Welcome to Curly-Haired Country Gal!

So you're interested in natural beekeeping using Layens frames / horizontal hives? Awesome! Here are the supplies you'll be looking at. This is my first year doing beekeeping of any kind, so come along with me as I learn and grow! Song Credit: License code: 11EWYBEP4TNERIZ2 Angelic Silhouette

This is the case of the missing chicken. Dun dun DUUUNNNNNN!

You can check out the video linked below if you want to learn how a retaining wall is built up. You can check out this video to learn how our family is built up.

I searched high and low for videos clearly explaining how to build a simple retaining wall and couldn’t find one that spelled things out- so here we are! Kids, dog, cat, and all!

*This video contains footage of me processing my deceased rooster* Now I have just 3 roosters. I'm not sure why he died, but I'm not giving up...

We purchased the LEM #32 grinder for deer in the fall and now for me to prepare my animals' raw food diet WAY more efficiently than before. I'm really happy with it, but there are two drawbacks...

I can't wait to provide my family with better-than-organic salad greens! We planted on 2/27/2022. Next year I could probably start this raised bed even earlier with the PVC hoop cover, but better late than never! AND better yet WITH my kids instead of without them.

I even impressed my husband with how long I was able to make one 40-pound bag of feed last for our 17 adult chickens. I hope this helps you feed your happy chickens for less!

I'm giving my almost-one-year review on our mini hoop coop / mobile rabbit tractor. So far, so good, except one major drawback... Oh, and there's Dinkins.

I loved James Prigioni's PVC raised bed cover, but I didn't like the use of wood (decays), and I wanted something that I could use for multiple seasons. Thus the 2-in-1 PVC cover was born!

What are we to do, snowed in on our homestead out in the country, cold and ice all around us? Don't worry, I think we'll manage... (marshmallows and hot chocolate help)

I really enjoyed taking a rusty old dumping cart and transforming it into a beautiful dog cart- and now I can get some help around the homestead! June Bug, it's time for you to get to work.

Our wonderful pit/shepherd mix, June Bug, is doin' some training. Dog cart training.

*I am feeding my animals a diet of primarily free meat (infinitely better than kibble for the dog/cat), but I realize a raw food diet also includes supplementation to ensure meeting all nutritional needs. I'm still working on that. But here you'll see how I'm experimenting with preparing the raw meat for the animals, especially the chickens/chicks. Is it worth it? Comes down to time vs. money.

He did it! Jarod replaced our water heater with a new Barracuda. We no longer need to draw 40 gallons per day by hand. The kids (and I) are a little excited.

I started with 15 gallons of walnut fruit. After removing that, there was the unshelled nut. Finally, the nut (kernels). I was surprised by how many pounds of nut meat we got. But not really in a good way...

You know, really... I want to do 'all the things' on the homestead (build more things, raise more animals). In order to do that, I need to reduce the time needed for chores as much as possible. If only I'd remember to plug things in... The problem: Frozen water The solution: Heated waterer

That's right... when our family of 6 (and a dog and cat) arrived home from a trip, the water pump was shot. We've made some major modifications to our daily routine, and there have been some improvements along the way!

Can Grandpa's Goody Getter take on the tough black walnut? (*spoiler alert: yes*)

I'm in the early stages of developing our food forest, using compost that the bugs, chickens, and I are making! "Like" the video if you enjoy it, and subscribe if you want to join me as the food forest blossoms!

Here I'll show you how I (an amateur builder) take on the task of building a chicken feed cover. This has needed to get done for a while (too long). I'm glad that time has come!

I'm about 50% of the way done with my durable, low-maintenance rabbit colony setup. What's next? Lots of digging.

Primacane/Floricane: Do they matter? Yes, yes they do, apparently. Here I lay out my steps for preparing and potting raspberry and blackberry cuttings for next Spring.

I've got goals for the garden. I've got goals for the chickens. I've got goals for intrastructure. "Et cetera, et cetera, ET CETERA" as they say in "The King and I." Too many? We shall see. What are you goals?