Skunks in the garden! Please Help!

We have discovered a family of skunks in the garden.  I think they may have set up home under in the crawlspace beneath the hen house.  They come at night after the girls have gone inside for the night and the yard is quiet.

We want them gone, obviously, but how?  We live "in town" so shooting is out of the question.  I really don't want to kill them, just send them

Hubby wants to use antifreeze, but I am afraid the neighborhood cats will get to it first, and I don't approve of this manner either.

Any ideas on sedating them in order to move them away safely?.... for both them and us....

Appreciate any help with this.

Zuchinni Meatloaf

My grandmother discovered this idea in a magazine about forty + years ago; ever since that time if I raise zuchinni I always leave one to grow extra-large to use for this meatloaf.

Ingredients:              One very large zuchinni,  your usual meatloaf recipe.

Preparation:              Prepare the zuchinni by cutting in half lengthwise, if extremely large;
                      or at 3/4 lengthwise if it measures about 14 inches.    Scoop out the center seed area.

Prepare your meatloaf mixture and stuff the zuchinni with it.

Wrap loosely in foil and bake as you would your meatloaf.  
 For me it is 350F for about an hour, using up to 2 lbs meat.

Enjoy.

LOOKING FOR OUR NEW FARM/HOMESTEAD

After talking about it for twelve years we are finally one step closer to owning our own little farm.  Yesterday we visited the first of several 10 acre properties of which we hope one will become our new homestead by this time next year.

We did a walk-about on some of the ten acre lot located in rural north NC not far from Chapel Hill-Durham area; only 30 minutes and a world away from the rat race.  The land is generally level with a slight rolling, plenty of hardwoods, wild berries, a natural spring and a beautiful old barn in great condition which would be perfect for housing the goats and storing the hay, etc.  The only things that could improve on this site would be a mountain, a creek, and/or a pond.

Meanwhile we continue with day to day life on our little backyard homestead.  Our chickens have grown so much,  and are happy with their new home and run.  The garden has been producing more than enough food, but not quite enough for preserving.  The tomato plants are heavy with large green fruit and lots of new little tomatoes.  The peas have come and gone, and their space in the garden has be filled with Kentucky Wonder pole beans, bush lima beans and several more butternut squash plants.
It will be so nice to have so much space to expand the garden and have a few more animals.

Zuchinni Bread Recipe

It seems like we no sooner plant the seeds, our garden is overrun with zuchinni and out come the recipes on how to make best use of the ones we haven't eaten or given away.
This is my version of the popular quick bread.  It is dense, moist and very tasty.  Eat it warm from the oven, or after it has cooled, or freeze some for later or to share.

Zuchinni Bread

Ingredients:

Dry:
3 cups all-purpose flour
1 tsp. baking soda
1 tsp. baking powder
1 tsp. salt
1 tbl. cinnamon (do not level off)
1 cup sugar
1 cup packed light brown sugar
1 cup chopped nuts (walnuts or pecans) (optional)
2 1/2 cups shredded zuchinni (unpeeled)

Wet:
3 eggs
3 tsp. vanilla extract
1 cup pecan or peanut oil

Preheat oven to 350 F.

In a large bowl combine all the dry ingredients and mix well.  I use my hands to mix until the shredded zuchinni is well coated.

In another bowl combine the wet ingredients and beat to break up the yolks and combine all.
Add the egg mixture to the dry mixture and using a wooden spoon or large spatula mix well until well-blended.

Pour into 2 well buttered and floured loaf pans.

Bake 50 minutes until a toothpick inserted in the center comes out dry.