It's been a busy week here at the homestead. We made our first trek to the Rincon Valley Farmer's Market. Took baskets of lettuce heads, bok choi, turnips, carrots, radishes, curly kale, green onions, and daikon radishes. Grossed $270. We sell the lettuce heads and bok choi for $2 each. The rest is $2 a handful. Next week I'll be taking the first chicks to sell. We will have seven different kinds to offer: Austrolorps, White Rocks, Production Reds, Fayumi, Giant Buff Cochins, Americaunas. I spent the entire day today working in the garden: 7 am to 6 pm. I was weeding, watering, planting peas, transplanting lettuce, spinach, green onions, etc. The chicks are such fun. Right now, I have one batch in the tub in one bathroom, and the other batch in the other tub. (Showers only right now.)

When they were newborn I watered them with a quart jar turned upside down in a small enough bowl that there wasn't enough water showing for them to fall in. Now they're big enough to use a feedstore chick waterer. For their ground feed I put it in a bowl with a cup or small jelly jar turnedupside down on top. If I just put ground feed in a bowl, the little scamps will kick it all over. They love being out in the sunshine. Sunlight also prevents rickets. I have them outside whenever it's warm and sunny, even if it's just for an hour. There was sometimes a chilly wind blowing today, but I have shelter

areas in my two outdoor chick pens so that they can get out of the wind. (A cardboard box in one end of the chick tractor does it.) With wind protection, sun shining on them and the air in the 60's, they did fine out there.

That's what's going on around here...
*1) About Blood Spots in Eggs *
*2) News Bits*
* a) Internet Search Engines: Google Still Leads*
* b) Live near a coast?*
* c) Changes to Organic Laws*
* d) Made in China?*
* e) No Child Left Behind*
* f) Crude Oil Price*
* g) Childhood Sports Injuries Mounting*
* h) Canadian Beef Will Be Admitted to U.S.*
*5) Feedback*
* *
*1) **About Blood Spots in Eggs*
*In the previous newsletter, I answered a question and said that blood spots were just a sign of fertility. Well, I've got lots of egg on my face now! I'm grateful to the experts who set me straight, but first a word from a reader with more questions...*
**
I always thought this was true, also, but I only have 4 hens right now, and NO rooster! And I still see specks of blood in one of my hens eggs. It is usually about the size of a pencil point, and there hasn't been a rooster around for months. They are confined to their pen and coop, so no

chance of fertilization from outside sources. Also, sometimes there is a hard crusty stone, almost pea-sized inside the egg. Maybe a calcium deposit? This hen also has these kind of lumps stuck into the shell on the outside of the egg. I'd love to know what this is.
Karen in KY

Carla,
The blood spots in the lady's Rhode Island's eggs are not due to fertile or germ development. We have kept tens of thousands of chickens over the years. Seldom have we kept a rooster. If we don't plan to hatch, they are freeloaders. These blood spots, or "meat spots" as they are more correctly called, can be found in infertile eggs as well. Sadly, Rhode Island Reds and other brown egg layers seem to be worse for passing these small blood clots in the egg that Leghorns are. I candle hundreds of eggs daily to sell to stores and have found this to be true. A small blood or meat spot, though not looking good, will not hurt the egg. However, if you are candling and grading the eggs, an egg with one or more blood spots can not be classified as GRADE A . I have noticed if anything scares the hens, there seems to be a great increase in the number of these spots, so KEEP YOUR CHICKENS CALM. Hi to both of you. Enjoyed your visit with us last summer,
Dan Flyger

The old wives' tale about blood spots has persisted for decades. Blood spots can and do occur with or without the presence of a rooster. Your questioner has multiple blood spots because they are caused by a rupture of tiny blood vessels ( sometimes multiple as in this case ) in the yolk follicle or the oviduct when the egg in forming. Eggs of this type are often passed by high-production hens over long periods of time ( most commonly ) OR newbie pullets ( a lot less likely ). These eggs can only be graded Grade B eggs. They cannot be sold for human consumption, but can be fed to pigs or other animals.

If this problem persists with her RRI hens, she needs to replace the girls with new layers. The occasional blood spot is normal, but she wasn't talking about occasional occurrences of only a speck and she seemed to indicate that it wasn't just one or two hens.

You and other folks may be confused by the presence of a blood RING when candling a fertilized egg. THAT is a fertile egg. Hope that solves the mystery for your questioner- please pass on the info to her.

Please understand that I mean you no disrespect and I am not a "wise acre". I have studied and researched chickens over decades and raised thousands of layers. I look forward to your next newsletter. Blessings to you,
Chris Crubaugh

2) News Bits
a) Search Engine Rankings
Google is still the top-rated search engine, but Yahoo, MSN and Ask Jeeves are all gaining clients faster than Yahoo is.

*b)* Half of the U.S. population lives within 50 miles of a coast.

*c)*
http://www.citizens.org/news/newsletter/2005/feb/organicsruling.cfm
In a decision handed down January 26th by the U.S. Court of Appeals (1st Circuit), three provisions of the National Organic Program (NOP) final rule were judged ’Äúinconsistent with the Organic Foods Production Act of 1990 (OFPA).’Äù This ruling caught most of the industry by surprise and has the potential to change the organics industry as we know it today.

*d) Made in China? *
*"For all appearances, it looks like China has cracked the code of Western capitalism. Three years ago, for instance, China didn’Äôt manufacture a single laptop. Now, they make 40 percent of all laptops sold worldwide. China cranks out 38 percent of the world’Äôs cellphones. And half of the world’Äôs shoes. Plus most of the wooden furniture, video games and televisions in the United States. But then, guess what happens when you take a look at the other side of the coin. We’Äôre feeling the China boom right here at home, too. But somehow it’Äôs not the same. Here, in the United States, American Metal Ware had made nearly 2.5 million pots in their Wisconsin factory before they had to shut it down. Chinese manufacturers stole the design and cranked out copies at half the price. To compete, Metal Ware had to move over to China. Levi’Äôs were the all-American brand. They once had 63 US plants. They just closed the last two and fired all the workers. Levi’Äôs will be made in China now."*
**
*e) No Child Left Behind*
http://www.nytimes.com/2005/02/24/education/24child.html?th
A bipartisan panel of lawmakers called No Child Left Behind a convoluted and unconstitutional initiative that has usurped local control of public schools.

f) Crude Oil Price
2-23-05 Crude oil prices rose to their highest level in nearly four months on Tuesday, jumping above $51 a barrel.

g) Childhood Sports Injuries Mounting
http://www.nytimes.com/2005/02/22/sports/othersports/22overuse.html?th
"You get a kid on the operating table and you say to yourself, it's impossible for a 13-year-old to have this kind of wear and tear." Dr. James Andrews, sports orthopedist.

h) Canadian Beef Will Be Admitted to U.S.
On March 7th, the U.S. Department of Agriculture will lift a ban against imported Canadian meat products. Mad cow disease now has been identified in four cows born and raised in Canada during the past 21 months. After over 15 years of testing, not one single case of mad cow has been found in a U.S. born and raised cow. Japan tests every slaughtered cow for mad cow disease. European countries test every cow over 30 months. Other countries, such as France, test cows even younger than 30 months.

5) Feedback

Dear Carla,

...I have old pear trees, very young apple, peach, plum and fig trees, and grapevines and blueberries and blackberries. The blackberries are producing great, but blueberry vines are pathetic. Grapevines looked glorious and then some bug or blight made each grape have a brown spot and dry up. So disappointing...

Elece Hollis

Dear Elece,

Every person's property is a unique little ecosystem; you have to learn what works on your piece of earth. Every problem teaches us more about what works, and what doesn't work. You can't have a garden problem until you start planting. First the plantings, then the problems, then the learnings. Thus your garden skills and your garden get better and better.

The most important teacher is your personal experience with the plants and animals. Always plant or grow more than one species. If what you plant dies, plant something else--another species, or another variety of plant.

Your orchard sounds wonderful! Blueberries are picky about soil pH. They do best in acidic soil. Being an organic gardener, I don't worry much about bugs and diseases. I just keep planting, weeding, watering, and fertilizing until I find species that will thrive in my conditions. It doesn't work very well to focus on growing store kinds of fruit and wanting their harvest to look like store stuff. Instead, I'd strive to grow whatever fruit will do well on your property and let it look however

it does, so long as it's good food. In other words, try new varieties of grape, and more kinds of fruit.

Dear Carla, I did enjoy your writing about your method of gardening, andmust say if your desert is anything like this desert my commendations to you. I would like to make this little piece of heaven produce something during the times we are here, but it will take some work as we have to haul all the water. I'm betting that I can develop a nice garden spot with materials gathered locally, collecting water from the roofs of the units here on the land. I discovered that it does get quite chilly from mid-Decmber until early March.
Ron Harmon

Dear Carla,
I have been enjoying your book for the last two years and given several copies as gifts. I love the personal way you write, as if I were reading a letter from a friend, to say nothing of the priceless information on every page.

I am so glad to know that there are other people like me in this materialistic, consumer driven world. I would rather have the enjoyment of making something with my own hands if at all possible.
Thanks for everything!
Sally O'Neill
Nova Scotia Canada
Springvale Nurseries
Email: sally@springvalenurseries.com