Gardening TIps

Feeding Chickens For Best Egg Laying

If you’re a chicken owner, you know that one of the most important aspects of raising chickens is making sure they lay plenty of eggs. To ensure that your hens are laying to their full potential, you need to provide them with the right nutrition. In this article, we’ll explore the best food to make chickens lay.

Before we dive into the specifics of chicken feed, it’s important to note that the age of your hens plays a critical role in their egg production. Young hens (under six months old) typically don’t lay as many eggs as mature hens. Additionally, the amount of daylight your chickens receive also affects their egg production. Chickens require around 14-16 hours of daylight to lay eggs consistently.

Now, let’s discuss the best food to make chickens lay. The primary nutrients that chickens need to produce eggs are protein, calcium, and other minerals and vitamins. The ideal chicken feed should contain around 16-20% protein and 3-4% calcium.

Protein is essential for the development of the egg, and it’s also important for maintaining the health of the chicken. You can provide protein to your chickens through a variety of sources, including soybeans, alfalfa, and mealworms. Commercial chicken feed typically contains a balanced amount of protein and other nutrients, making it an easy and convenient option.

Calcium is critical for the formation of eggshells. If your hens aren’t getting enough calcium, they may lay eggs with thin or weak shells, or they may stop laying altogether. To ensure that your hens are getting enough calcium, you can provide them with oyster shells or crushed eggshells. You can also add calcium supplements to their feed.

In addition to protein and calcium, it’s important to ensure that your hens are getting a balanced diet that includes other essential nutrients. Commercial chicken feed typically contains a mix of grains, such as corn and wheat, as well as vitamins and minerals. You can also supplement your chickens’ diet with fresh vegetables and fruits.

In conclusion, the best food to make chickens lay includes a balanced amount of protein, calcium, and other essential nutrients. Commercial chicken feed is an easy and convenient option that provides a balanced diet for your hens. However, you can also supplement their diet with other protein sources and fresh fruits and vegetables. By providing your chickens with the right nutrition, you can ensure that they lay plenty of healthy, delicious eggs.

Unique Garden Paths

Gardening TIps

Ok so I am researching garden path design ideas and I come across a great low impact design that will give a really good view of the garden …

But then I think that perhaps this is a little extreme for many of the people who might wander through my garden?

So I check out other extreme path ideas and come across this …

This would be a great path in my vertical garden section! And it certainly makes my original garden path idea seem a little more realistic.

However, I decide that I really want to make my garden more accessible so I better find a slightly more user friendly path.

After some looking I think I have found a great combination of extreme garden path meets grandma friendly garden path…

If a person had the space and the money this would be a great option I think. However, I do not have the trees to support such a construction, and I decide that growing a bunch of dead poles to support these paths just wouldn’t have the same effect. Back to the drawing board.

Not to be deterred I began looking for less lofty path construction techniques.

The next one is certainly spectacular and would stand out (at least at night) as it was lit up like a Christmas Tree.

The problem, apart from the cost, is that I am not sure it would fit too well my surroundings. One doesn’t want to be seen to be” showing off” and starting a war between neighbors as to who can produce the most spectacular night show.

Perhaps I will settle for a glow-worm like wall instead?

After much ado I think I have narrowed it down to a choice of a path made of wood rounds, or one of concrete shapes. Since I am not much on the end of a concrete mixer perhaps I will go with wood rounds.

Path ideas sorted!

Next problem is what to build at the end of the garden path.

My initial thoughts were something like ..

Although, once again, I will probably have to settle for something a little more down to earth.

This one would certainly match the wood path idea …

But that is a story for another day …

Time to build a garden path!

Carnivorous Plants: Insect Eating Plant Fly Traps

Gardening TIps

What Are Carnivorous Plants?

Carnivorous plants, or flesh eating plants, are natures natural insecticide. Although they are not quite the monsters that science fiction portrays carnivorous plants are finely tuned killing machines. Each variety of these insect eating plants has very specialized ways of trapping a particular insect group, and some even target slightly bigger prey. They feed off the nutrients from the trapped prey to supplement the traditionally poor soil that they grow in.

The Carnivorous Pitcher Plant — Pitcher Plant - Carnivorous Fly Eating Plant

Why Choose A Carnivorous Plant?

One of the main reasons I chose to grow these plants is because anything that eats insects is in my book a great thing. Not only does make for a more pleasant living environment when it is insect free, it is actually quite entertaining watching the plants eat flies and insects. My children have been keeping a track of all the flies eaten and checking on the plants is one of the first things they do when they get home from school.

So you have entertainment value, and you have cost effectiveness. Compared to the cost of insecticides and fly spray the insect eating plants soon pay for themselves. They require very little attention to grow. Carnivorous plants do not require fertilizer, and in fact applying fertilizer will probably kill them. They do like water, as the majority of them (certainly the ones native to New Zealand) are swamp plants.

The third reason to choose a carnivorous plant is health related. Natural pyrethrin or not, the fact you have to cover goldfish bowls and remove other pets from any room being fly sprayed suggests chemical methods of insect control are detrimental to good health. There are even some reports of people and animals contracting neuro-muscular degenerative diseases from contact with pyrethrin (which attacks the nervous system).

Caring For Carnivorous Plants

The soil conditions are the most crucial aspect of carnivorous plant care. They like an acidic soil and Peat or Sphagnum moss are an ideal soil base. If the moss is rotten or smells then the plant needs re-potting.

Water is the next most essential element to keeping your plant healthy. During the summer months the plant must not be allowed to dry out, and sitting the pot in a water bath is a good way to ensure ample moisture. Do not soak the pot too deep in water (about 1cm is ideal for most small pots) as this will rot the soil. In winter apply just enough water to keep the soil damp.

Sunlight and plenty of it keeps your carnivorous plant looking healthy. They like ample amounts of sun, and a lot of sappy growth is an indicator of insufficient sunlight.

That is all that is required to grow healthy carnivorous plants. Do NOT fertilize the plant as this will burn their roots and kill them.

Climate conditions for growing carnivorous plants: as already stated they like plenty of sunlight. However, this does not mean that they are not a hardy winter plant. In the winter the plants will go into dormancy and can handle a frosty out-door environment.

Allowing your plants do to die back in the winter will ensure a healthy growth in the spring. Artificially promoting growth over the winter months will eventually weaken and potentially kill the plant. The Pitcher plant stems may be cut back at this time of year.

For more detailed information on carnivorous plant care you can download this free PDF brochure from a Christchurch carnivorous plant supplier

http://www.florax.co.nz/cmscontent/File/Plants/Carnivorous_Plant_Brouchure.pdf