Raising Meat Rabbits

Rabbits.....Those cute, furry little bunnies make a great addition to the hobby farm or homestead by providing another source of food for the table as well as another source of income.

Albino Champagne De Argente

There are two types of rabbits I recommend raising.  These are New Zealand Whites and Champagne de Argente.  There are many other breeds out there, but these are the two I personally raise because they are easy to take care of and do very well when it comes to reproduction.  My rabbits have proven to be calm and gentle making it easy for our children to care for them.

New Zealand White Rabbit

The rabbit in the photo below is a cross between a New  Zealand White and a Champagne de Argente.

Dakota Holding One Of The Bunnies

In addition to selling their offspring, money can also be made by selling their manure.  Collect livestock feed bags as they are emptied and fill them with rabbit manure.  By using a screen to separate the manure from any grass, hay and other debris the end product will be rabbit pellets that can be loaded into the feed bags and sold for garden fertilizer (don't forget to keep enough for your own garden).  Rabbit manure is an excellent fertilizer that doesn't even need to be composted before adding it to the soil. 

Another Champagne/New Zealand Cross

Other Breeds to consider:

• Flemish Giant
• California Rabbit
• American Rabbit
• Blanc de Hotot
• Checkered Giant
• Florida White
• Beveren
• Florida White
• New Zealand Red
• Silver Marten
• Belgian Hare
• Continental Giant
• Cinnamon 
• Carmagnola Grey

The size of hutch that will be needed depends on the type of rabbit being raised.  The rabbit hutch I use provides separate pens for each rabbit and provides about fifteen square feet of space for each one.  Because rabbits tend to be territorial a hutch with separate pens is the best scenario.

Below is a picture of the rabbit hutch that we use while I was in the process of building it.

Rabbit Hutch Being Built

Other than feeding and watering your rabbits, there is very little to do as they are quite content being left alone.  

A Day On The Homestead

Two-thirty in the morning is an early start to the day, but it has to be done.  Because I do not make my living on the homestead a full-time job is a must.... I guess you have to pay for your passions one way or another.  After arriving at work my wife sent a text message informing me that our daughter is sick.  She seems to have caught the nasty bug that's going around.  One advantage to getting to work at 3:30 in the morning is that your work day is over around noon.  This allows for time to take care of the necessary chores when you get back home.  

Once I arrived back home I took the time to introduce our two female rabbits to the male.  With any luck we should have some little ones that will be ready to remove from their mamas just in time for Easter.  Job one done.  Now on to the next task.....Cutting logs to firewood size so they can be split.  

After cutting what has seemed to be an infinite number of logs down to size I now have a pile of logs that are ready for the log splitter.  That will be tomorrows project.  Winter hasn't been terrible this year, but we do live in the midwest and wood is the only heat source we use in our home.

I can't do too much in one day without neglecting the family and they are what really matter in this life so now it's time to relax with the wife and kids before eating dinner and getting ready for bed.  The process starts all over again tomorrow.

There are always different chores needing done so I work on them each day after work and finish any incomplete projects on the weekends.  Before long it will be time to build some more raised garden beds and begin planning for this years garden.

These early mornings make me thankful that I have children who can help out with taking care of the animals and other chores.

Properly Planting Tomatoes

Helping your tomatoes have the best chance of producing the greatest number of large healthy fruits begins with properly planting them. Many people get their tomato plants and set them in their gardens even with or slightly deeper than the root balls. Although this method will not harm the plant, it is definitely not the best approach to healthy tomato production. 

In order to encourage the most root growth possible, the tomato plant should be buried deep enough in your garden soil to cover all but the very leaves on the stem. Planting your tomato plants in this fashion will cause the entire buried portion of the plant to become giving it a very healthy and large root system.

Place tomato plants in the soil up to the last leaves on the stem.

The first year I planted tomatoes in this fashion, it freaked me out.  I thought for sure I'd kill them off; however, much to my surprise, I quickly discovered that these tomato plants would thrive and produce far better than any of the crops I had planted in years past.

Seven tomato plants in my raised bed garden

When planting your next tomato crop, give this method a try and you too will be surprised by the abundant health your plants will achieve.  The first attempt at this method will probably make you feel like you are destined to kill your plants, but I have had nothing but amazing results.

- Hard work and dedication makes self-sufficiency possible