American Livestock Breeds Conservancy: Dexter Cattle Dexter cattle are among the smallest of cattle breeds in the world, standing 40" tall and weighing 700–900 pounds. Though size is the breed’s most distinguishing characteristic, the Dexter is a useful and producti ve multi‑purpose animal. The Dexter originated in southern Ireland during the early 1800s. It was developed from the Kerry, an Irish dairy breed, through selection for smaller size and improved beef qualities. Even after the Dexter gained an identity as a breed, its history remained intertwined with that of the Kerry. Dexter cattle are solid and compact in appearance. The Dexter has always attracted attention because of its size, and it has sometimes been marketed as a novelty or ornamental breed. Dexter cattle are increasing in numbers in North America and globally, and the breed seems destined to succeed. Status: See CPL Click Here for Breed Clubs and Association Contacts
Fairy garden Spark: Upgrade your lights with Wi-Fi and apps by Spark Devices TechCrunch: "The project aims to turn every lamp in your home into a web-based juggernaut." WIRED Gadget Lab: "It's not hard to imagine using lights to display other types of data..." Fast Co Design: "It’s all pretty neat for everyday consumers, but it could be revolutionary for the deaf or hard of hearing." Forbes: "A light bulb socket that lets you manage one light bulb (or more) from the internet is groundbreaking." Apartment Therapy: "Perfect for renters and upgrading over time, you can start with one sconce or one room and add Sparks as you go." Silicon Republic: "Turn on and off the lights and potentially other devices in your home with the power of a tweet..." The Spark Socket screws into any standard lightbulb socket, and connects to the internet over the Wi-Fi connection in your home, so that you can control your lights from a smartphone, tablet, or computer. Here are some of the great things that Spark can do: Using Spark is just as easy as installing it. Back our campaign!
free pvc greenhouse plans Greenhouse Assembly: This 6x9 ft, pitched-roof kit greenhouse can extend the growing season on your farm or in your garden. You may also want to check out www.pvcplans.com for free arched greenhouse plans and free PVC coldframe plans. Planter DIY Water Reservoir (Dabbletree) Keep your container garden happy and thriving on long hot days by installing a hidden water reservoir. All you need is an empty plastic bottle around the same height as your planter. It will be easier to start with a new planting than an established container. Cut. Using a craft knife, cut the bottom off a plastic bottle. The cut bottle should be no taller than the distance from the bottom of the pot to the top of the soil line. Place. Plant. Water. As the plants grow, the bottle will become harder and harder to see, but you should still be able to easily fill it up as needed. If you're worried about mosquitos, just be careful not to over-water and you shouldn't have any problems. dwarf morning glories, crystal palace lobelias and yellow marigolds put on a spectacular show in mid summer DIY seed propagation heating mat A simple way to create a warm environment for seeds to sprout. Drying Herbs Turns out "making our own spices!"
Top 10 Things You Can Upgrade with a Little Electronics Hacking it is a skill to do a good solder joint, it comes with LOTS of practice. so most people who rarely do it will ever get good at it. Bingo. Of course, part of the issue is having a soldering iron at the right temp with a properly tinned tip. I don't expect to ever master tricky stuff like smts or even multilayer pcbs so I'm not much better then a newbie, anyway - and I totally suck at sweating pipe joints. Ah, well... SMT is actually a bit better than through-hole once you get the hang of it.
The pastured poultry scam Late in my second season of raising pastured poultry on a small scale, I have become aware of some fundamental, fatal conceptual flaws in the operation. The implication of these is that, unintentionally and without malice, pastured poultry producers are foisting a scam on their market. The problems stem from basic lack of understanding about what words like "sustainable" mean and to some extent from denial about the realities of chicken production, both industrial and on the small farm. The two biggest unintentional lies are about pastured poultry's being environmentally friendly and its being humane. Environmentally friendly, sustainable production of livestock is first and foremost a function of what and how the animals are fed. Pastured poultry fails on both of these. As for impact on the environment, pastured poultry are overstocked. Another impression that pastured poultry producers like to give is that our birds are happy birds, treated humanely. Sigh... back to the drawing board.
Build Your Own $20 Outdoor Cob Oven | Outdoor Pizza Oven | Cob Ovens (The following entry is all about making a cob oven, a lovely and inexpensive outdoor pizza oven. The construction details have been trimmed back a bit, but this article should still give you a full idea of necessary materials and the building process for making your own oven!) I must admit, I’m a bit of a breadhead. Few things are as exciting to me as freshly baked bread with a dab of butter, or hot and greasy scallion pancakes, or fluffy and airy naan, or a pizza fresh from the hearth of a wood-fired oven. (That last one trumps all the others.) Earlier in the year, the idea of baking in the outdoors in a wood fired oven became something of a romanticized (in every positive sense of the word) notion to me. So I picked up a copy of Kiko Denzer’s Build Your Own Earth Oven, a little gem of a book covering the construction of cob ovens from the ground up. The Foundation The Fire Brick Oven Hearth (Laying out the beer bottles, and later, filling in with sawdust/clay mortar) Sizing the Cob Oven
Another great invention, the Exhaust Air Jack at One More Gadget This invention is pretty sweet. It basically uses the air from your exhaust to inflate a big bubble that is strong enough to hold up your car. Once it’s to the right height, just turn off your engine and change your tire. The bubble will stay inflated for hours (if you are really bad at changing a tire). And did I mention it comes in orange? Get your Exhaust Air Car Jack here Misty Meadow Farm, Virginia - All-natural Katahdin Lamb and Galloway Beef Jonny Anvil's Chicken Coop ~Jonny Anvil~ Well it's done, and I managed to get the tenants moved in and they are happy! With my latest additions of a quad of Black Orpingtons and my New Silver Laced Wyandottes I had decided to make them a brand new Coop all their own. Working with a very small budget but going new on all materials I decided to make a 4x8 coop tall enough that I can stand up in it if need be allowing more than enough room for the 6 new occupants, and a possible two more down the road. Total Cost of materials $320.00 (Can) Now I guess I should mention that I live in the cold northern climate of Canada in the wonderful province of Alberta. Google Sketchup makes things easier when it comes to putting everything into perspective and trying to get an idea on materials needed. Click on this Link to Get the 3D Download with all the Specifications Materials List : 30 2x4's @8ft 7 sheets of 3/8 OSB 5 1x3's for corner trim and pop door 2 1x6 @ 10ft 4 1x6 @ 8ft (facia)
How to clean and secure your browser like a pro The Internet runs on ads, but when you see them in your browser, your first instinct should be to run the other way—fast. The lion’s share of the Internet is wallpapered with tacky ads that invite you to “Lose 15 lbs. with this 1 weird tip” and load your browser with spyware in the process. In other corners of the Web, you might download a free game or a piece of music from an untrustworthy site, ending up with malicious adware that hitched a ride along with it. Legitimate sites do a decent job of screening their advertisers, weeding out those that spread viruses, malware, or scams. Wikipedia That’s how an adware infection starts. Run virus and malware scans Obviously, the very first thing you should do when you think your PC has a malware infection is to run a complete scan with an updated antimalware utlity. Disable browser toolbars If your browser is still acting up, you need to remove every toolbar you don’t use. Double-check every extension and add-on Hit the Reset button
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