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Top 10 Tips for Keeping Bees

July 2, 2020 by Claire Jones Leave a Comment

keeping bees and harvesting the honey

You are now keeping bees. You have just installed your first package of honey bees in your hive. Yes, you are now a beekeeper! But you are still feeling anxious. You are a bit unsure if this experiment will really work. You are not sure if you have the necessary beekeeping supplies. And you are not even sure what you’ll need to know to become a “real” beekeeper. Most ‘newbees’ (ha!) feel the same tension. Managing honeybees requires a new skill set. That’s why I am going to share the tips that I wish I had known 20 years ago, when I first started keeping bees. I call these my Top 10 Tips and Tricks for Keeping Bees and Becoming a Better Beekeeper.   Keeping Bees Tip #1: Join a Beekeeping Club My first tip on keeping bees is basically, “Don’t do it alone.” Join a local beekeeping club or group. Take advantage of the chance to listen to monthly national speakers and watch live, in-person hive demonstrations. The chance to connect with other more experienced beekeepers is … [Read more...] about Top 10 Tips for Keeping Bees

Lavender Orpington Chickens: Perfect Backyard Chicken Breed

June 15, 2020 by Jessica Ford 6 Comments

lavender orpington chicks

Lavender Orpington chickens just might be the perfect breed for a backyard chicken flock. These are delightful birds that make an excellent “starter” breed for your first chickens. They also make a wonderful addition to any flock. When you start or add to your chicken flock, you’ll find yourself inundated with hundreds of breed options. From fuzzy silkies to giant brahmas, the choices are practically endless! If you want to have chickens that are suited to the family backyard, however, you’ll have to select your breeds carefully. And for the perfect urban family backyard chicken breed, look no further than the Lavender Orpington chickens! Lavender Orpington chickens are beautiful, fluffy, friendly birds with silvery-blue feathers. Maxing out at 6-8 pounds, their color and puffy appearance makes them look like soft, grey clouds wandering around the yard. They are good egg layers, sweet-natured, and great for beginners and children. With so much to love, it is no wonder this breed … [Read more...] about Lavender Orpington Chickens: Perfect Backyard Chicken Breed

How to Build a Cedar Hot Tub

June 10, 2020 by Gary Ebersole 10 Comments

a do-it-yourself cedar hot tub

I always wanted to build a cedar hot tub. The vision of a long soak in a hot tub under the starry skies on a clear, crisp night in Santa Fe is quite compelling. Doing it in a natural tub constructed from cedar made the thought seem even better. As an experienced DIYer, I was taken by the idea that I could design and build a classic, red cedar hot tub myself. And I could save several thousand dollars over the cost of a kit from an established hot tub supplier. After all, how hard could it be? I built my own home in 2014. A cedar hot tub is a far simpler and much smaller project. This is the basic hot tub I envisioned: Research I spent several weeks scouring websites of commercial suppliers and DIY builders for ideas about wooden hot tubs. In my search, I discovered three things: How to Build a Cedar Hot Tub: The Design After my research was finished, I began the design phase. The tub would be circular, five feet in diameter and about 40 inches deep. I would use … [Read more...] about How to Build a Cedar Hot Tub

How to Keep Deer from Eating Your Landscape Plants

April 23, 2020 by Randy Schultz 5 Comments

keep deer from eating plants with proven deer repellent products

Yes, you can keep deer from eating plants in your landscape. Deer and other wildlife can be fun to watch on your property. But it's not much fun when deer eat the prized plants in your yard and vegetable garden. When deer treat your carefully cultivated landscape like it’s a salad bar, it’s time act. To keep deer from eating plants, you need to do something--and fast. A new generation of deer and wildlife control products is now available that keep deer and other critters away. These products are very effective, and they don't contain harmful chemicals. From predator scents to low-visibility deer fencing, here are some of the best ways to keep hungry deer from lunching in your garden. Plus, choosing deer-resistant plants is a great way to reduce browsing by hungry deer. In areas with large populations of deer, using more than one control method will give you the best results.   Use the scent of a predator to repel deer A great way to keep deer from eating your landscape … [Read more...] about How to Keep Deer from Eating Your Landscape Plants

Build an Instant Rusted Corrugated Metal Fence

May 13, 2019 by Gary Ebersole 28 Comments

rusted corrugated metal fence in santa fe new mexico

Our master bedroom garden was an unsightly mess. What it needed was an instant rusted corrugated metal fence, although it took me a while to figure that out. The space was initially designed as coyote-safe place for our small dogs and a sunny location for our raised bed gardens in galvanized stock tanks. But the native grasses had taken over, and the heavy-gauge open mesh fence offered no privacy. It was time for a serious landscaping remodel. Bee Zollo, my life partner, and I decided we wanted a space with a cleaner, more modern aesthetic than the over-grown “natural” look that we currently had. The most important element in the new garden was making it more private. This necessitated replacing the open mesh fencing with a new design. We considered a range of wood options, but finally decided we liked the contemporary appearance of a rusted corrugated metal fence using the existing redwood framing which was in very good shape. Inventing the Instant Rusted Corrugated Metal … [Read more...] about Build an Instant Rusted Corrugated Metal Fence

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