What can I grow for chickens to eat?

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What can I grow for chickens to eat?
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Katieowl

Joined: 01 Jun 2006
Posts: 4317
Location: West Wales

Posted: Wed Mar 24, 10 5:09 pm Post subject: What can I grow for chickens to eat?

My chickens have stripped all the grass out of their enclosure since the new two arrived

Well some if it might still be there, but it's buried under the mud they've thrown everywhere scratching about

(Dear Chickens...?)

I have a big shallow ugly pot I was going to throw out, but then I wondered is there anything fast growing (grass? some sort of green manure crop?) I can plant in there that the chookies would enjoy eating. I could probably scrape up another big container or two and keep circulating them with fresh edibles while the grass makes a bit of a recovery.

OH is going to move the house and run and raise it this summer as it all got a bit waterlogged over the autumn, so my original plan of only giving them a strip at a time to dig over kind of went by the bye...

Kate

katie

Joined: 13 Dec 2004
Posts: 713
Location: midlands

Posted: Wed Mar 24, 10 6:54 pm Post subject:
I sow a tray of mixed corn for them in winter as a treat. Put a layer of compost in a seed tray , then the corn sown thickly, then a bit of compost on top. It doesn't take long to germinate. You can cut it for them or I just shove the try in and they have great fun.

Katieowl

Joined: 01 Jun 2006
Posts: 4317
Location: West Wales

Posted: Wed Mar 24, 10 6:59 pm Post subject:
Thank you! Will start some off ASAP! Kate

tahir

Joined: 28 Oct 2004
Posts: 45669
Location: Essex

Posted: Wed Mar 24, 10 7:02 pm Post subject:
Fat hen? (v nutritious leaves and seeds)

Chickem

Joined: 27 Mar 2009
Posts: 3958
Location: Sunny Devon

Posted: Wed Mar 24, 10 7:02 pm Post subject:
I sow a few "left over" greens seed (barassica's mainly) in a few large plant pots with compost ..... then when they've grown to a reasonable size i tip out the contents in the run..... the girls love scratching and pecking through it and if they're lucky they get a few worms & slugs too

LynneA

Joined: 25 Oct 2006
Posts: 4893
Location: London N21

Posted: Wed Mar 24, 10 7:15 pm Post subject:
My mob have a thing about dandelions. In fact, a few neighbours keep them in their lawns to give to me. I guess the ultimate gardening for hens plant would be a grapevine

Tavascarow

Joined: 06 Aug 2006
Posts: 8407
Location: South Cornwall

Posted: Wed Mar 24, 10 7:29 pm Post subject:

If you grow from mixed corn you will only be wasing the maize as its cracked it wont germ.
Any whole cereal will sprout fast, wheat, barley, oats, rye, maize.
Chick weed, young thistle plants.
Wild bird seed. I reckon you would be better growing it in the ground somewhere else in the garden & cutting & carrying it to them though as aposed to pots.
I'm currently pulling a bucket a day of chickweed & mixed weeds from my polytunnels & feeding it to the chooks & quail.

Dekk

Joined: 21 Feb 2009
Posts: 48
Location: somewhere between raising hell and amazing grace

Posted: Wed Mar 24, 10 7:35 pm Post subject:
Seeds of italy sell some grow your own animal foods for your cat, dog, chinchilla, and squirrel????? not sure if there is anything there that may be suitable this try https://www.seedsofitaly.com/catalogue/28/

Nicky cigreen

Joined: 25 Jun 2007
Posts: 9878
Location: Devon, uk

Posted: Wed Mar 24, 10 10:14 pm Post subject:
i cut the lawn and gave the clipping to hens.. they are so keen for greens at the mo.. they scoffed it all.

gorbut

Joined: 03 Sep 2006
Posts: 137
Location: Border of London and Essex

Posted: Wed Mar 24, 10 10:40 pm Post subject:

I grow cress for ours as it is quick. I had better grow some more as it might stop them escaping to get at the lawn.

We haven't cut the grass yet but when we do they will get the cuttings and also get weeds from the garden or allotment. i am also thinking about growing them some plants in their part of the garden but not sure what to put in that they won't destroy in one day. There are only three of them but they do like to eat

hardworkinghippy

Joined: 01 Jan 2005
Posts: 1110
Location: Bourrou South West France

Posted: Wed Mar 24, 10 10:43 pm Post subject:
I'm one of those nutters who lets the chickens free range and protect the veg they'll eat with chicken netting. So they get a good diet, weed for us and clean up the bugs. Ours love Amaranthus. It's a really pretty plant and as its glory fades you bend them over one at a time and the chickens will eat every morsel.

gorbut

Joined: 03 Sep 2006
Posts: 137
Location: Border of London and Essex

Posted: Thu Mar 25, 10 7:40 am Post subject:
We used to let our hens free range but our garden is not really big enough and it just became a sea of mud. We have a lot of urban foxes too. My dream is to have a garden big enough to have free ranging hens a lot of the time as I loved watching them but I have to say they did spend a lot of the day by the back door peering in rather than ranging free

welsh veg grower

Joined: 23 Jan 2009
Posts: 2030
Location: here today but tomorrow...

Posted: Thu Mar 25, 10 8:07 am Post subject:
nice chooks hardworkignhippy. Isnt it that chooks will eat anything that you dont really want them to eat

katie

Joined: 13 Dec 2004
Posts: 713
Location: midlands

Posted: Thu Mar 25, 10 8:38 am Post subject:
At the moment the goosegrass is young and sweet. Everything - goats, sheep, hens and ducks love it. Even the dog was nibbling a bit yesterday!For hens, hang it up in a bunch and they'll wolf it down.

Mary-Jane

Joined: 13 Jan 2005
Posts: 18397
Location: The Fishing Strumpet is from Ceredigion in West Wales

Posted: Thu Mar 25, 10 9:03 am Post subject:
Ours like comfrey leaves...

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