Good Morning!

[Jaye]

Very sad news, @Brebis . My sincere condolences. I hope you will find comfort and the strength to cope in the days ahead.

[WLLady]

@Brebis I am so sorry to hear. Our hearts go out to you.

[ross]

Sorry for your loss Brebis . Many sustaining memories I hope .

[TomK]

@Bayvistafarm ..i know the feeling...i boil up syrup every year...tap about 30 trees just for fun shitz and giggles and end up with 3 or 4 gallons...only boiled it to black crap once and that was when my dad came to sit with me while feeding the fire and waiting ...i asked him to watch the boil while i ran up to the house to get another s/s pot and in my absence he got up to use a tree and burnt the sap to black wonderfulness into the bottom of the pan...threw the pan out...i boil on open fire using big rectagular roasting pans...works for me and its fun...but burning a batch of syrup at my scale is a propotionately significan loss, not so much the sap but the fuel...anyway, my dad was feeling bad...he didnt realize just how fast it goes near the end of the boil..

[WLLady]

Ah the good ol' days of tending the fire and running around like mad to get it off the fire at the end! This year i will go down the road to the neighbour who has some 1000 taps and buy my 8 liters that will get me through the year. My back appreciates not carrying the sap anymore! although i miss the smell, and the maple tea-just scoop straight out of the pan and put a tea bag in and enjoy. mmmmm. Absolutely nothing compares to the stink of 30 burnt liters of syrup....lol. and cleaning the pan after....holy.....sometimes a wire brush on a drill was the only way.....and hours.....and hours and hours!
still have our pan, maybe i'll do some again sometime.

[baronrenfrew]

Brebis my best to you.

Heads up Society Nut Grower's meeting was rescheduled for weather New date March 14

RESCHEDULED ECSONG WINTER MEETING and AGM
ATTENDANCE: It's FREE. All are welcome.
WHEN: Saturday, March 14, 2020 from 1:30 to 4:30pm.
WHERE: Room 1B, Ottawa Public Library, Nepean Centrepoint, 101 Centrepointe, Ottawa, which is close to Woodroffe and Baseline.
WHAT: Two hours of presentations on subjects as diverse as the performance of nut trees in Eastern Ontario, nut trees in the Ottawa Arboretum, and rare native nut species in Eastern Ontario. There will be nut-related displays, opportunities to network and taste nut cookery and a very brief ECSONG AGM near the end of the meeting.

https://www.songonline.ca/calendar.htm

[ross]

Hmmmm not enough nuts in this world & now there having a meeting to grow more . Go figure.

[baronrenfrew]

lol Ross - yep- gotta love Walter. Somedays I see myself turning into him.

[WLLady]

Good morning all! well....finally getting time to get back on the forum! phew! Working 2 jobs this semester-teaching at the local college is amazing! and working at the lab job too a fewer reduced hours there, but that will change since that has just turned into being paid less for the same hours. argh. so super super busy. DH has helped pick up chores a couple days of the week (he's always been wonderful helping, but now 2 days a week are pretty much him by himself...sigh). I want more time to spend with the birds, but i need to make a job move soon. so. gotta do what i gotta do for my resume/CV. I'm really enjoying the teaching. been a few years since doing classes.....i loved it then too.

just saw 3 coyotes in the field....2 males chasing a female. female was light, one male was darker red and the next was almost black. they did give an eye to the chickens and turkeys but puttered off up the field. I think i better spend some time doing coyote hunting things.....i know exactly where to set up too.....they are always following the same route. too big for my live traps that's for sure!

itching to get into the greenhouse and the garden. still too early. but might be hauling out the grow lights soon....i wanted to just use some from the manure pile this year for dirt, instead of buying starting soil, but it's a little bit frozen...hm. it's really the ONLY thing that seems to have frozen this year. Have a monumental amount of outside clean up to do this year. got all the dog cleaned up last weekend, but the paddock is a mess with horse droppings...and old hay...have a tractor and not afraid to use it!

lost 2 chickens last night. sigh. a 4 year old light brown leghorn boy-his comb has gone white a couple of times before and last night he just didn't recover from it. and a young pullet who i think was damaged by a guinea. So today the guineas are being kicked out. i still need to get a coop built for the garden for them....but i'm thinking of just turning them loose and they can do what they do wherever they want to do it. HOWEVER-we ordered a hive-and i'm thinking guineas might just pick off the bees from the hive....so guineas may end up freezer camped. I do not know how anyone can have quiet guineas. Mine scream and bark and EVERYTHING. even the 2 people that do all the feed and water. the cat. the shovel. the door. the sparrows. they never shut up! so they are still not on my "favourite" list of birds....maybe outside they'll be quieter. HA HA. i know better. at least they'll see the coyotes and make a ruckus. It's shocking they do not ever lose their voices.

well guess i should get off my butt and get going and doing. hay to move.....because the horses are starving....standing in a foot of hay that isn't "good enough".....hope everyone has an awesome day!

[kenya]

I wanted the guineas for tick control but the noise in the barn over winter was deafening, I had to wear earplugs. Then the male started getting nasty with the chickens. They are a nice looking bird but I don't think I'd ever get them again.