http://eastdallasblog.dallasnews.com/archives/2009/06/city-chickens-flap.html

Awesome. I love this coop...I call it my Frank Lloyd Wright coop! Still have to build the nesting boxes which will slip inside the coop adjacent to the egg door for easy access.

Made with rough cut cedar, my favorite. Not your cheapest game in town, but the only material you don't have to use a chemical sealant on..which can leach into the ground. No good for chickies...The hardware cloth (wire) is buried a foot underground to keep out predators. The ceiling of the box is also covered and sealed. The structure is bolted down to the foundation cinder blocks.

We used recycled windows from the addition remodel we recently worked on...nice shabby chic touch! All the doors are spring loaded, so you won't leave them hanging open...chicken escape!

In the winter, I'll line the upstairs with plastic insulation to keep everyone warm.

FABULOUS...

We got to work on the new chicken coop this morning. My trusty handyman extraordinaire, Mark, came to do the building. Sean did the digging and general assistance. I provided the plan, did the supervising and the lunch making. LOL. I have to say, as the one who does much of the outdoor labor, it is super nice to have someone else build this for me! It's being built of of rough cut cedar....should be finished tomorrow. I'll post more photos and full description of layout when it's finished...Don't kill me Julie...LOL. Just click on the photos to enlarge.

It's blazing hot here....not just blazing hot, but extremely humid. It's when this muggy heat hits that it becomes really easy to abandon the garden! Nevertheless, with proper planning, you can still have lovely blooms in the garden through the dog days of summer. Only the tough ones make it my summer garden because they are not going to get any pampering...

An almost white fragrant daylily...the variety name is escaping me. Thunbergia grandiflora (sky vine) blooming the earlier this year than I've ever seen it...

Huge blooms of bronze fennel...second flush of blooms from rose 'Perle d'Or'.

Well, a very sad thing happened this morning...all the girls were fine this morning after their feeding. I hung out with them as they drank at their waterer. I just went outside to check on them and roust them out of my hostas. Scooter wasn't with the rest of the gals, which was unusual. So I went looking for her. Found her lying dead by the door to the coop. I don't know what happened...she's always been the smallest of the group and always seemed to have trouble eating, so I babied her. Perhaps she had something wrong with her from the start and her poor little heart just couldn't take the heat. I'm so sad. She was my little sweetheart...

I don't have much to say about the abundance of strawberries we've had this year except YUMMMMMM!

Here are a few updated shots of the girls from this morning. They had another spaghetti eating frenzy so they're in a pretty good mood! No eggs yet, but surly Eunis should start laying any day now. With her nasty attitude she'd better start making herself useful quick! The big bully has started pecking all the other's tails to a nub. Not good. Also, I think I'll be building a bigger coop, possibly next weekend. I've decided I'd like a walk-in, which will also make daily care easier for those who have to babysit if we're away.

Einstein in all her crazy glory...she does like to pose for the camera. 

Mean, mean Eunis...she even looks mean in her pictures. And Phab Phyllis doin' her thang.

And my sweet little Scooter. This morning there were some drops of water on my arm from refilling their waterer...she actually drank them off my arm, all gentle like. It was adorable. Yeah, Sean doesn't get to eat her! Didn't manage to get a good shot of Pecker this morning..she's always freaked out.

After the insane storms we just had (W. side of street no electric, E. side all good -- we're east, WHEW!) I went out to make sure no real damage was done and lo and behold...tomatoes! It's like, not there one day, there the next. These are yellow something, brain mushy, can't remember name. I also planted 'Early Girl' and 'Striped German' (for the Dallas Mavs Dirk Nowitski...oh, yeah, I'm a MFFL!). Anywho, the daylily garden looks like it is about to burst, the eggplant 'Ichiban' is covered in blossoms, the tiny pickles are growing, basil is rockin', squash...eh...it's doing ok, and the lavender is blooming like a mad woman! Also, after the husband told me I couldn't put the fig tree where I wanted, he built me a new corner bed for my big agave and other succulents. He says "no blooms in this garden". I say, give it a year and it'll have something orange or purple in it.

Also...potatoes. I stuck Zac's hand in there so you could see the size comparison.

All in all, things are looking good. As soon as life starts balancing again, I WILL start the backyard. Got the budget together and ready. You will all get to see the crazy antics as Zac and I attempt to build large amounts of beds, lay out some hardscaping and try to agree on what plants to plant where. Stay tuned....