Amber Dusick

Soil Lead Testing For Chickens

We've been considering getting chickens. When I say considering I mean obsessively researching and trying to read every single book and website written on the subject.

After learning that a local friend discovered high levels of lead in her soil, I started looking into that aspect too. We too live in an urban (well, suburban) area that could potentially be contaminated. See the NYTimes article High Lead Found in City-Sourced Eggs for more info. 

In our case, the ideal chicken run area is right next to a small playhouse that was built in 1955. The playhouse itself is what we'd be converting to a coop: 

What is missing? Chickens, that's what. Just LOOK at that house begging for chickens. Kids don't use it as a playhouse and they'd much rather have chickens.

 

Being built in 1955 could mean that at one time it was painted with lead paint and then scraped off...and then the soil would be contaminated. Additionally, we live in an area that was once covered with citrus groves where lead arsenate may have been used as a pesticide. I braced myself for the worst. 

Fortunately, our soil test results were fine. 

Anything less than 22ppm is considered low and ours was only 1.7. Huge relief.

We had our soil tested from UMass Soil Testing and it was only ten bucks! We took samples per their instructions and mailed it off in a ziplock. A week later they emailed the results.

So we got the green light. 

Now we just need chickens. 

Actually, it isn't quite that simple. Now we're chicken converting the playhouse coop, predator-proofing it obsessively, adding ventilation, building a large run, building nesting boxes, researching and getting food and other supplies... wow LOTS to do. 

 

 

 

Tree Trimming is Overrated

What have we been up to? Trimming a tree. Seriously. That's it. It has taken us two weeks to tackle this massive project. It was awesome and fulfilling and grueling work and I'll never do it again. Probably.

It's a mulberry tree and it grows SO FAST. In the past we've hired gardeners to come and trim it. This year for some reason we tricked ourselves into doing it. 

We suffer from DIYness. This is how it happened this time:

Me: "Hey, we have to get that tree trimmed."

Him: "Yeah. I should just get a saw and do it myself."

Me: "Okay, what type of saw is best? A chainsaw? Let me ask Google..."

(five minutes later)

Me: "Yep, a chainsaw."

Him: "Cool, I'll go to Home Depot."

Me: "Okay. Bye."

(twenty minutes later)

Him: "I got one. Let's do this."

Me: "Okay, awesome! I'll process the fallen branches with these clippers and make a pile. This will be fun!"

TEN BILLION HOURS LATER... and we still weren't even half finished. Holy crap it was a ton of work. 

Even the boy helped:

He used a coping saw to cut off smaller branches to help make clean poles. Turns out mulberry wood was used in making poles because the branches grow so perfectly straight.  

We now have a huge pile of lovely poles that will be used to build something. But more on that project later. 

(That pic above was only after the first few hours. Multiply the pile by 20 and that is how many poles we have now. Seriously, it's enough for a small log cabin.)

We also have a 1/4 cord of wood stacked in our wood pile to dry out for next winter.

And of course I have a giant pile of smaller twigs and branches to do stuff with. Swoon.

So now comes the fun part, actually making something out of the branches. So glad this project is over with.