The moma's usually know how much pressure a chick can handle. My duck hens will get the baby right next to their skin, kinda engulfing the baby in feathers. It keeps them very warm and cozy. What's cute is when the babies climb onto momma's back to get a good look around.

I can sympathize - I have endless ant problems too. We get several types including fire ants. :( The things that have worked at least somewhat: - boric acid baits - Google making ant traps - the 20 mule team borax works fairly well for me. I have raised beds, so put the traps outside of the actual bed in case of spilling. My worry is birds finding the sugary water solution. I've cut holes in a platic cup that is set over the trap to keep birds out. - The little spike traps outside the garden - these are also baits and the ants gorge, take it back to the nest and eventually die. These are not healthy inside your garden. - Water can be partially successful - on okra, I spray off the aphids and it takes awhile for the aphids to get back up to the flower buds. If the nest is at a place that you can spray intensely - drowning the nest with a high pressure spray from the hose or if outside the garden, dumping a pot of boiling water into the nest works really well. - I had some limited success with dried molasses scattered into newly raked beds. That evicted some ants, but they will come back. - Diatomaceous earth spilled into a disturbed nest or on the base of the plant they are climbing to farm the aphids. - The weed flamer works well if you can dig up the nest and torch the ants in the nest - they will abandon it if you fry them enough. But it's not very economical and isn't good for your garden soil, but it's good for your mental health after weeks of battling ants... One of the most curious things - I've had the problem with bean aphids and ants for several years. This year I grew milkweed to feed and attract butterflies. The milkweed is loaded with the most amazing collection of colorful aphids I've ever seen - yellow and green and black. The ants don't care about these. Neither do the ladybugs either. And the aphids don't seem to slow down the plant much either. But it gives me the crawlies to look at them... Good luck! Cindy

Actually, Kips, my mum (who taught me) was born with one arm....so I can also knit in this manner, holding one needle between my knees and moving the yarn in a kind of european style round the other needle ....but I was also taught 'english' style at school. So, I often do 'continental' for knit rows or inh the round, but switch to 'english' style for purl rows. I never do lace patterns and I am not really keen on cables although I do a fair bit of textured and fair-isle colour work, often worked together but usually only having 2 or 3 colours in a row. I hate intarsia and I tend to not use patterns unless it is for something really specific.....or I will get the basics from a pattern then customise wildly. I can crochet....but don't tend to apart from edging. Kitty, I like baby alpaca too but am over cotton (although I still like milk cotton). Have used loads of baby cashmerino, a few Noro wools (although they can be hard on your hands). I really like auracania wools and Grace Harding silk blends.....and I like the Cascade colour ranges. Still fall back on Rowan wools more than anything though. Seil, true, youtube tutorials are pretty good - finally learned to cable using them (after 40 years of failure and disinterest). Knitting, no problem but I always feel so resentful about having to sew as well.....so I have been doing more and more engineered stuff (lots of short rows, circular needles, odd joining methods and as few seams as possible)

Ooooh, I hate dealing with the hose!!!! I bought a wind-up one something like 12 years ago that is a small self-contained unit that I can carry (not a big wheeled contraption). I love that thing because it's portable, but have had the leaking problems. DH patched it over the years and it has held up well outside of that. I have never seen another one like this, so I won't toss it. I've tried two different models of flat hoses - waste of money. The cloth models constantly spring leaks because the cloth is easily punctured (especially around thorny rosebushes!), they don't wind up as easily as the ads make you believe, and the plastic model I had had terrible water pressure. I had sprinklers installed at my other house, but when I moved here I didn't want to spend the money because I didn't plan on living here this long - what's that old quote - "If you want to make God laugh, tell him your plans". Yep.... So I'm still here, dragging the $#!@ hose, and swearing up and down that I am getting sprinklers at my next house if it's the last think I do! Bloody right!!!!