Author: Karen GoatKeeper

Karen GoatKeeper loves to write. Her books include picture books, novels and nonfiction for science activity books and nature books. A recent inclusion are science teaching units.
The coming year has goals for two new novels, a picture book and some books of personal essays. This is ambitious and ignores time constraints.
She lives in the Missouri Ozarks with her small herd of Nubian dairy goats. The Ozarks provides the inspiration and setting for most of her books.

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Latest From High Reaches

My Pullet Group

Not so long ago my little chick house had lots of room for the 35 chicks living there. Now my pullet group fills the roost plus window sill plus feeder bucket plus waterer.

Why 35 Chicks?

I really plan on adding about 10 new pullets to the hen house every year. However, it makes no sense to order fewer than 20 chicks due to an extra handling fee. So I ordered 10 Dominique and 10 Easter Egger pullets. An extra Easter Egger was with the order.

Then a friend set some eggs for me. I wanted roosters called dinner. That added 9, but only 5 roosters. She gave me another pullet.

Another friend gave me 4 more chicks. Three of them are roosters.

my pullet group
Although I grew up with single breed flocks, I found there are so many lovely chickens breeds, my flock is now mixed. Easter Eggers have those cute cheek puffs and lots of color combinations. Dominiques are a great coloring. The white with black tail is a Light Brahman with leg feathers. My pullet group is interesting to look at and to watch.

My Pullet Group

In the morning I toss out some scratch grains and open the door. A flood of color pours out the door and scatters into half grown chickens starting to cluck instead of cheep. They stretch their wings, race across the little yard and peck madly.

When the yard gate opens, the flood spreads out across the compound grass. Some fly up on the bench under a tree. Others explore the pile of top soil still waiting to move into the garden. Half end up by the big chicken yard eating the special grain tossed out there for those hens who insist on flying out over the fence.

In the evening my pullet group greets me at the barn. They swirl around my feet as I walk to their yard trying to not step on any toes to toss more scratch grain out. Their feeder needs refilling.

I take a scoop of chick feed and sit down in the house doorway. My pullet group gathers around to eat out of the scoop, sit on my knees, slip by to eat in their house or pick at my shoes as those laces just must be big worms.

Dilemma

Even though the roosters will become dinner, there are still 25 pullets. My big chicken house isn’t big enough for the old flock and my pullet group to fit in.

My neighbor needs some pullets. My dilemma is: which ones do I part with? This is about the friendliest group I’ve had. My knee sitters will definitely stay.

Chickens figure largely in “Mistaken Promises – Hazel Whitmore #3.

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Honeybee Swarm Capture

“I heard this loud buzzing when I came out of the house. When I went to look, there were thousands of bees coming into the yard.” It was a honeybee swarm.

My companion was watching a special sight, one the local beekeeper who put up the bee trap has never seen. The mass of bees landed on the box and gradually disappeared into it.

Persimmon Trees

The bee trap was strapped onto a native female persimmon tree. We enjoy her fruit every fall. The goats go crazy for them.

Insects like honeybees go crazy for the flowers and this tree was in full bloom. This was probably why the swarm’s scouts knew about the tree and came to check for a good place to live around it.

honeybee swarm capture bee trap
A bee trap isn’t very large, only a couple of feet long, a foot high and half a foot wide. The bees must be very crowded inside, but they don’t seem to mind.

Bee Traps

The local beekeeper told us this is more of a bee lure than a trap. The scouts a honeybee swarm sends out are looking for a place with room inside and a roof to keep the rain out. A bee trap provides this plus foundation for a honeycomb.

These scouts found the bee trap, went back to the swarm and it came our way. In a couple of days the swarm has settled into their new home.

Bee Trap Door
A bee trap is a temporary home for a swarm. When the beekeeper moves the trap, the door is changed from the open to the small holes. The bees still get ventilation, but can’t get out until they get to their new hive home.

What Is a Honeybee Swarm?

When a hive gets too crowded, the bees raise a new queen. The new queen takes over. The old queen leaves with a crowd of bees to find a new place to live.

Bees can swarm for other reasons. When we first moved here, two hives were in the backyard. After the old beekeeper died, the hives were abandoned.

Parasites moved in. The bees moved out. We knew honeybees still lived out in the woods as they were regular visitors to the white clover in the lawn and the flowering vegetables in my garden.

The local beekeeper will move this honeybee swarm into a regular bee hive. The descendants of the old hives will again live as domestic bees.

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Mushroom Weather

Fungi like it damp and this spring has really delivered on that. They also like it warm and now temperatures are rising. It is mushroom weather.

Although many mushrooms are edible, collecting them to eat isn’t a good idea unless you know what you are doing. I know a few and enjoy these. Others I just look at as they come in so many shapes and colors.

Lawn Ornaments

Little cap mushrooms are sticking up in the overly long grass. Mowing keeps getting delayed by frequent showers. This may be good mushroom weather, but it’s not mowing weather.

Some of these are white and classic mushroom shape. Others look like transparent umbrellas with only their ribs showing.

mushroom weather brought up this stinkhorn in my garden
Stinkhorns are not typical mushrooms. The top never opens into a cap. Their odor attracts flies. Bright orange coloring is definitely hard to miss. They last only a single morning.

Garden Ornaments

I put a lot of compost and hay mulch out in my garden. This year there are mushrooms coming up in many places. Some are like those in the lawn.

Tall clubs are coming up along the wood borders of the beds. These are mostly black. Because these indicate the wood is fast becoming mulch for the beds, I’m starting to replace the wood with bricks.

When the bamboo patch was in the garden, another interesting mushroom made an appearance. The stinkhorns are still surviving as a big one came up near one of the containers.

Dinner Foraging

The lawn and garden ornaments are just that. I think some of them are edible, but I’m not sure enough to risk it. However, I am longing to have some wild mushrooms for dinner.

Are the chanterelles up yet? This mushroom weather is surely to their liking. I know some good places to look.

Unfortunately, one of those places got burned over. Are the chantarelles still there? I don’t know – yet. I will have to go out and look. They would be a really good addition to dinner.

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GKP Writing News

Why My Books Are In the Library

Writing a book is hard work and takes lots of time. Publishing and advertising can cost a lot. Won’t putting a book in the library ruin sales?

“Missouri Biosphere” by Roy Shaw and Louise Harding

Although I rarely read dystopian novels, I would read this one. I know the authors. This is their first book. I read a book and post a review on Goodreads, something they want to happen.

But it won’t happen. I don’t purchase books now except rarely for research as I have too many books on my shelves and too little time to get them read and given away. My income is too limited to purchase a book solely to read it and give it away.

cover for "Edwina" by Karen GoatKeeper
This is one of the upper middle grade novels readers can find in my local library.

Other Readers

Lots of people don’t normally buy books, but love to read them. I see them checking out piles of books. They join groups and tell others about the books they like. This is free advertising.

Some of these people check out and read a book, then buy a copy. Often these are ones they will send off as gifts. More free advertising.

cover of "For Love of Goats" by Karen GoatKeeper
Several people have read this book in my library, then purchased copies.

My Books

I depend on my library. Although I live out of town and must pay for my library card, I value it highly. It lets me use much better internet than is available at my house, read magazines without subscribing and wondering what to do about the pile of old ones, read books from over 50 libraries through a special consortium and write reviews for the newsletter and Goodreads.

My library gives so much to me, I want to give something back. When I publish a book, I make sure a copy goes in the library.

People check out and read my books. They buy copies to send to family and friends. Putting my books in the library is good for everyone.

When “Missouri Biosphere” appears in my library, I will be among the first to check it out.

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Latest From High Reaches

Intertwined Projects

Haven’t all of us done this? There is something needing to be done. However, before it can get done, something else must be done first. Intertwined projects surround me right now.

First Came the Lights

My barn lights are run from a line to the workshop. The lights started flickering. This extension cord line is buried in the ground and is ten plus years old.

Well, it wasn’t the extension cord. It wasn’t the outlet. The cause is still elusive. A friend will redo the entire line.

Garden containers are part on intertwined projects
Old cattle lick tubs make great garden containers. I now put four half inch holes about two inches up on the sides for drainage. Large gravel is put in to cover the holes. Then dirt and compost are layered in until the tub is full. This one has red mizuna in it. Other crops are napa cabbage, beets, green onions, lettuce, carrots, tomatoes, peppers and herbs.

Problems

I needed some topsoil to fill some garden containers. This same friend brought some dumping half a dump truck load in front of my garden. It’s moving away very slowly.

The new electric line for the barn will run under part of this pile of dirt. Intertwined projects begin. The electric line won’t happen until the two foot high pile of dirt moves.

One raised bed got rebuilt and part of the dirt moved. Some half barrels swallowed more of the dirt and now have bush Porto Rico sweet potatoes growing in them. Another flower garden went into the garden requiring more dirt.

Half the dirt needing to be moved is gone. The other half is providing the chicks with a new playground while I get ready to move more of it.

Another Layer of Intertwined Projects

There are three new containers for in the garden. However, one has compost in it which must be moved out before the tub can be used.

Before any dirt goes into the containers, the half inch holes are drilled into the sides. They are put into place. Two inches or so of large gravel (small rocks) is put in. Then the layers of dirt and compost are put in.

The final question is whether or not the containers will hold enough dirt to free up the electric line route. I do want my barn lights to start working properly again.

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Really Big Garden Weeds

I’ve mentioned my weedy garden a few times lately. Perhaps you are picturing those pesky little seedling weeds needing only a bit of cultivating to end their careers. Picture instead some really big garden weeds.

Ozark Spring Plant Paradise

Usually the Ozarks enjoys spring for, at most, a week. Then temperatures and humidity soar into summer. That didn’t happen this spring.

Cool weather now in the seventies with frequent quarter to half inch rains are only now edging toward those summer temperatures. In the meantime the cool crops like turnips, cabbage and snow peas are looking luxuriant. Weeds love this too.

meet some really big weeds
Although lambs quarters and evening primrose are allowed to grow in my garden, they do tend to become a nuisance. These have invaded my asparagus patch and will end up as goat treats or compost. They did get really out of control this year.

Classes of Weeds

There are those pesky little seedling weeds. Then there is the chickweed beloved by baby chicks and others about ankle tall. Lambs quarters, daisy fleabane and oats are some of the really big garden weeds.

Another way of dividing weeds is into those that stay and those that definitely go. Many weeds have lovely flowers. I leave a few – note the word few – of these to bloom. All others leave as soon as I can get to them.

Weather Considerations

I will work out in the garden in a misty rain. It is annoying, but not enough of one to make me quit and head for cover

Serious sprinkles and downpours mean garden time is over. Lately I’ve taken several showers as I head for the house.

Moth Mullein is not one of the really big weeds
Moth mullein is one of the wildflowers I let grow in my garden. Others are: chicory, evening primrose, yellow wood sorrel, lambs quarters, blue and purple morning glories and chickweed. Although I enjoy having them there, they do tend to become a problem as they produce lots of seeds. That means many of the plants are pulled out as weeds with only selected plants allowed to grow and bloom.

Where Do Really Big Garden Weeds Go?

Since the grasses are busy making seeds, the compost pile is not a good option. Grasses and small weeds end up on a brush pile.

The really big garden weeds get pulled, trimmed, piled and carted off each afternoon. I pile them up in the goat hay trough shortly before letting the herd in for the night.

Goats are sloppy eaters so many stems end up on the floor. These will end up in the compost pile. The rest is savored by the herd.

There will be a lot of unhappy goats when the really big garden weeds are all pulled.

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GKP Writing News

Preparing for Class

My Creating Picture Books class is now being advertised. I have flyers up. I left some at the local schools. The local paper carried a press release. The local radio station announced it. That leaves me preparing for class.

I procrastinated. There were no names on the sign up sheet. A feeling of relief vied with disappointment.

cover for "Waiting For Fairies" by Karen GoatKeeper
This was the first picture book I finished. The text was written years before I found the courage to do the illustrations.

Someone Signed Up

The first person is signed up. That leaves the class has an event. I am now preparing for class for real.

Anticipation is now vying with an intense desire to cancel the class. Yes, I have completed three picture books, three illustrated books and illustrated activity books. Does this make me good enough to teach this class?

Changes in the Course

The original course has worksheets to hand out. I was going to charge for the course which would pay for running off these worksheets. That turned into too big a hassle so the course is free. The worksheets may have to be cancelled.

Perhaps the library meeting room is set up for a powerpoint presentation. I haven’t done one in twenty years, but can probably manage one? Hum. Are my nerves and insecurities moving in?

Once I finished the first picture book, I dared to do the illustrations for the other text sitting on my computer for years.

Tackling the Fears

Such fears seem to plague many writers. Books never get finished or languish unpublished because of them.

Teachers can get these fears too. I always dreaded the first day of school. All those new faces, names to learn, new lesson plans were so terrifying.

My Creating Picture Book course will happen. There will be people taking it. The fears may be there, but they need to be squelched.

Preparing for class will help. Either a powerpoint presentation or poster board presentation is needed. A list of picture books to look through on the first day needs assembling.

The course is ready. I have edited and rewritten it more than once. All I have to do is hold on and walk into the room on that first day.

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Watching Wildlife

We own no dogs. This isn’t because we don’t like dogs, as long as they belong to someone else. It’s because we enjoy watching wildlife.

The other morning, I needed to fill the water fount for my baby chicks. There is a hand pump on a cement pad over an old dug well. Something was curled up on the pad. What?

I cautiously approached to find a young fawn curled up on the platform. We often have fawns in the small pasture, but not in the barn compound. Does like leaving them near us for safety.

baby fawn makes watching wildlife special
A young fawn has few protections from predators. They have no scent. Lying still is another. If disturbed, a fawn is a fast runner. Finding one like this is a real treat.

Watching Wildlife at the Bird Feeder

Lots of things happen around and on the bird feeder. Usually, it’s the various kinds of birds. Lately other visitors are showing up.

Gray squirrels move in and sit at one end of the sunflower tray eating. The birds come and go from the other end of the tray. When the red squirrel shows up, the birds and gray squirrels flee.

Now the chipmunks are back. They bound through the grass with their tails held high. The posts are no problem. Even the lip around the edge of the feeder is not a deterrent. Each chipmunk moves in, stuffs its cheek pouches and leaves.

At the Hummingbird Feeders

Four quart feeders hang from the eaves of a shed. They are busy with hummingbirds. These swoop in, chase each other, sit and drink and whirr off.

Earlier orchard orioles visited the feeders. One year a pair stayed to nest. Usually they visit for a few days and move on.

A new visitor is a downy woodpecker. Evidently this one has a taste for sweets. It scoots up the corner of the shed, flits over to the end feeder and drinks from several holes before flying over to the suet cake.

nuthatch and downy woodpecker on bird feeder
The downy woodpecker is on the right. They are a small bird with a long tongue making using the hummingbird feeder possible. A nuthatch is on the left.

Dogs and Watching Wildlife

Dogs bark, chase and need attention. I might appreciate having the backyard groundhogs chased off to the hills, but I would also miss the squirrels, chipmunks and deer. Opossums can be a nuisance as can raccoons.

Several years we had gray foxes raise their young around the house. Having a dog would rob me of these opportunities. I prefer watching wildlife.

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Good Goat Vets

Next month will be my 51st anniversary of having Nubian dairy goats. When Jennifer was born, in 1974, good goat vets were unknown in my area. Veterinary schools barely mentioned goats.

If something went wrong, the goat owner had to deal with it. So, I bought a good veterinary book for small livestock. I still have it, old as it is, and still look things up in it. It was written by a practicing vet and is a fairly reliable source of information.

I also have a clinical goat veterinary book. It’s rather technical, more a textbook than a reference book. A good dictionary is helpful with it.

goats need good goat vets
When Nubian doe kid La Nina was born, her front legs would not uncurl. She was walking on the front of her front hooves. That made walking slow and difficult.

Just Google It

What I find out now, is that most people just go online for information. When La Nina was born, my vet books weren’t much help, so I tried online. I am so glad I read up about the problem in my clinical book first.

La Nina was born with her front legs drawn back. They would not straighten. Online advice was to give a BoSe or selenium shot and brace them.

That shot is for Johanne’s disease. La Nina does not have this disease and did not need such a shot. There can be side effects from this shot, if it is not needed.

Nina’s problem was either from inbreeding or being curled up wrongly before being born. The latter usually affects the rear legs which tend to a stretched tendon the kid grows into in a few days.

Because her tendons were so tight, it did take a month of braces before the front legs straightened out. She is quite normal now – spoiled rotten and into everything.

Nubian doe La Nina
Those front legs are now straight. La Nina walks, jumps and plays like any normal kid her age.

Good Goat Vets Now

Over the past years I have had some really good goat vets. I learned a lot from them. They are sorely missed now.

Large animal vets are getting rare. Large animals like cows and horses can hurt you. Even sheep and goats can do a lot of damage. Treating them often means a farm call requiring an expensive truck set up to carry medicines and equipment.

Cats and dogs come to the clinic. They bring in a lot of money. The hours are regular. Both vet clinics in my town treat only cats and dogs.

My nearest goat vet is about a hundred miles away. I am again left consulting my vet books and doing my own work. The books are my first reference, then I go online with enough knowledge to know whether or not what I’m seeing is reliable.

New problems come up regularly with any livestock. Good vet books by practicing veterinarians should be on any goat owner’s shelf.

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Why Garden?

Why garden? I don’t know why other people garden. Sometimes I’m not sure why I garden. It’s a lot or work for produce cheaply available in the market.

Then again, much of what I grow is not in the market, cheap or expensive. Perhaps that is an answer to Why garden? There are so many available varieties.

Exercise?

Tillers, hoeing, weeding, planting, picking all provide exercise. These can strin the back, ruin the fingernails, wear out jean knees and more. They do burn off a lot of calories.

Some of these methods are long since discarded in my garden. Tillers are verboten. Hoes are used sparingly. I prefer potato forks, weeders and mulch.

More to the point, gardening gives a way to destress. Mad at someone? Pull some weeds and pound them to loosen the dirt in their roots. Feeling blue? Enjoy creating color and food.

Prize Peppers an answer to why garden?
Growing your own vegetable varieties lets you grow heirlooms like my Prize Peppers. This is one you will not find in any catalogue. It’s a Macedonian sweet pepper that won blue ribbons at the Indiana State Fair. The seeds were a gift from a friend. As all such heirlooms, it’s continuation depends on those seeds being shared with other gardeners unless some seed company like Bakers Creek wants to add it to their collection. This is one of two Macedonian sweet peppers I grow every year as they are the best peppers I’ve found.

Health?

More and more I hear this answer to Why garden. Market produce is sprayed with pesticides and herbicides. Seeds can be treated as well.

All these chemicals do provide those perfect, or close to perfect vegetables we get in the market. They cut down on any actual work such as weeding, cultivating and mulching not really feasible on huge scales.

So, is home grown produce really better? It can have fewer chemicals dumped on it. But, is any place really chemical free?

Probably not. Manmade chemicals are in the rain, the air. Watering hoses shed them. They are found in the remotest places on Earth.

The only advantage is having fewer chemicals in my organic garden. Since the insets take their toll on my produce, the chemical load must be less.

Why Garden?

Thinking about it, I garden for many reasons. One is having many different tastes and vegetables. Another is the exercise and mental reflection time. It’s nice to have fewer chemicals on my food.

Most of all, I garden because I love cooking up a dinner of produce I just picked out in my garden.