"Kelrosie" wrote in message
...
I noticed a post about plants that are harmful to Hen's, but I cannot find
it now.

If anyone knows of any plants that can harm hen's etc, I would be really
grateful.

My brother & sister in law have just got some hen's and a cockerel, they
let
them wander all over the place and they are about to start growing veg and
herbs etc, I thought it would be good to let them know of any possible
dangers.

The dangers will ALL be to the vegetables. And some flowers if there are
any.

Our hens had the run of the garden when we first had them. We quickly
learned that there were many annual flowers and some perennials which they
loved. They can't do much harm to bushy things. Nothing they're prepared to
eat is bad for them. We learned not to grow those things which they ruined -
by eating and digging up. When I planted spring bulbs in the autumn I made a
chicken wire screen to cover the bed. We now have the first glorious display
of spring flowers we've had for years. We also had to make netting hurdles
to go round each of the small vegetable plots until some of the veggies were
big enough to stand up for themselves. They included brassica (although the
hens will eat some mature leaves and flowers), runner beans and potatoes.

Small plants don't stand a chance. If the hens don't eat them (as they do
with lettuce) they scratch them up in their quest for underground edibles.

We also learned never, ever, even in winter, to leave the greenhouse door
open. Our two darlings would kill to get into there. When it was really hot
last year, apart from the automatic vents and louvres, we put a frame of
mesh over the open door.

So poultry are ruinous to pretty gardens. But they give a lot of pleasure,
their characters are all different, it's great fun just to watch them. They
clear all sorts of pests (including snails and some slugs) and gently
fertilise the ground. I know their deposits are very strong but they don't
do it all in the same place and have raised the fertility of our garden -
which is why we decided to have a go at vegetables again! The litter from
their coop is wonderful in the compost bin - but an open compost heap will
be demolished in very short order. Then there are the eggs ..

.... and chicks if there's a cockerel. I hope your brother is prepared for
other issues ...

He'll probably also get more wild birds because hens are messy eaters and
scatter grain. They're messy anyway.

I wouldn't be without ours. We go away for many weekends and they go with
us. Well, we don't have a dog.

Mary




Thanks in advance.

Rosie.