On January 1, we put 12 fertile eggs under a broody Buff Orphington hen. Twenty-one days later, we had seven baby chicks. The chicks are (I hope) all Rhode Island Reds (RIR). We have a RIR rooster, and the RIR eggs are shaped a bit differently than the Buff Orpington eggs, so I hope that what we have is pure Rhode Island Red chicks. We’ll see as they mature.

One thing that I’ve noticed is that the survival rate of chicks hatched and raised by a hen is much better than with an incubator. The incubator yields a bit better number of hatched chicks than the hen, but the mortality rate during the first week or so is much higher. So far, we have never lost a single chick that was hatched and raised by a hen.

To the right is the Roll-Away nest box described in a previous post. It makes a great hatching nest with the partition removed and sitting level. The feeder and water jar have since been moved on top of a concrete paver to keep the hen from scratching dirt into them.

These had been feasting on the squash in July. The county Extension Agent identified these bugs as probably Leaffooted Plant bugs. She said that there was nothing available to homeowners for use in the garden that would control them. I was afraid that would be the answer. It looks like it will be a matter of just hand picking them, although I have considered using a vacuum cleaner to try to suck them off the plants. We’ll see how that works later this year.

The Southern Agrarian movement in its purest form was described in the book, I’ll Take My Stand, (first published in 1930) by Twelve Southerners. One of those “Twelve Southerners” – Stark Young – was a cousin of mine. His section of I’ll Take My Stand was titled Not In Memoriam, But In Defense.

From the Wikipedia entry for Southern Agrarian: The Southern Agrarians bemoaned the increasing loss of Southern identity and culture to industrialization. They believed that the traditional agrarian roots of the United States, which had reigned since the nation’s founding in the 18th century, were important to its nature. Their manifesto was a critique of the rapid industrialization and urbanization during the first few decades of the 20th century in the southern United States. It posited an alternative based on a return to the more traditionally rural and local culture, and agrarian American values. The group opposed the changes in the US that were leading it to become more urban, national/international, and industrial. Because the book was published at the opening (1930) of what would eventually become the Great Depression, some viewed it as particularly prescient. The book was anti-communist. I’ll Take My Stand was originally criticized as a reactionary and romanticized defense of the Old South and the Lost Cause of the Confederacy. Some critics considered it to be moved by nostalgia. But, in more recent years, scholars such as Carlson, Scotchie, Eugene Genovese, and others have re-evaluated the book in light of the modern problems of highly urbanized/industrialized societies. They acknowledge the effects which such urban-technological-industrial systems exert on human society as a whole, as well as individuals, the environment, various social issues, politics, economics, etc. Today, the Southern Agrarians are lauded regularly in the Southern Partisan. Some of their social, economic, and political ideas have been refined and updated by writers such as Allan C. Carlson and Wendell Berry. The Intercollegiate Studies Institute has published books which further explore the ideas of the Agrarians. “All the articles bear in the same sense upon the book’s title-subject: all tend to support a Southern way of life against what may be called the American or prevailing way; and all as much as agree that the best terms in which to represent the distinction are contained in the phrase, Agrarian versus Industrial. … Opposed to the industrial society is the agrarian, which does not stand in particular need of definition. An agrarian society is hardly one that has no use at all for industries, for professional vocations, for scholars and artists, and for the life of cities. Technically, perhaps, an agrarian society is one in which agriculture is the leading vocation, whether for wealth, for pleasure, or for prestige – a form of labor that is pursued with intelligence and leisure, and that becomes the model to which the other forms approach as well as they may. But an agrarian regime will be secured readily enough where the superfluous industries are not allowed to rise against it. The theory of agrarianism is that the culture of the soil is the best and most sensitive of vocations, and that therefore it should have the economic preference and enlist the maximum number of workers.” “Introduction: A Statement of Principles” to their 1930 book I’ll Take My Stand: The South and the Agrarian Tradition.

Tomislav Sunić is a Croatian-American and a Director of the American Third Position political party. His professional career includes working as a professor, a lobbyist, and a diplomat for the nation of Croatia. He is fluent in English, Croatian, French, and German.

The interview was conducted by Michael – a staunch supporter and prolific author of pro-Southern material. He is the owner of Southern Nationalist Network. He also posts regular podcasts to his YouTube page.

“Cultivators of the earth are the most valuable citizens. They are the most vigorous, the most independent, the most virtuous and they are tied to their country and wedded to its liberty and interests by the most lasting bands.” ~ Thomas Jefferson to John Jay 23 August 1785

“Bureaucrats hate the quintessential American culture of family farms. The independence-centered, ‘pull yourself up by your boot straps’ emphasis on responsibility goes against everything they believe in. Simply put, people who think for themselves and work hard don’t live off the government . . . Farming is part of our identity. It is our way of life, our heritage, our patriotism, and the foundation of our generational values. Farming is the essence of our loyalty to our families and our God — and there is nothing more sacred than that. That’s why unelected liberal elites don’t want farm kids working on farms.” ~ Josiah Cantrall

These nest boxes are made from 18 gallon storage boxes that I bought in a 3-pack from Lowes. I used a knife and a saw to cut out the large hole in the front. The only important measurement (other than being sized for your chickens) is that the bottom edge of the hole allows a short piece of 2×4 to be attached to it.

The partition that separates the nest section from the egg section is made of scrap plywood or press board. I just used up some scrap pieces. The edges of the partition have pieces of 2×2 screwed in place to allow for screws to attach it to the sides of the plastic box. The dimensions will vary according to the plastic box used, but my partitions were 14 1/4″ across the top, 12 1/2″ across the bottom, and 11 1/2″ high. The bottom was approximately 2 1/4″ from the top of the fake grass.

The bottom is lined with “fake grass”. This is not the standard indoor/outdoor carpet, but a sturdier material designed to be used as a plastic grass substitute. It was purchased by the foot from Lowes. Although it works well, I found that the hens were much happier with it when I added a very thin layer of hay on top. It was a very thin layer of hay – just enough to make it look like hay rather than plastic. If you put too much hay in, the eggs will not roll out very well.

The nest boxes sit on some boards that form a platform for them. The slope is provided by adding a 2×4, turned on its side under the front.

I will probably end up trimming the fake grass to eliminate places for spiders and other bugs to take up residence. Other than that, I am well satisfied with the design. The eggs are all clean and easy to gather. I either lift the top, or just reach under the partition. Since we started using these nest boxes, we have not had a single broken egg, and all of them are much cleaner than with the old nest boxes.

The finished nest boxes in use. There is a wire that goes from an eye screw below the perch to a screw on the supporting 2x4. Before adding this, the chickens would knock the nest boxes over by standing on the edge.

A piece of 2x4 is screwed to the plastic at the bottom of the opening. This gives the hens something to stand on and provides a place tor the eye screw. The eye screw is used to secure the nest box in place.

Once the approximate gap between the wood partition and the "fake grass" has been established, make sure that the eggs that your hens lay will easily roll to the back. I used a saw to trim off any excess until they easily rolled under the partition.

The lovely Southern Lady on this magazine cover is Ronda – the step-daughter of my best friend from college. Ronda and her husband live in Lausanne, Switzerland – an incredibly beautiful place that looks more like a dreamy postcard than a real city. Lausanne is on Lake Geneva, with the French Alps on the other side. Ronda and her husband live in town, and the article is about the young business woman from America with a small “farm” in her back yard. She grows vegetables, blackberries, blueberries, figs, apples, and now, chicken eggs.

Although okra was originally brought to America from Africa, the variety of okra grown there today is typically a very primitive type. There is very little attention paid to developing improved varieties, so the best route was for them to bring seeds back from America and hope that they will serve as the foundation for a strain that will be well-suited for the West African environment.

In West Africa, the climate is tropical, but the dry season is influenced by the Sahara, to the north. The dry season is very dry and the rainy season is very rainy. In the words of Joseph, their local helper, “Sista, let de rain meet your seeds in de soil.” Very simple words from very simple people, but containing much wisdom.

Part of the garden. In the background is the classroom building where native men are trained in The Bible. The tree in the center is a Moringa tree - an incredibly useful tree that I hope to get growing here.

Okra from our garden now growing in West Africa. The variety is Clemson Spineless.

Blue Lake Bush beans getting started.

1. All Gardening is Local
2. Plant Things That Grow Where You Live
3. Variety, Variety, Variety
4. Plant Varieties That Grow Where You Live
5. Buy High Quality Seeds or Plants
6. Plants Need Sun
7. Plants Need Warmth
8. Some Plants Need Cold
9. Plants Need Soil
10. Plants Need Nutrients
11. You Must Prepare the Ground for Your Plants
12. You Can Plant in Beds or Rows; You can Plant Intensively or Less So
13. Plant at the Right Time
14. Plant Seeds at the Right Depth
15. Plants Need Water
16. Plants Need Room to Grow
17. You Must Weed
18. Resist the Temptation to Do Unnecessary Things
19. You Must Thin
20. Plants Need Protection from Insects, Pests, and Herbivores
21. Plants Need Protection from Disease
22. Plants Sometimes Need Protection from Weather
23. You Can Use Transplants or Seeds
24. Some Plants Need Support
25. Some Plants Need Pruning
26. Learn to Harvest and Store Product Optimally
27. Experiment
28. Keep at Least Some Records
29. Think Small
30. Everything Is Connected
31. Slow Down
32. Notice Everything
33. Save, Cherish, and Distribute Seeds of the Varieties You Care about the Most

Each of these items is, of course, accompanied by a detailed description of what it really means. Some of these items may look rather obvious or redundant or just plain strange, but rest assured that they are all very relevant not only to gardening in general, but to Southern Agrarianism in particular. She (as far as I know) never mentions Southern anything (she lives in the Pacific Northwest), but the spirit of Southern Agrarianism is very much a part of what she writes.

I strongly encourage you to buy the book and add it to your library. I have quite a collection of gardening books in my library, but I consider the Deppe books to be the best all-around source of information that goes deeply into the how and the why of gardening rather than a simple “do this” set of instructions. Her other book, Breed Your Own Vegetable Varieties, is another excellent book by Carol Deppe, and we’ll go into that in another future post.

This particular one had been blown over on its side and continued to grow to the massive size you see in the photo. Although the stalk was huge, this particular one wasn’t among the best producing plants in the garden – perhaps because it was expending energy on plant growth rather than okra pods. It did OK, but was not the best. Seeds from this one were not saved.

Okra stalk at the end of the summer growing season - October 20.

• I no longer try to pack the soil mixture in tighter than I can get by just pressing down several times. I had even tried using blocks of wood to pack it in tighter. While that gave good results, it was pretty tough on the hands, so I went back to the method recommended by the manufacturer. I still try to pack it in as tightly as possible, but only by pressing the mold into the mixture.
• I no longer use a bucket to press the mold into the mixture – I now use a stainless steel warming tray that I bought from a used restaurant supply store. This is much easier to work with and it allows me to make much better use of the wet soil mixture than I could with the rounded sides of a bucket.
• I have added galvanized hardware cloth in the bottom of the seed trays. Previously, the blocks would get damaged with I had to move the trays. The stiff, flat  bottom that the hardware cloth provides keep the blocks from bumping into each other.

Hardware cloth lines the bottom of the tray to keep the blocks stabilized when moving the tray. This is a big help in keeping the blocks from being damaged.

The work area. From front to back: water bucket to clean blocker between moldings, stainless steel warming tray where the blocker is packed, seedling tray where blocks are placed when finished.

Packing the growing mixture into the soil blocker.

A garden knife is used to cut away excess from the bottom.

Wipe away excess from the sides using your fingers.

Four soil blocks being extracted from the mold and onto the seed tray.

The soil blocker is rinsed off between uses. Keeping it clean helps make the blocks uniform.

When the blocks have been extracted from the mold, it is not uncommon for part of the block to separate. Use a metal putty knife to gently press the block back into shape.

Use two putty knives together to separate the blocks. They need to have enough air space between them to keep the roots of one block from growing into an adjoining block.