Thursday, April 30, 2009

Or Are Chickens Not Welcome... In Your Backyard

Someone mentioned to me last week that one benefit of all of these chickens in your backyard classes is to create a voice for having appropriate laws regarding fowl in your backyard.

It looks like that may become more of necessity more quickly than I thought.

Val has a great post on chickens on the Cincinnati Locavore site about what is happening in Montgomery. She makes some great points about what should be regulated, but that outlawing chickens is a complete misuse of power and time.

I think that the sharing of information between chicken folk will become more important as we can speak to the actualities of raising chickens in your yard, and not let the voice of those not familiar with the subject be heard too loudly.

If you are interested in joining the "Cincinnati Chicken List", please contact me at michael (dot) e (dot) roman (at) gmail (dot) com.

Be a Happy Chicken Folk!

Update:
Another municipality taking away chickens: Sycamore Township
What is going on? Appropriate limits would seem the way to go. Say no more than six chickens in small lots, with the number increasing as your lot gets bigger. Sensible laws make sense for everyone, not just the people who complain.

Wednesday, April 29, 2009

If You Are Thinking of Raising Chickens...

If you are thinking of raising chickens you may want to read this article about rare breeds.

The article mentions the appeal of raising heirloom vegetables like Brandywine tomatoes.

You may find that a rare breed of chickens is what you need!

Tuesday, April 28, 2009

Chickens in Your Backyard- Cincinnati, OH

You can do it...learn the basic requirements for keeping chickens in the city, where to buy, what types of shelter can be used, how to endear your neighbors to the project, money saving tips, and more. Collect local eggs in your backyard!

Three upcoming classes at various Greater Cincinnati locations:

Location: Park + Vine (map)
Date: April 28th, 2009
Time:6pm-8pm
Cost:Free
Reserve a spot: RSVP info[at]parkandvine[dot]com or 513-721-7275 before
April 27.

Location: Granny's Garden School (map)
Date: May 2, 2009
Time: Morning Time (Part of the Granny's Spring Garden Party)
Cost:Free
Contact: Granny's Garden School

Location: Gorman Heritage Farm (map)
Date: May 16, 2009
Time: 10am-12pm
Cost: $10/members-$15/non-members (visit the farm after the class)
Contact: Gorman Heritage Farm


Available Materials:
Chicken Keeping Basics
Relevant Cincinnati Municipal Codes
Local Feed Sources
Suggested Reading (Available at Cincinnati Hamilton County Library)

Feel free to email me with any questions. You can send pictures if you have specific questions about space, coop design, etc.

You can do it!

My contact:
Mike Roman
(513) 685-0689
Email: michael (dot) e (dot) roman (at) gmail (dot) com

Wednesday, April 8, 2009

CHEF Project Begins


Check out what is going on at Findlay Market...

The CHEF Project 
Cultivating a Healthy Environment for Farmers

The Corporation for Findlay Market was awarded a grant from the U.S. Department of Agriculture to help develop urban farmers to produce food for sale at the market. We are pleased to announce our first class of urban growers. The participants are pictured at right. Back row left to right, Cynthia M. Brown project coordinator from the Corporation for Findlay Market, David McDonald, Cincinnati native and urban farmer, Sarah Saheb, project partner from the Service Employees International Union. Front row, Guinevereye Morales from Xela, Guatemala and Carlos Sanchez, also from Xela, Guatemala. Both Carlos and Guinevereye said they are proud to have been chosen for the project and can’t wait to begin farming. The fourth participant, Ahtni Hunter (not pictured) is a Mississippi native who has worked the land most of his life. All four participants are veteran farmers but the demands of small urban spaces provide unique challenges.The Corporation for Findlay Market will provide mentoring for the group though its partners, the Civic Garden Center, OSU Extension South Research Center, The Kenton County Extension Service, and The Greater Cincinnati Master Gardeners Association. All four farmers will grow food for their families and sell surplus at Findlay Market’s Tuesday and Sunday farmers markets. The farmers hope to begin selling at market by mid-June.