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RE: I'd like to know what plants to grow as food for poultry?

Posted 1134 days ago

I believe your only quick solution is a roll of wire mesh and some star pickets.

RE: I'd like to know what plants to grow as food for poultry?

Posted 1134 days ago

You have no idea just how many star pickets and fencing wire I've been putting in lately. We have to keep the sheep out of the garden too - it's an endless battle on a property that wasn't well fenced to begin with. Bit by bit - I guess it's coming together, slowly. I have the chicken wire available to fence off another area adjacent to the present chook pen - I guess that might be my next project> I am allowing I'll need some of this chicken wire for around some of my permanent trees though - to keep the sheep from them while they are still small.

Maybe I should try making a mobile framework to put around patches I'm working on, to keep the pets out while plants are being established.
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Even the hard, dull, dry ground harbours life - which is brought to the surface with the fresh touch of drenching rain (or the humble watering can).

RE: I'd like to know what plants to grow as food for poultry?

Posted 1101 days ago

I have only four hens, which started laying 5 weeks ago. Since they started, each hen has laid one egg every day - never missed a day. I must be very lucky or I'm doing something right. I didn't expect 28 eggs every week so my rellies and neighbours are getting eggs too.

I feed them laying mash from the local produce store, and allow the chooks to run around the back yard and most of the garden all day. I fence them off from certain parts of the garden, but other parts where I grow greens for the hens, I use mesh with 100 mm mesh, so that they can reach the greens without destroying the plant.

They love grass and rocket and elephant ears and the leaves on the suckers on my banana trees.No cockroach or lizard or moth escapes them.

I may have to restrict their time in the yard as they tend to dig holes in the lawn if left there too long.

I also give them vegie scraps, but I don't give them bread or onions or spices.

Grampsy.

RE: I'd like to know what plants to grow as food for poultry?

Posted 1098 days ago

Hi grampsy
I'll look into that mesh idea and try and work out where best to use it. When the weather is good we do have rocket coming up around where I've allowed the seeds to spread. I might try putting some form of mesh around the base of my citrus tress also, which are growing in the chook yard and the chooks keep scratching away the much needed mulch.

I think I'll have to set aside a bit more fenced off yard for the chooks away from my gardens and keep them penned in there. I have enough chook yard space to section off a bit to grow greens for them (once we've had some rain).
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Even the hard, dull, dry ground harbours life - which is brought to the surface with the fresh touch of drenching rain (or the humble watering can).

RE: I'd like to know what plants to grow as food for poultry?

Posted 997 days ago

Apparently sunflowers are really popular and as you have found out, silverbeet. We let our chooks free range in the backyard but got SO sick of all the holes and destruction of the plants and then the lawn. We have a fenced off section for them now which comprises a quarter of the backyard and I give them the cuttings off the veggies rather than letting them help themselves. A chook can completely devour a tomato plant in less than 5 mins. We tried chicken wire and star pickets around the plants but eventually the yard started looking like alcatraz, so fencing the chooks was the better option for us.
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