey MLM oils and the much less expensive Eden's Garden oils.

What I decided is that, for me, Eden’s Garden EOs are as good as the doTerra oils I have. I’ve read nothing that makes me believe that doTerra or Young Living are any better or any purer than Eden’s Garden. Yes, “you get what you pay for,” and when I bought doTerra’s EOs I was paying not only for the EOs but also paying for profits for the company and at least two or three other levels of representatives as well. With Eden’s Garden, I’m paying the company, and that’s it. Hence the more reasonable prices. You’ll notice there are no links in this blog post. I have no skin in this game. I’m not an Eden’s Garden representative or “consultant.” They don’t do that. If you want to buy Eden’s Garden essential oils, look up their website. It’s easy to find.

I have no issue with people who use doTerra or Young Living or any of the other assorted essential oil companies. If that’s what you believe in, then that’s fine . . . for you. Just understand that you're paying extra for the oils because you're paying for all the people on your "upline."

For me, I want to be a good steward of our family's finances, and I can't be a good steward by needlessly overspending on essential oils.

Honey soon!

Ron checked the beehives earlier this week.  Then he ordered the extractor and other equipment we'll need to harvest the honey from the hives.  A couple weeks ago I ordered the bottles for the honey.  So within the next few weeks we will have honey from our hives!  I am so excited!

Goodbye Drama - Hello Serenity!

We've had a good time selling hatching eggs and chicks  I've loved the wonderful reports we've received from folks who've incubated our eggs and hatched out such cute chicks.  We already have reports of chicks that have grown up and started laying eggs.  It's like going full circle.  It has been a great experience except . . .

Out of the dozens and dozens of people we have dealt with, all but two have been wonderful and reasonable.  Twice, though, someone came along that wasn't going to be happy no matter what.  I'm not a salesperson, and I shy away from conflict of any nature. I bend over backwards to please customers.   I always send more eggs than people pay for.  I buy ridiculous amounts of bubble wrap in order to ensure eggs arrive in good condition.  I pack eggs in bubble wrap in one box - and then cushion that box with bubble wrap inside another box for an added layer of protection.  It generally takes me more than 30 minutes minutes to get one box ready to ship.

One person complained last fall because I sent her "old" eggs.  In the ad I placed, I listed the exact dates that the eggs were laid.  Yes - an EXACT list of dates.  Despite that, she raged on about "old" eggs.  She threatened to leave negative feedback on the website. Her FIRST communication about the situation was quite nasty.   Did she not even read the ad?   I totally refunded her money - including shipping.  After that experience,  I eliminated that problem by no longer writing the dates on eggs!  I still told everyone who bought eggs the exact dates they were laid - but I didn't write the dates on the eggs. 

About six months later (this week), a person complained that she only got 4 chicks to hatch out of a bunch of eggs we shipped to them.  Well YEA!  I've had ZERO chicks hatched from eggs I've had shipped to me - several times.  Did I complain?  Of course not.  It's an understood risk of buying shipped eggs.  A seller guarantees fresh and fertile eggs.  Beyond that - there are no guarantees because of what eggs possibly go through as they are moved through the USPS system.   If you get fresh, fertile and unbroken eggs, that's the extent of the seller's responsibility.   However, I want people to be happy - so I sent her more eggs free of charge - and she still complained.  Really?  She even talked about "word of mouth" to other buyers as an implied threat.  What was she going to do?  If she related the story honestly to another buyer, they'd think she was crazy.   I refunded every penny of her money - even shipping.  Good riddance!  I don't have time or stamina for such petty drama and stress.

While I understand that two people over the course of a year of selling eggs and chicks is an insignificant amount, I don't want the hassle.  I'm not making money on the eggs or chicks.  The cost of maintaining them is nowhere near covered by what I charge.  So why do it?  After careful consideration, I decided that there's no reason to.  All the negative folks can just enjoy their drama and pettiness elsewhere. I don't need or want it in my life.

Goodbye, Drama!  Hello, Serenity!

Love those broody hens!

It was exciting around Dogwood Trace this past week.  Our faithful broody hen, Onyx, hatched out 6 chicks on Sunday (4 Cream Legbar and 2 Swedish Flower Hens), and a black copper marans hen (we haven't named her) hatched out 3 chicks (barnyard mix) on Wednesday.

So far Onyx has kept her chicks in the coop - even though her chicks are a few days older than the others.  But the marans has had her three little ones out in the yard free-ranging.

They sure are cute.  This is the first time this marans has had chicks, and the maternal instinct is just amazing.  Nature is amazing. 

Spring has arrived!

The long winter molt is finished, and the hens are laying like crazy!  Each day we're getting between 15-20 eggs, and we've added several new egg customers.

Our Cream Legbars and Swedish Flower Hens are back into full production, and so we're selling hatching eggs again.  Although the past few days have been unseasonably cold, we're all excited about spring and the warmer days ahead.

We've got eggs in the incubator.  I'm hoping for a flock of Lavender Araucanas.  I've tried twice before with no luck.  This time, though, a lot of eggs are showing growth.  Keeping my fingers crossed that we'll have a great hatch.  I also have Cream Legbars and Swedish Flower Hen eggs in the incubator.

And speaking for myself, I'm thrilled that Daylight Savings Time is back.  I love it!  Here are some recent photos of our chickens:

Slacker Chickens!

I've been calling my flock the "Slacker Chickens."  Over two months into this molting business, and we are getting sometimes only 2 or 3 eggs each day.  This is from over 25 hens that should be laying.  I've got ten young pullets (females) growing up and they'll be laying age in mid-Spring.  So by summer, we'll have way more eggs than we need for all our customers.   But for now - we barely have enough for ourselves and our customer who "won" the silent auction at Franklin 4 the Cure for a dozen eggs a week for a year!

Egg Laying Slows Down for the Winter

For the most part, my chickens have either stopped laying entirely or have slowed down so considerably that we're getting only two or three dozen eggs each week.  That's not nearly enough to satisfy our regular egg customers.  I'll be contacting my egg customers this week to let them know that we will suspend egg deliveries until egg production is back up.
Last week I bought 12 female day-old chicks.  They will be added to my layer pen in the spring.  Hopefully getting the new layers will keep us from experiencing the severe drop in egg laying next winter.  We also have a few older pullets that will be reaching laying age over the next couple months.  So the future is looking brighter for egg laying here at Dogwood Trace Farm.

Pickup and Pumpkin

We were sad when our cat, Troy, disappeared.  He was such a faithful little buddy around our farm.  A predator must've gotten him during one of his many hunting expeditions through the woods surrounding our home.

When it was obvious that Troy was gone and not coming back, I asked my Facebook friends if anyone had any cats they'd like to re-home.  I was fortunate to immediately learn of a mother cat and one of her kittens that were available.  The mother cat, Pumpkin, had just appeared at the home of the mother of one of my friends.  The mom had taken care of the pregnant cat until the kittens were born. Then when the kittens were old enough she started finding homes for them.  She found a home for all of them except one.  So we were lucky enough to get Pumpkin and Pickup.  Ron named Pickup.  My friend's mother named Pumpkin.  She has an orange pumpkin-colored spot on her head.  In the photo below you can see the spot on Pumpkin's head.  Pickup has four white feet.

 The photo below shows Pickup "playing" with the chickens.  Pickup jumps at them, they squawk, and then she does it again.  They try to ignore her most of the time.

And here is Pickup sitting on top of Jake.  I think Jake just has a "What're you gonna do?" attitude about it.

Pumpkin and Pickup have settled into life at Dogwood Trace really well.  Since Pumpkin was accustomed to living on her own before being adopted by my friend's mother, she stays away from the house most of the time.  She likes to prowl through the woods.  However, when I go out to feed them, she's always right there.  Pickup, on the other hand, has already become good friends with Jake - taking up where Troy left off - snuggling with Jake - and even standing on top of him!

We miss Troy, but we are happy to have Pumpkin and Pickup as our resident mousers.

Fall at Dogwood Trace

It's the first day of Fall - or is it the second?  Either way - it's fall!  I'm so glad for the cooler weather.  The chickens here at Dogwood Trace are thriving.

Right now we have some Lavender Araucana eggs in the incubator that should be hatching soon.  We also have some Cream Legbar egg from our own flock in there.  The next few days should be exciting as the hatching begins.

Yesterday I picked some carrots, tomatoes and peppers from our garden.  Ron had plowed the larger garden.  The vegetables I picked yesterday were from the boxes.  We plan on planting a fall garden - and we need to get that done ASAP.  Some lettuces, cabbage and other greens - maybe some onions and other root vegetables.  I hope we haven't waited too late.

We got a great crop of pears and apples from our little orchard this year.  And the fig tree I planted in the spring has grown like crazy.  I've canned lots of pear jelly, pear sauce and pear preserves.  Ron peeled and chopped apples for me - then put them in the freezer.  As soon as I have some time, I plan on making apple sauce, apple butter and apple pie filling from it.

We went to Georgia and picked muscadines at Ron's mother's house.  The muscadine jam was so good that when Ron had to go down there a couple weeks ago, I told him to pick as may as he could.  He picked THIRTEEN gallons.  So I've been busy making muscadine jam and then processing other muscadines to freeze for other recipes later.  We still have 3 gallons left in the refrigerator, and I plan to get those processed this weekend.

I learned to pressure can this year!  I canned about 20 quarts of tomatoes from our garden, along with about 5 pints of green beans.  I've already used lots of the tomatoes in chili and other sauces that I've made.  I use lots of tomatoes in my cooking.  So I doubt I could ever can too may tomatoes!  Now that I've learned to use the pressure canner, I intend to do more foods.

One of our favorite times of the day is the last hour or two before dark.  We sit in lawn chairs by the chicken coop and let the chickens free range under our supervision.  It's a pleasant time to enjoy being outside, to relax and reflect on our day.

We are loving our little "hobby farm" in Tennessee.

Baby Swedish Flower Hens!

Blackie brooded eight Swedish Flower Hen eggs. When we got home from vacation on Saturday evening, there were three chicks hatched. Another chick had hatched, but it had died. I really believe the 100 plus degree weather for the past two weeks had something to do with it. Either the baby got too hot or it smothered. Then by Sunday another chick hatched. Monday morning I checked the three remaining eggs - one had never developed at all, another developed partly and then quit, and the third started hatching but died before making it out of the shell.  So our hatch rate wasn't as good as when Onyx brooded eggs.  However, Onyx didn't brood during an all-time record-breaking heat wave.  The very next time I have a hen go broody, I intend to save more SFH hatching eggs to put under her.

Here are the four healthy and thriving chicks.  

I like the variety of colors.  There is the one yellow/brown one in the top part of the photo.  Then there are two mostly black & gray chicks, and then a gray and white one.  I am eager to see whether they develops crests, too.  With the rooster and two of the three hens having crests, it is likely that most of them will have crests, too.

Some people breed against crests, but I love the crests.  So I'm excited that these chicks will probably have crests.

In the pen with the rooster and three hens are two younger pullets - 16 weeks old now.  So in just a few weeks, I'll have five layers.  I'll look forward to seeing what the pullet/cockerel count ends up being with these four new chicks.

Away from the Farm for a Week

We are on vacation - and while I'm loving the beach and being with my children and grandchildren, I still keep thinking of my chickens.  In our part of Tennessee, the temperature has been over 100 for much of the past two weeks.

Poor Blackie, our 15-month Jersey Giant started sitting on 8 Swedish Flower Hen eggs almost three weeks ago.  She's in the broody pen in our coop, and I worry about how stuffy it is in there for her.  I miscounted the days - and I put the eggs under her a day earlier than I should have.  With this heat, the eggs will likely hatch early.  So, instead of having the eggs hatch on Sunday as I'd hoped, almost certainly the chicks will start hatching tomorrow - and I won't be home until Saturday.

I'm just hoping everything goes well - that the coop isn't too hot and stuffy for the baby chicks.  And, since the pop doors to the coop have remained open all week, I'm hoping that the run has continued to be secure and that chickens have been safe, cool and happy for the week that I've been gone.

We have had a trusted friend take care of our animals while we've been gone.  But he will only go by once each day.

I'm really anxious to get home on Saturday and see that everything survived okay for a week with me.

The Chicks Hatched!

Onyx, our broody Araucana, successfully hatched nine chicks on Monday & Tuesday.  And by yesterday, they were already running all over the coop and the run.  I am so totally sold on broody hens!  That's the way to go for hatching eggs!

These photos were when they were just a few hours old.  Below is a video taken just a little later.

Broodiness! It's contagious

While Ron an I were out of town this weekend, our son took care of the chickens for us.  When I talked with him Saturday night, he said, "Mom, I think you have another broody hen."  I asked him which one, and he said the black one.  We have three solid black hens.  One is Onyx - and she's already in the brood pen sitting on 11 eggs.  That leaves Blackie ( a Jersey Giant) and Whiskers (an Araucana) as the possibly broody.  It ended up being Blackie.

Last summer Blackie went broody, and I broke her of it because at the time there was no place where I could isolate her while she sat on the eggs.  Plus we didn't have a rooster - and I was too new to chickens to know that I could easily get fertilized eggs from other chicken enthusiasts around Nashville.

So Blackie is broody.  Tomorrow I plan on getting some hatching eggs from some Backyard Chickens folks in middle Tennessee - hopefully some unusual breeds.  Then I'll set Blackie up in the same pen as Onyx and let her sit to her heart's content.  I'm not positive that I'm going to put her with Onyx.  I need to do some reading and see if there will be any problems with putting the two together.  I wouldn't want Blackie to bother Onyx's chicks when they hatch next week.

Onyx sitting on her nest

Here is a photo of Onyx - our first broody hen.  Onyx is a rumpless Araucana.  She is sitting on 11 eggs.  It's anyone's guess about the eggs.  I collected the eggs just a few days after I re-homed several of our roosters.  It should be interesting to see what chicks emerge.  I hope that out of the 11 eggs, I get at least 3 or 4 pullets to add to our laying flock. 

Yes - the nest box she is in is a modular storage box I got at Walmart.  When I saw it, I knew it was perfect for a nest box - and it is!

 

Onyx doesn't look very happy that I'm taking her photo.  At least I didn't disturb her by trying to get a photo of the eggs underneath her.

Onyx, the Broody Hen

Onyx, our solid black Araucana is broody!  Until last year when I got chickens and started reading about them, I wasn't sure what broody meant!  When a hen "goes broody" it means that she wants to sit on and hatch some eggs.

The signs of a broody hen are unmistakeable.  She will get in a nest box and stay there - all day, all night - for days.  She might get up for a very few minutes each day to eat, drink and poop.  Then she's right back in the nest.  Broody hens are very protective of their nest.  If you come anywhere close to her, she will growl at you.  She also keeps her feathered fluffed up as big as possible to cover the eggs well.

After Onyx had been in the nest box for a couple days, I moved her to her very own broody pen and put 11 fertilized (hopefully!) eggs in the nest box for her.  She has been sitting on them faithfully since last Wednesday.  Incubation for chickens takes 21 days - although with the heat we have here right now, these might hatch a day or two early.  So Tuesday, June 12th is the approximate hatch date.  I'll be checking on her often during that Monday and Tuesday.

I'll post a photo of Onyx on her nest soon.  And once we have chicks - I'll be sure to post photos of Mama Onyx and her babies.

Dogwood Trace is NPIP certified!

We had our flock tested today - and everything turned out great.  We'll get our NPIP certificate in the mail when all the paperwork is completed and filed.  I finished up my part of the paperwork a few minutes ago and have it ready to put in tomorrow's mail.

It ended up not being that big of a deal.  Thomas, the animal health technician, that came out from the TN Dept. of Agriculture, was such a courteous and professional young man.  He knew what he was doing and everything went smoothly.  Ron and I systematically caught each bird to be tested, held it while Thomas did the required tests, and then released it back to the flock.  I had been dreading it because I thought it would take forever.  However, it was over in less than an hour total with only a small amount of effort involved. 

YEA!!!!!

NPIP Testing this weekend

Finally - after a long game of phone tag between me and the NPIP folks, our flock will undergo NPIP testing this weekend.  NPIP is the National Poultry Improvement Plan - and it just means that our flock will be tested for some poultry diseases.  It will be one more part of our plan to ensure that our flock is as healthy and robust as possible!

More Roosters Sold

We've had an abundance of roosters hatched out at Dogwood Trace lately! This past week, I was able to sell ten of them! I sold four Swedish Flower Hen roos, 3 Rhodebar roos and 3 Cream Legbar roos. That still left me with a good-size breeding flock of each of those breeds.

Now I still need to sell a few more roos - and I'm afraid that I have a disproportionately high number of roos among the chicks in the grow-out pen. I love having one or two roosters. But more than that is just too many.

Beekeeping at Dogwood Trace Farm

Dogwood Trace Farm has now entered the ranks for beekeepers. On Tuesday of this week (April 17, 2012) Ron set up two hives - with the expert help of two of our good friends, Cherry Lane and Jim. The most difficult part of getting the hives set up was leveling the cement blocks that the hives would be set on. Once they were leveled, it only took a few minutes. Since I didn't have a bee-keeping hat/veil, I watched from the car. Ron, Cherry Lane and Jim got everything done quickly. Even though Ron didn't wear gloves, he didn't get stung a single time. Jim was stung once. Amazing! It'll be a year before we are able to harvest any honey. I sure am looking forward to that, though!