Mike Barkley

I was thinking about making a custom implement for my tractor - a water tank wit attached sprinklers (with simple valve) and small 12V pump with a short hose. It would allow to address fire spots that are numerous and small but too far to run to them with buckets of water - usually in 100 F heat + fire heat plus smoke.

They make premade pump & water tank assemblies for ATVs & trucks. I think they are available for tractors too. It would be fairly easy to install one for ATVs on a tractor's 3 point hitch. Here's another thread that has some pix of them installed on ATVs.

We used tractor disks for fire prevention. We made firebreaks with them. Before the fire was started. I suppose a lot depends on type of tractor & the terrain but I generally prefer a 4 wheel drive ATV over a tractor for fighting a fire that is already burning. They are very effective because they're small, fast, maneuverable in tight conditions, & can put a lot of water exactly where needed.

There are some excellent suggestions already mentioned above. The basic idea is to remove excess fuel, especially around houses & other structures. One thing specific to NM & other places with arroyos is, well, arroyos. Once a fire starts on the lower end of those it rips upwards extremely fast. Pay special attention to arroyos! Once a fire starts there it's usually too late to do much about it. I've seen too many very expensive houses along the scenic top of arroyos & canyons completely destroyed in seconds, yes seconds, simply because there was too much fuel below.

One lesser known but useful tool that often works better than water or vehicles is a powerful leaf blower. One of those can blow a long line of burning leaves, etc back into itself & eliminate the threat very quickly.

This is a badge bit (BB) that is part of the PEP curriculum.  Completing this BB is part of getting the sand badge in Animal Care.

In this BB you will be collecting 12 eggs from your fowl.






Here is a helpful little video:





Here is a thread on Cleaning Eggs

To complete this BB, the minimum requirements are:
- You must gather 12 eggs

To document completion of the BB, provide the photos or video (<2 min) of the following:
- Tell us in 1 paragraph or less about the hens/ducks/etc you are collecting the eggs from (Are they yours? A friends? How many hens?)
- A bird in the nest or nesting box
- An egg in the nest or nesting box
- A dozen eggs you have collected

Happy Harvesting!

So, my next question is, whether to go ahead and harvest next spring? I'm thinking it ought to be safe, and would allow them more room, making it less likely they'd swarm, if they don't run out of room to grow.

That will likely be fine Carla. Anything left after winter is excess. Just be sure to leave them a little to work with in case of a late freeze that kills all the flowers.

I should start an apple poll to see how long folks guess it will be until Marty has 6 hives! Six is not much harder than four. Twelve is not much harder than six. My spidey senses suggest it's coming right at him:)

Almost all of the honey I've ever harvested has been 3 frames at a time. Mostly because that's what fits in my buckets. I try to replace them with empties at the same time. Once I forgot to replace them quickly & the bees made a huge mess by building burr comb in the empty space.

Something I experimented with a few times in TN was not harvesting until very early in the spring. That left ALL the honey for the bees so there was no worries about them starving over winter. In those cases I harvested 90% of the honey all at once so they had plenty of empty cells once the nectar became fully available again. That technique seemed to work well.

Looking good Marty!

That was a good queen! I hope I still have her… and that the new one is what flew away.

 

Then you'll be sad to learn that it's the old queen who usually leaves with the swarm.

This is a badge bit (BB) that is part of the PEP curriculum.  Completing this BB is part of getting the sand badge in Natural Medicine.



(Image from: proclaimm.com)

For this badge bit, you will create a ginger root poultice (fresh or frozen):
- Make ginger root poultice, with pictures of it being made, and of it being finished.

Here are some links and videos to guide you in researching ginger root and in creating your poultice:
https://www.wikihow.com/Create-a-Poultice
https://theherbalacademy.com/how-to-make-a-poultice-with-herbs/
http://www.healing-from-home-remedies.com/make-a-poultice.html
https://remedygrove.com/remedies/How-to-Make-a-Poultice







To document this BB, post pictures or a 2-minute video depicting the following:
Your ginger root (they can be harvested or store-bought if you live somewhere that does not grow ginger)
Your poultice in mid-preparation
Your completed poultice

This is a badge bit (BB) that is part of the PEP curriculum.  Completing this BB is part of getting the sand badge in Natural Medicine.

For this BB, you will create a poultice using comfrey leaf you harvested.


(Image from: marksvegplot.blogspot.com)

Additional Information:
https://www.wikihow.com/Create-a-Poultice
https://theherbalacademy.com/how-to-make-a-poultice-with-herbs/
http://www.healing-from-home-remedies.com/make-a-poultice.html
https://thelostherbs.com/how-to-make-a-comfrey-salve-for-arthritis-and-joint-pain/







Minimum requirements:
  - Create a poultice
  - Use comfrey leaf

To document completion of the BB, provide proof of the following as pictures or a video (< 2 minutes):
  - Harvested plant material (either being harvested or just harvested)
  - Plant material in mid-preparation
  - Finished poultice on a body or in a labeled container

This is a Badge Bit (BB) that is part of the PEP Curriculum. Completing this BB is part of getting the sand badge in Natural Medicine.

For this BB you will create a salve out of peppermint leaf.

- Make the peppermint leaf salve, and take a picture of it being made, and of it being finished.



source: https://www.almanac.com/plant/mint


Website pages on how to make peppermint leaf salve and the benefits of it:


https://thriveglobal.com/stories/how-to-make-a-fresh-mint-salve/

https://modernhomesteadmama.com/diy-headache-salve-peppermint/



To show you've completed this Badge Bit, you must post:
- a picture of your peppermint leaf, freshly harvested
- a picture of the peppermint leaf in the oil with a description of what oil and other ingredients you used
- a picture of your completed salve in its permanent, labeled container/jar

This is  a Badge Bit (BB) that is part of the PEP Curiculum. Completing this BB is part of getting the sand badge in Natural Medicine.

For this BB you will create a tincture out of oregano leaf.

- Make the oregano leaf tincture, and take a picture of it being made, and of it being finished.




Website pages on how to make oregano tincture:

https://marasmix.com/homemade-oregano-tincture/


https://www.organicfacts.net/recipe/oregano-oil




To show you've completed this BB you must post pictures of the following:

- picture of the oregano leaf, freshly harvested by you
- picture of the tincture being made
- picture of the finished tincture in its labeled jar.

This is  a Badge Bit (BB) that is part of the PEP Curiculum. Completing this BB is part of getting the sand badge in Natural Medicine.

For this BB you will create a tincture out of dandelion root.

- Make the dandelion root tincture, and take a picture of it being made, and of it being finished.


(www.deeprootsathome.com)

Mountain Rose Herbs video on how to make a tincture:



More web pages to assist you in your research on how to make a dandelion root tincture and its benefits:

https://deeprootsathome.com/homemade-dandelion-tincture/
https://musingsofamountainmama.wordpress.com/2012/10/27/fresh-dandelion-root-tincture/
https://www.rjwhelan.co.nz/herbs%20A-Z/dandelion.html

To show you've completed this BB you must post pictures of the following:

- picture of the dandelion roots, freshly harvested
- picture of the tincture being made
- picture of the finished tincture in its labeled jar.