Aloha, A lot of the feathers can be dry plucked but that needs to be done immediately after killing them. I usually leave the bird hanging and start with the big wing and tail feathers and pull a few out each time with sort of a quick sharp pull. At this point getting the most feathers off is more important than getting them all. Then the body feathers can be pulled off in little snappy movements. If you grab too many feathers at once it is possible to tear the skin. If that happens just go to the different area and continue. Sometimes I can get all the feathers off before the carcass cools so much that the feathers don't pull off anymore otherwise a hot water dunk will finish the job. In my estimation, you get a better carcass from a dry plucked bird, but it takes a bit of practice to be able to get all the feathers off before it chills too much. Other than dry plucking for a better carcass, hot wet chickens are much smellier than dry chickens. Whether there are a lot of pinfeathers or not depends on the age of the bird and where it is in the feather/moult cycle. If there are loads of pin feathers, sometimes it is just easier to skin them and the skin can be salted on the back and pinned out to dry so you end up with "flat" chickens if you like. I do that with barred rock cockerels since their hackle feathers are nice for fishing lures. The meat does need to be chilled for a day or two to tenderize. My grannie used to put the whole cleaned carcass in salt water, but I usually put mine in a plastic bag. If the meat is a bit dry, perhaps the first several chickens could be soup? If it was dark discolorations, it could have been bruised in the slaughtering process, but I dunno about white discoloration unless it is freezer or refrigerator burn? It does get easier with practice. A hui hou, Cathy

I have to disagree with Randy, chickens are FAR from slow and stupid, as my flock proves every time the predator alarm is givin, either by the other chickens or the local wild birds. *L* They are also darned clever about hiding clutches of eggs! I'd say if you have dumb birds, try a different breed. :) I beleive the reason that Polish have gotten a bad rap for skittishness is because they just can't SEE something until it is right up on them--I'd jump out of my skin if something big and scary suddenly appeared right next to me, too! I trim my Polish and Silkie's feathers with rounded small scissors in an area right around their eyes when needed. It's a two person job and the birds need to be VERY comfortable, trusting and relaxed during the procedute to avoid injury--I make a point of picking my birds up routinely and handling their faces and heads by brushing them with my fingers, that way when trimming time comes it's not a big deal. There is a GREAT site on how to trim the feathers of crested breeds with illustrations here: http://browneggblueegg.com/Article.html In addition to the trim area he recommends, I also trim the area just under and above the eyes of my Polish since they are bearded and so darned fluffy. :) This entire site has GREAT articles on chicken health, behavior, etc. Velvet ~:>

plugs can be anywhere for one inch ...INCLUDING ROOTS .... to 4 to 46 inches PLUS roots ... the cost of those vary greatly .... sometimes a bargain is not a bargain.. depending on how many of the tiny babes you lose, since you have no experience with such tiny stock ... nor a greenhouse to grow the smallest of smalls ... as long as you understand the potential for loss ... and the length of time for success.. and are one who likes to fiddle around with such .. go for it ... if you are looking for some semblance of size .. in a shorter time frame.. then spend money to buy a well grown .. good sized specimen ... the hardest part of the small stuff.. will be the first winter ... and how you winter all those over ... you have the variables.. you have your budget.. and all that is left.. is to have fun ... good luck ken ps: white feather MIGHT be one of those incredibly hard to grow white plants... so success may be limited no matter what size you buy .. the link below take you to where it says: Difficult. Needs enough sun to survive. .. so that is another reason buying tiny ones might make it very hard to win the battle Here is a link that might be useful: link

Developed 'Red Jade' I have seen in person have also been broad and low. Surely the only visually significant thing being done to the MOBOT trees is snipping at the bottoms, to make their crowns float above the ground instead of cascading down to it. Thereby detracting from the weeping effect, of course. The MOBOT planting would be much more affecting if the trees had raised tops from which the branches could descend, as with the example first asked about here. This is the main reason to train up pendulous forms - so that the branches have somewhere to go. Otherwise these need to be planted next to water (such as a pool or pond) to create the visual impression of there being a space for the growth to tumble into. Or near an actual physical space for this, as in the open air next to a tall wall.