Whiteley Creek Homestead

It was a drizzly overcast day today… the kind that reminds me of most times that we visit the Black Hills where the dark, heavy-laden rain clouds seem to brush the tops of our heads. The grass and leaves appeared to be a deeper green than when the sun shines and the rain droplets added a sheen and freshness to the new spring growth. These blossoms on my flowering crab apple tree are in their prime.

This is a new dining station next to a one of my bluebird houses inhabited by some babies that just recently hatched. The suet is especially suited for bluebirds. Since I took this photo, the bottom tray is now filled with wiggly mealworms to further entice the bluebirds to hang out and raise a second and possibly a third brood. Here's the recipe for the suet if you'd like to make your own or you can also purchase it.

BLUEBIRD BANQUET RECIPE:

This Bluebird Banquet Recipe was developed by Linda Janilla Peterson. The recipe was researched and developed following guidelines from the bird curator at the Minnesota Zoo and using results from a study on bluebirds' nutritional needs. In tests, bluebirds preferred it nearly 2 to 1! Bluebird Banquet is available commercially at The Wild Bird Specialists – Audubon Workshop

MIX 1 cup peanut butter 4 cups yellow cornmeal 1 cup unbleached or whole-wheat flour ADD: 1 cup fine sunflower seed chips 1 cup peanut hearts (or finely ground nuts) 1/2 – 1 cup Zante currants (or raisins cut in halves) DRIZZLE and STIR IN: 1 cup rendered, melted suet COOL

Resulting mix will be crumbly and should have bean/pea sized lumps from the drizzling of  the melted suet. If too sticky after cooling, mix in a bit more flour. If too dry, drizzle in more melted suet.

Refrigerate any mix you are not using – to prevent suet from turning rancid. I use a commercial pure bird suet cake. You can render you own suet. Grind or cube butcher store suet. Melt over low heat. Watch carefully as suet is a fat and can start on fire with too high heat. A microwave can be used. Strain out the stringy bits (cracklings). Cool. Remelt a second time for the recipe.

For information on feeding mealworms to bluebirds, I found this link to be helpful. "Mealworms are not really worms at all but are the larval form of the darkling beetle (Tenebrio molitor). They are clean, easy to raise, do not carry human diseases and, most importantly, are a nutritious food supplement readily accepted by bluebirds. Mealworms entice bluebirds to use a nest box, assist the incubating female to find food quickly so she does not have to leave her eggs for long periods of time, and is a supplementary food for nestlings if food becomes scarce when weather conditions prevent the parents from finding insects."

We have been feeding our bees sugar syrup until nectar becomes available to them. The type of feeder that came with our kit is a long narrow tray that is as deep as this brood chamber. One frame is removed and the feeder is inserted in its place. A better feeding device we have discovered uses an inverted plastic pail or glass jar, which we will use the next time around. 

The queen bee is working overtime laying eggs to increase the colony, so today we added a second brood chamber on top of the first that is filled with trays just like the one you see here filled with bees. At the end of June, this second brood chamber should be full of bees and then we can add a box filled with trays called a "honey super" that is not as deep as the two brood chambers. As the name implies, this is where the honey is manufactured and stored. When that box is filled with honey, we will add another honey super. Since this beekeeping is brand new to Dick and I, we are learning as we go. So far we think we are doing things as we should because the colony continues to increase in size and they appear to be content. I started attending monthly North Central Beekeepers Association meetings held at the arboretum in Brainerd. It's a wonderful down-to-earth bunch of friendly people more than willing to help us newbies out.

It is a well-known fact that bee populations are decreasing. This problen is called "colony collapse". Opinions vary regarding what is causing it, but my friend Pat passed along a quote from Albert Einstein cautioning us about its seriousness. "If the bee disappeared off the surface of the globe, then man would have four years of life left." According to Einstein, no more bees, no more pollination, no more plants, no more animals, and no more man. I intend to do my part to populate my corner of the world with bees. Kudos to others who are doing the same.  

I normally shy away from purple, especially deep shades, but I had to have this fuchsia because of its unbelievably unique blossoms with intricate folds. They remind me of the Red Hat Society with their standard red hats and purple dresses attire. I could never be a member because I would show up at gatherings dressed in turquoise, yellow, and pink, but I did attend a wonderful performance of Hats! The Musical in Tampa, Florida with my friend Sharon last winter. The story is about a woman who is very unhappy about turning fifty. Her friends in the Red Hat Society, who have already passed this mile marker, set out to convince her to embrace the journey as this new chapter unfolds. I could relate to each and every aspect… the "empty nest" void created when the kids set out on their own, the loss of parents and spouses, the emotional roller coaster caused by menopause, creating a new identity when motherhood no longer is centerstage, and on and on. I didn't realize the enormous magnitude of upheaval we undergo in this season of our lives until it was all laid out at once! If you get a chance to see a performance scheduled in various cities across the country, you will be entertained and enlightened. 

At the beginning of February, I had ordered four "Red Star" and four "Black Star" hens from Murray McMurray Hatchery in Iowa but, when the shipment arrived, four "Pearl White Leghorns" were in the box instead of the Black Stars. Upon contacting the company, they offered to send me the Black Stars at no additional charge and I could keep the leghorns, so we now have a total of twelve hens. They will all be ready to begin laying in 1 1/2 – 2 weeks, so I will have more than enough eggs to share. It is my pleasure to introduce you to Olga, Pearl, Flossie, Opal, Henny-penny, Cora, Phoebe, Edith, Nettie, Abigail, Greta, and Olivia. They are happily enjoying a diet of *transitional feed and veggie kitchen scraps until they begin laying eggs when we will open the door of their fence so that they can roam our property freely searching for protein in the form of bugs and worms to supplement their grains and veggies. We wait to give them free-roaming status until they understand that the nesting boxes inside the chicken coop are to be used for laying eggs and it is not proper to plop eggs onto the ground wherever they take a notion. We also want to give them time to learn that they are to return to the safety of their coop each evening. (*Transitional feed is raised organically, but it is still within the three year window that is required to be certified organic. It is somewhat less expensive than certified organic feed. It comes from Buckwheat Growers in Wadena, Minnesota. A Brainerd farmer makes a run over to Wadena and stores a supply at his farm where I go to purchase it.)