Hi! I'm Linnea. Here we grow our food from the garden, take care of our chickens, collect syrup and honey, create farmhouse décor, and make great food and healthy snacks from scratch and garden food preserving.
In the SPRING: You'll find us planting seeds, tapping maple and walnut trees, capturing honey bee swarms and hatching chicks In the SUMMER: We're busy doing hive inspections and harvesting flowers and honey In the FALL: We are canning, preserving, gathering nuts, putting our garden to bed & grape stomping for wine WINTER will be a time for rest & making lovely loaves of sourdough as well as cooking & baking, plus planning for the next garden in the spring, where it will all start again, fresh :)
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Thanks so much! #backyardfarming #backyardchickens #preserving
Yes, you can drink the sap directly from the trees -- but it'd be like drinking maple water. The slightest whisper of maple flavour / sweetness, but almost entirely water. In case anyone's wondering, starting sap to final syrup is a 40 to 1 ratio (meaning, for simplicity's sake, let's say you want a gallon of syrup. You'll need 40 gallons of sap to boil down, as the water content is so high. Most healthy maples can give you around 10 gallons of sap -- so you don't need many maple trees, just a lot of their sap).
Helpful video, thank you. Quick question - why did it take you so long to publish this video from you made it? I've watched two of your videos, both involving the coop doors and found your channel enjoyable. Encourage you and your husband to come up with more content ideas and produce more frequent videos.
Thanks so much for the feedback! Yes, I should have published it earlier I agree! I have been thinking more and more about putting the time in and making more frequent content, so I really do appreciate your comment, it's encouraging! :)
Oh my gosh someone who has the same humour as me lol... All that work.. for a drop lol. I just did a full length version of this video a few weeks ago on my channel, and really showed that one drop in real time, full volume up lol.. You'd appreciate it :)
Lol!!! It is sooooo worth it! :D Anytime we make things from scratch around here it's like that haha. I'll tell you what though, it sure makes you appreciate every bite of whatever you make from scratch, knowing the work that goes into it, right??
Ahh! Amazing!! So excited for you, would love to hear how you like it - we found automating our coop door was the best thing we did for our chicken coop :)
True! It is mostly water. But there is sugar content in it. That is why why boil it- the water boils off and evaporates and leaves the sugar behind, in the form of syrup :)
Thanks for such a good quality video! I am just wondering how the batteries hold up in the winter? I live in Canada where the winters can get brutally cold. How has the door functioned in the winter? Thanks in advance and keep up the good work!
Hey Aaron, fellow Canadian here myself actually! Where abouts are you? So I found that the door did well until it would get past -20C, in which case I was checking in the morning and evenings to make sure it went down. There were a few times in this cold temp where I had to physically push the button. Other times were when we would get either freezing rain or a warm spell during the day with really low/freezing night temperatures where ice would form on the door and prevent it from opening/closing properly. All in all, I was quite happy with it.
A very pretty woman, which makes this an easy video to watch. I chose a slightly different one because I wanted a remote option and to not have to use a cell phone ap. But this was an excellent presentation.
Wow, that's amazing! I'm excited for you to try it! So there is a very specific time to start tapping trees. Have you read my article about how to tap your trees for maple syrup?? (www.thefarmerscupboard.com/blogs/grow-harvest/how-to-tap-maple-trees-for-syrup) Basically, you need to wait until your night temperatures are below freezing, but the day temperatures are warm. This causes the trees to start pumping spa that is stored in the roots up to the branches, but then draws them back down to the roots at night. This pumping of the sap from roots to branches is what gets the flow so you can collect it. There is usually a short time period where you can do this. I am not sure where you are located, but it is a good time to keep your eyes on the day to night temperature variations. Does that help?
There is such a short time frame where you can actually collect the sap- it typically last a few weeks at most when temperatures at night are below freezing and day temperatures are warm. During this time, you absolutely NEED to check (and likely empty) your buckets 1-2 times a day because they will overflow. This is why you need a bucket storage system to dump all of your collect sugar water into. Feel free to give my article a read, it has way more details to help you navigate: www.thefarmerscupboard.com/blogs/grow-harvest/how-to-tap-maple-trees-for-syrup
You think it would take that long, I hear you!! But depending on the size of the tree and its' health, we would change our buckets on these trees every day. Some days, also depending on if you tap was placed on the south side where the sun was shining the most, you might get a half bucket. But honestly, if we didn't check our buckets daily, they would mostly be spilling over!
What are the best trees to grow.to do this and can you tap them every year to have an endless supply? Obviously keep regrowing trees because eventually they'll die.
@@dustin802sugar maple is best for syrup. You can use a tap in a tree for many years without any problems. Just remove them after the trees stop producing for the season.
What an educational, fascinating, deliscious, healthy, dehydrator video review. There are too many videos with very brief and incomplete 5 to 10 dehydrators per video. Most of these other "review videos" are actually infomercials, which are designed to sell, not inform.
Yes that is true! You absolutely need temperatures to go below zero at night and have warm sunny days in the spring so the trees are literally pumping that sap up the tree when its warm and then have it go back to the roots in the cold nights. I am not sure if we are tapping this year due to the warm winter we are having. We don't even have snow here right now.. We will see!
Those are maple syrup spiles, here is a link: amzn.to/3RQ1v3G I wrote an article for this video with all of the tools needed to tap your tree if you are interested right here: www.thefarmerscupboard.com/blogs/grow-harvest/maple-syrup-supplies Hope that helps!
I'm looking for a new chicken coop automatic door and came across your video. For the benefit of your viewers, I thought I'd share that we've gone through two of these doors and the gear system is so poorly made that the door eventually fails. I think I will try the roll up doors next as those seem more sturdy.
Oh interesting! Are you sure you have that actual brand and not a knock off? I spoke to the brand directly a few years ago when doing research for purchasing and they told me they have knock offs selling on Amazon that are cheaply made... I have had mine for about a year and a half now. I might try some others just to try them out though, so if interested, stay tuned!
Not if you choose a tree that is mature and has a good size trunk. We also make sure not to tap near the previous year's tapped hole. I'll share this article I wrote detailing how to tap a tree and maintain its health: www.thefarmerscupboard.com/blogs/grow-harvest/how-to-tap-maple-trees-for-syrup
I purchased this one specifically because of the stainless steel trays. I would rather use these than plastic ones. But that is one of the reasons I went with this model. I wrote about that in an article for making beef jerky in this model, feel free to read more here if interested: www.thefarmerscupboard.com/blogs/prepare-preserve/best-dehydrator-for-jerky
@@unashamedly1776you damn well KNOW air has Prop 65 warning here with all the chem trails spraying THEY👇 🤡🐍🦉🌟🔼🔳XX/👁️\XX🔲🔽🐐🐉🪄🙀 DO over here. But they don't ok it warning signs up for that now so they? The "warning labels" shot that they "care". 😂😂🙄🙄😮💨😮💨
That's a mighty big wound for a tree! It can leave the tree susceptable to disease, kinda makes me guilty about eating maple syrup, is it common practice to care for the wounds after the maple is collected?
Yeah the wounds are cared for after. I remember once after drilling a hole, I came onto a piece of tissue, made sure the tissue was damp after, let it dry in the fridge for a while bc semen gets solid and crunchy when it's frozen, then I stuffed the tissue into the wound and then hammered in a small piece of wood with same diameter.
@@jordybeans2392he’s not wrong trees can get disease and die from drilling they’re alive just like you and me but most people heal the wounds afterwards and if they don’t and the tree does get sick im sure it would recover on its own and if it does die there’s billion of more trees around.
When you are tapping a tree, you need to make sure you tree is healthy to begin with and that the trunk is large enough. And you always make sure you don't tap near the previous year's tapped spot- go at least 4-6 inches away. Once you are done, you simply remove the maple syrup spile and the tree heals it. This doesn't harm the tree if you follow these steps.
The wire is part of our chicken run which is against the coop. We placed the wire right across the chicken coop wall and cut an area for the door to open directly into the chicken coop. Then with a pneumatic stapler we stapled the wire to the coop so the chickens wouldn't get scratched by any pieces left out.
Yes! The coop door did well last winter, it got to about -15- -20C here and on some days it didn't open, which it says that right on the guide. So basically when it got cold, I would make sure we were checking on the chickens more frequently, but then again on those days I also left the chickens in the coop because it was too cold out. I am still quite happy with it, this winter it is quite warm and is not going below zero yet (what a strange year!) and it has still been working well. I am going to try another popular model of an auto coop door soon though just for comparison, so stay tuned if you are interested!
@@thefarmerscupboard aku wong jawa timur. jawa timur ora hujan. tapi. ndok jawa timur iku ono musim angin ambek musim panas loh. melok ta nang indonesia
The door opens and closes on its own who a photosensor. So when it senses that it is daylight, it opens, and when it senses that the sun has set, it closes 20 minutes after that. You can also program it to open and close at a certain time though and not opt to use the light sensor, or, you can program it with the app :)
What's hard to find is reviews of the door that's been in use for a while. Did manage to find a few and they seemed to be holding up pretty well. Most major faults related to poor installation and or the lack of protection for the door in harsh conditions. I've got one of them on the way now after finding enough positive information to give one a shot. Not being one to put much faith in photo cells, I noticed in the phone app an option to use GPS location to determine sunrise and setting. Seems like a good option over the sensor or having a hard set time. Have you explored that option with your door?
You know, I haven't. I had planned on using it, but found I liked it best with the photo sensor after installation, used with the daily sunlight and lack of for night time. And yes, I agree it is hard to find a review with longevity. I'll have to put it into my notes to come back and do a review after a year and so on. Curious to know how your experience is with your door though! Hope it works out great for you :)
Haven't had it long enough to review it but so good so far. I did set it up to run on the gps location and it works great. I'll be watching as the days get longer but don't imagine it falling off unless the clock goes wonky, wouldn't expect it but you never know till you know. I suppose it could lose it's mind if the batteries die? Probably a good idea to download the configuration again if that happens to re-sync the clock and clear up any other craziness. Niffy little gadget. Hope I can refrain from cracking it open to find out what makes it tick. lol I like the thrifty engineers idea for the data link. Wouldn't be surprised to find a Raspberry Pi hiding in there. :)
I've had my Run Chicken door installed for about a month. Two settings I like are the GPS mode and the door closing safety delay. It has been following the sunset times (GPS mode in action). The chickens also have a sense of sunset as well since all of them start up the ramp to the coop and within 5 minutes of each other are safe inside the coop part. A minute or two later each day until the daylight time starts to grow shorter. But that's more the chickens than the door. I have it open 5 minutes after sunrise and the chickens are out in no time. There was really no learning curve (well, except for mine) to get used to this. Still, like watching a sunset, I like going outside and sitting by the coop and watching them retire for the evening. Very therapeutic!
Why is it the top choice? I didn't see anything on any other choices. Seems more like an unboxing paid advertisement to me with obvious click bait title.
Hey there! It is my personal top choice for the reasons mentioned in the video :) But I am going to be trying out more on this channel. I named it like my article of the same name, linked in the description, feel free to have a read and see my other choices. Cheers!
You know, it did pretty well, I was happy with it this winter, I'm in Canada. There were definitely days where it didn't open, so I would suggest on those cold days checking on it. I am going to be trying out another one soon just for comparison. I know it isn't the cold season anymore but will be sure to post a review on it as well.
Nice presentation. I found you because I was doing research on chicken coop doors. I had pretty much settled on this one. I liked the fact that you actually used the guide as all of us should when doing an installation. I enjoyed this. I am now a bell-enhanced subscriber! Wish you great success with your new channel.
Thank you so much! Glad you found the info helpful :) And I appreciate the subscribe! Looking forward to getting some good content on here. Would love to hear your thoughts on the door once you get in in and installed. Cheers!
@@thefarmerscupboard I got the door and have used it for about two months. First off, let me say that this made a BIG impact on my morning and evening. Not having to get up at daybreak is a game-changer! It works flawlessly and has never failed. Installation was done in less than thirty minutes, most of that just reading the instructions, and easy. There is one thing I believe they could improve on it. It would be great if the delay times for opening and closing could be set to 30 minutes, as 20 minutes sometimes locks one of the "radical" chickens out. (She is a loner most of the day), and 40 minutes is too long. I set it for 40 minutes so no one gets left outside and it works fine. This is not a limitation at all; I'm just being picky. It would also be great if I could remotely close and open the door with my phone. This doesn't have anything to do with this product, but it is something I thought I would use on a door. I have cameras and can see when all are inside. As I mentioned, this thing is absolutely great and I have found the quality and cost to be well worth it.
Sorry guys this door is junk when the freezing rain or wet freezing snow start. The slots freeze shut rendering this door usless.also water gets in the rails and freezes. It will work better in the summer months but don't waste your money. They have really good ones out there but they also have a really high price tag.
Thanks, I appreciate your honest comment. I had some days where it had trouble opening this winter, but they all have their temperature ratings where they will work to, so on those cold days I just went out and made sure it opened. I will say though on the days it didn't open, it wasn't due to it freezing because I physically pushed the button and it opened. I'm pretty happy with this model but am thinking of trying some other models as well for comparison. Anyways though, thanks, cheers :)
Hi again...I'm gonna go with one of these two.the jvr automatic chicken coop door or the Jim Smith automatic chicken coop door. Most likely the jvr because of it's worm drive actuator and safety stop. The Jim Smith door doesn't have a safety stop but it is very well built. Both are worth the investment. I want a door that operates successfully every time that way we're not worried if we're out late for dinner and cocktails. Have a great day.
I have to agree with bronco on this. I ordered this door @ $170 and what I got was a used door. The bag holding the mounting screws was opened and one of the screws was missing....not a big deal. The batteries that came with the door were dead....again not a big deal. I mounted it on my coop a few days before we were to leave on a 6 day trip to Europe. The day of our departure I found that the door was stuck in the "closing mode" and was jamming against a small item that was lodged in the door track. I had no choice but to dismantle the the assembly and nail the door in the open position and hope that my coop and run were critter proof. The track or door guides where the door slides up and down is very narrow whereby a small piece of dirt etc. could easily be kicked into the slide as the chickens entered and exited the coop. Buyer beware!
@@lesheinen6116 That does not sound good... There is also a big buyer beware of knock offs of these auto coop doors, especially the brand I have in this video. I talked to the maker of this door and he said it's a big problem. Amazon has a lot of knock offs. The door I got in the mail came really well packaged with a beautiful instruction booklet, and it was sturdy and high quality, with good batteries. I agree, buyer beware though! Make sure whichever door you go for, that it is legit from the company if it is through Amazon. The one I linked to is the legit listing. Thanks for the input :)