Category: Homesteading

Our Adventures

A Genetics Puzzle – Coat Color in Border Collies

Some many years ago, back when I was an instructor of first and second year biology at a British Columbian college, I used to give my students genetic problems.  These are really exercises in logic, brain teasers, if you will.  I’ve always loved them, although I understand that some of my students weren’t quite so fond of genetics.  Recently, I have been inspired (more about that in another post) to take an interest in the genetics behind coat colors in dogs, specifically border collies.  So here’s the puzzle …

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The Saga of Water Storage Tanks

We have considerable rain catchment – something around 20 blue barrels that collect rainwater from the house eaves.  Last year got really dry, and we ended up taking some of the blue barrels down to a creek to refill them, using our herring skiff, then pumping the water back up the slope to more blue barrels by the house.  A bit of a long process, but it saved our garden.  This year, we’ve decided to put in two 1100 gallon water reservoir tanks up by our catchment pond.  We are not heavy consumers of water (no dishwasher or big washing machine), but our garden is large, and does require watering after the beginning of May if the weather is hot. 

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