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We're running low on venison, but we keep a freezer chest or two full of meat. It's more economical to and butcher the whole animal and freeze it than it is to make weekly trips to the grocery store for meat. Did those farmers have to waste the meat due to some regulation? I know that the...

I've only done it twice and both times I moved the coop to handle a predator. I move their run around once or twice a year, but that just means reconfiguring the fence. They are free-range chickens during the day or I might move things more often.

I'm incorporating some of your ideas, particularly the fly traps and strips. I was afraid to use strips before because I thought a bird might fly into it or the strip might fall and one of the livestock would get into it. I found some that are super easy to secure though. I'll be shocked if...

I grew up on a farm with a few dairy cows, so it wasn't brand new to me like it was for you. However, we had particularly docile cows on my childhood farm, so I was not prepared for heifers that want to kick or refuse to be still so you can milk them. I took it personally too. I was offended...

This one is hotly debated. I used to have one and I believe the manual said to use a synthetic blend oil with a weight of 5W-20, though the argument can be made that government regulations, and not what's best for the engine, ruled the day on that recommendation. I also used 5w-30 oil from...

Yes, don't skip the primer! I did that once and it was like the wood kept absorbing the paint or something. It looked terrible, even after several coats of paint. If your OSB has been treated with wax, you need to sand it first. Then apply your primer and oil-based paint with a roller.

Have you noticed any common mistakes that beginners make when acquiring farm equipment? Farming runs in my family so the equipment wasn't new to me. I made the mistake of buying the same machinery my parents used without giving much thought about whether I really needed it just then.

Blue peafowl supposedly does better around crowds and are more tame. They're usually the least expensive breed too. Peafowl aren't great pets though. I know some people have ducks and chickens as pets, but peafowl is a bit different. It's pretty easy to teach chickens and ducks to let you...

Obstacle courses are pretty easy to make with what you already have lying around. Divide everyone into teams and make it a competition to make it more fun.

I'm a little surprised that biting flies are already lurking around. So far I'm just seeing one or two here and there, but it will get worse as it warms up. What do you guys use to protect your horses, goats, and other livestock from them? Last year I bathed them all in Dawn, vinegar, and...

I think you're talking about the origins question and that one threw me for a loop too, Birdie. I don't know if it's right or not, but I clicked "white" and wrote "American" in the box. I noticed on the census instructions that the answer should be based on how you identify yourself. So, it's...

Do you guys remember when small drones were being talked up as the next big thing to aid farmers? They were supposed to replace bees, butterflies, and other pollinators. What ever came of that? It seemed silly to me, but maybe I'm just behind the times. Does anyone here use them for pollination?

Theoretically, we could live off the land and we could make our own supplies forever, but that would also mean using herbs as medicine instead of getting our prescriptions at the pharmacy. Not sure I'd take that route, I guess we could if we had to.

My brother forwarded me this news article about the negative effects on the dairy industry that are a result of the coronavirus. Now that surprises me quite a bit because when I go to the store, I see customers wrangling for all the milk they can get out of fear that it will run out. So...

The first thing that comes up here is clover and the blossoms attract bees like crazy, so I usually leave a portion of it alone until the other flowers start coming up.