Finally got dug out on Tuesday, and with sunny days in the 20s-40s, about 2/3 of our 15” from last weekend is gone...just in time for another 4-6” Sun-Mon.
Pretty much decided to stick to shorter season varieties this year, and hope that the weather cooperates, to keep them bearing into the Fall. Beats betting that we won’t get a killer before longer season types are mature. I don’t trust the sun.
Our Black Jersey Giants are 7 or 8 years old now, with a lot gray feathers on their heads & necks. We’re now down to 4; another one died this week. We’ve decided not to replace them; it’s getting harder every winter to get up the hill to feed & water them. I’ll miss the eggs, but not the work. MIGHT get a few Cornish-Cross for the freezer.
We are also focusing on shorter varieties - stuff for the next colder zone, as well as hardy perennials.
We talk about getting chickens now and then, but taking care of them in winter is also one of the reasons we don’t. Plus we live in a sub-division, so have to limit the Barnyard effect a bit.