Greetings Gardeners!

[Wishin']

this is BY FAR the friendliest and most useful forum for which I am a member. =b

X2 TEG members are very helpful AND friendly to newcomers, as new member I appreciate that very much. They also don't bicker like little children when they disagree.
They state their opinions and agree to agree or disagree, so many forums lose good members over the most absurd arguments, you would not believe.

 

[baymule]

Maybe you could persuade him to make his own TEG account???

Nah, he lives in a camp trailer close to Freeport, where he works. He doesn't have internet.

 

[baymule]

Citylife on SufficientSelf has American Blues!

http://www.sufficientself.com/threa...uri-american-blues-updated.13349/#post-368331

 

[Bluebonnet]

Citylife on SufficientSelf has American Blues!

http://www.sufficientself.com/threa...uri-american-blues-updated.13349/#post-368331

That post is from April of last year and the person is located in Kansas.

I will see if I can track them down and find out if they still have them and if they are willing to ship, because many rabbit breeders are not willing. Some rabbit owners are unwilling to let you drive to them and pick them up if they know you live a long way away.

They are such beautiful rabbits. There is an association for this breed and I am waiting for their reply for them tell me there are breeders closer to me. The ones I have found thus far are reluctant to sell any of their rabbits, because of their sheer rarity. If something happened, say a heat wave and their rabbits became sterile or if they died, they would have a hard time trying to find replacement stock. This is why many are hesitant to sell.

A five year plan has been established for my rabbitry and these breeds.

I have twenty cages for each breed. For those doing the math, that is one hundred cages. This way, I can keep two bucks, two does and have enough cages to raise up their offspring. It also helps me keep nice round numbers.

Then, my rabbitry will be expanded to one hundred cages per breed. This way, I can keep a good deal of genetic diversity and not have to worry if other breeders get out of the business or if something happens to the rest of the population.

Each set of one hundred rabbits will have their own custom, cutely designed barn for their breed.

The rabbits will be registered and breed to create gold pedigree, grand champion breeding stock. Keeping numbers low at first, they will be managed and shown until such stock can be achieved and then I will increase my holdings.

At that point the offspring will be offered for sale or kept for their meat, fur, companionship, showing and manure.

Their registered numbers will surpass the critical, threatened and watch criteria and with any luck, I can promote these breeds successfully to the point where they can be removed from the Livestock Conservancy's Conservation Priority Lists in terms of population numbers.

I hope to be able to provide a custom organic, GMO feed for the rabbits, grown, prepared and stored on site. It would make for healthier, happier rabbits and greatly reduce feed costs.

Five hundred rabbits will produce at least twenty five thousand pounds of manure a year. That is over 12.5 tons of manure each year.

In short, these rabbits can fertilize an acre or two each year. I like to rotate my plantings, to keep the land fertile. Along with some other animal manures and some cover crops, I can build up and maintain the soil quality and increase its value.

 

[baymule]

There finally is an organic feed mill in Texas if you need it before you can get your own feeds going.

http://coyotecreekfarm.org/

 

[ninnymary]

Welcome bluebonnet, you sound like a great catch for that perfect person. I got married at 25 so 23 is not an old maid. I believe there is someone out there for you. I have a wonderful 23 yr. old son, too bad he is a "cityboy"

Thistle, what about you? Any unmarried sons?

Mary

 

[thistlebloom]

Welcome bluebonnet, you sound like a great catch for that perfect person. I got married at 25 so 23 is not an old maid. I believe there is someone out there for you. I have a wonderful 23 yr. old son, too bad he is a "cityboy"

Thistle, what about you? Any unmarried sons?

Mary

Yeah Mary, about 1.5.
Kid#1 found a keeper, a sweet, funny, tenderhearted girl we love. Just waiting on them to get married.
Kid#2 is a computer nerd, hard working and outdoorsy when he has to be, but not necessarily compatible with country living. :/

 

[Bluebonnet]

As promised, an updated post listing what all else I have growing on my land.

Latham Red Raspberry
Taylor Red Raspberry
Heritage Red Raspberry
Jaclyn Red Raspberry
Caroline Red Raspberry
Polana Red Raspberry
Anne Golden Raspberry
Fall Gold Raspberry
Concord Grapes
Canadice Grapes
Flame Grapes
Newton Pippin Apple AKA Albemarle Pippin Apple
Esopus Spitzenburg Apple
Honeycrisp Apple - It will not fair well in my zone, so this is an experiment because I love it so.
Lady Apple - AKA Christmas Apples
Roxbury Russet Apple
Goldkist Apricot
White Ume Apricot - Used to make Umeboshi.
Black Butte Oregon Blackberry
Boysenberry
Loganberry
Marionberry
Primus White Currant
Wilder Red Currant
Crandall Black Currant
Invicta Green Gooseberry
Hinnonak Red Gooseberry
Jubilee Southern Highbush Blueberry
Sunshine Blue Southern Highbush Blueberry
Misty Southern Highbush Blueberry
Montmorency Cherry
Black Tartarian Cherry
English Morello Cherry
Napoleon Cherry - AKA Royal Ann Cherry
Hewes Virginia Crab Apple
Texas Everbearing Fig
Sherwood Jujube
Sugarcane Jujube
Ken's Red Hardy Kiwi
White Mulberry
Black Mulberry
Panamint Nectarine
Peentace Saturn Peach
La Feliciana Peach
Seckel Pear
Belle Lurcrative Pear
Fuyu Persimmon
Elephant Heart Plum
Santa Rosa Plum
Satsuma Plum
French Prune
Bavay's Green Gage Plum
Blue Damson Plum
Sweet Pomegranate
Parfionka Pomegranate
Eversweet Pomegranate
Wonderful Pomegranate
Van Deman Quince
Valencia Orange
Shamouti Orange
Moro Blood Orange
Seville Sour Orange
Variegated Pink Lemon
Yen Ben Lemon
Eureka Lemon
Owari Satsuma Mandarin
Seedless Kishu Mandarin
Persian Lime
Key Lime
Red Rio Grapefruit
Marumi Kumquat
Minneloa Tangelo
Yuzu - AKA Japanese Citron
Hass Avocado
Kalamata Olive
Pomelo
Hale's Best Cantaloupe

 

[Bluebonnet]

In addition to that last post, there is also the things I am attempting to grow in my greenhouse as well as nut trees.

Thus far, I only grow pecans as far as my nut trees go, but I want to diversify this year.

Nut trees I want to grow include :

Black Walnut
White Walnut
Hickory
Hazelnut
Chestnut
Butternut
Almond
Pistachio
Cashew
Macadamia
Heartnut

Unfortunately, I have read that nut trees sometimes to not grow well together and some of these might not do well in the Southern heat.

I would also like to grow :

Star Apples
Clementine
Cloudberry
Cranberry
Coffee
Date
Dragonfruit
Lychee
Durian
Ice Cream Bean
Nutmeg
Cinnamon
Prickly Pear
Paw Paw
Passionfruit
Tangerine
Rose Hips
Starfruit
Sugar Apple
Choke Cherry
Huckleberry
Lingonberry
Elderberry
Tropical Pink Guava
Bearberry
Bilberry
Honeysuckle

I am attempting to grow the following in my greenhouse :

Coconut
Vanilla Bean
Mango
Papaya
Pink Bananas
Pineapple

 

[baymule]

That is quite a list Bluebonnet! How many acres do you have? Do you sell at a Farmer's Market or CSA? I admire what you are doing and wish you every good thing in life and success in your pursuits of what makes you happy.