Building a new duck run

I spent my afternoon


yesterday building a new run for our ducks. It's actually a test run (heh) on a design I originally came up with because i'd really like to get chickens and they need taller runs for perching.
I had one major flaw in my design and that was that I was drilling 1/4" holes in 3/4" PVC poles, making them snap when bent. Next time I'll buy metal brackets to attach the PVC.



Overall I was quite thrifty. I used 4" furring strips for the base, and a 2" furring strip for the top. The 4" cost $1.97 each and the 2" cost $.82. Super cheap! The overall cost ended up being less than $14.00 for the structure and then roughly $7 for the poultry netting over the outside. Just over $20 isn't bad for a new poultry run!


I attached the netting with UV resistant zip ties. This whole project was very non-traditional, but it made a good mockup for the plans I drew. When I make another I'm going to reinforce it like crazy. Thisll keep the hawks at bay for now.




My final photo is of my bargain find yesterday at the supermarket. I had been thinking about planting grapes along the fence line, but the price of grape vines really can be ridiculous. I found these little babes on the clearance rack waiting for me. They were $1.74 each and while I realize I should be planting good stock these appear to be totally healthy and without any spots, blemishes or wilted areas. I picked up eight total vines, though their varieties are escaping me at the moment. I also picked up three latham raspberries and four Chester blackberries for the same price.
I'll be keeping those over winter in large pots on the far side of the yard to observe them: kind of a quarantene to make sure they're as healthy as they seem. Overall I ended up with sixteen fruiting plants for less than $30... Woo!