I'm not sure if this is quite on/off topic for here, but someone mentioning
hens having a liking for 'Cleavers' in another thread prompted me to ask.
I plan to keep a few (4) free range chickens next year. Just enough to
provide eggs for the two of us. They will have around 1/4 acre to themselves
that they can roam and scratch about in. It has finally been cleared of the
impenetrable jungle of brambles and bindweed that occupied the land and is
now cultivated, weed free bare earth and ready for planting up with
"something?".

I'd like to plant and establish things there now that chickens would like
to eat? I've not kept chickens before and the books I've read about the
subject are a bit vague about the plants to grow. I could just plant grass
(what variety?) but think perhaps an assortment of various "weeds" or other
plants should be encouraged too for a balanced diet. Perhaps also plants
that attract insects that the chickens can eat too. Any suggestions anyone?
--
David
.... Email address on website http://www.avisoft.co.uk
.... Blog at http://dlts-french-adventures.blogspot.com/

Put down some sand for them to eat. It helps them digest the other things
you feed them. Oyster shells helps keep the egg shells hard by supplying
them with calcium.

Grain that is small enough for them to eat. You will have to buy that. A
friend of mine went to a grocery store and picked up bad tomatoes,
watermelons, and anything else that they were throwing out, and dumped it in
their pen. They ate and scratched around and did very well.

They love to eat bugs. Plant anything that is bothered with worms or
grasshoppers.

Dwayne (from Kansas)



"David (in Normandy)" wrote in message
...

They love to eat bugs. Plant anything that is bothered with worms or
grasshoppers.
Dwayne (from Kansas)

Grasshoppers (or crickets I'm not sure of the difference) we've got lots of,
so the chickens will be pleased! When we mow the lawns there are hundreds of
them jumping into the air and out of the path of the mower. I like to hear
them in the evening though. Quite a restful sound as they rasp away.
David.

"David (in Normandy)" wrote in message
...
I'm not sure if this is quite on/off topic for here, but someone
mentioning hens having a liking for 'Cleavers' in another thread prompted
me to ask.

That was me.

I'd like to plant and establish things there now that chickens would like
to eat? I've not kept chickens before and the books I've read about the
subject are a bit vague about the plants to grow. I could just plant grass
(what variety?)

All varieties, it won't last long.

but think perhaps an assortment of various "weeds" or other plants should
be encouraged too for a balanced diet.

They need greenstuff of any kind but that alone wouldn't give a balanced
diet, they need lots of animal protein and grain.

All brassicas will be devoured, chard, spinach ... dandelions are attractive
but they'll happen by themselves and don't need to be sown. I have to keep
my vegetables in runs while the chickens range everywhere else. They'll soon
tell you what they like and what they don't! Most chicken keepers end up
growing just those flowers which aren't eaten by chickens. Mine have
recently taken to eating oregano ...

They need grit which you can buy from poultry feed supplieers, as well as
oyster shell. Sand isn't the same as either. It's quite a complicated
process.

Poultry keepers disagree about what grains are best for chickens - so do the
chickens. Mine won't touch pellets of any kind but will eat cut corn (maize)
and grain. They will sometimes eat ground soya and will ALWAYS eat whatever
we're eating! If we're eating out and I hold a piece of bread carelessly
they'll eat the jam or butter from the top and only the bread when all
that's gone. They LOVE cheese or any milk derivitives (but not milk itself).

They will scratch in the ground for worms, slugs (some types), snails (some
types), woodlice, centipedes and almost anything which crawls - but not all
caterpillars. They will eat some flies and midges, but not all. The same
with some spiders and butterflies or moths - they can be very picky.

If I were you I'd let the land grow what it does naturally and see what the
hens go for then grow more of that, grubbing up what they ignore. They must
have grain available at all times.

Poultry keepers disagree about this matter as they do about anything else. I
suggest you ask on sci.agriculture/poultry and see what that fetches up :-)

Whatever you do, you'll love having poultry!

Mary






Perhaps also plants
that attract insects that the chickens can eat too. Any suggestions
anyone?
--
David
... Email address on website http://www.avisoft.co.uk
... Blog at http://dlts-french-adventures.blogspot.com/

Poultry keepers disagree about this matter as they do about anything else.
I suggest you ask on sci.agriculture/poultry and see what that fetches up
:-)

Whatever you do, you'll love having poultry!

Mary

Thank you for the detailed reply. I've posted to the poultry group too as
suggested.
David.

David (in Normandy) wrote:
Poultry keepers disagree about this matter as they do about anything else.
I suggest you ask on sci.agriculture/poultry and see what that fetches up
:-)

Whatever you do, you'll love having poultry!

Mary

Thank you for the detailed reply. I've posted to the poultry group too as
suggested.
David.

Don't forget to shut them in at sundown. Before I gave up free ranging
and built a movable ark thing with an enclosed run, I once forgot: that
night a fox killed the lot.

--
Mike.

"Mike Lyle" wrote in message
ups.com...



Don't forget to shut them in at sundown. Before I gave up free ranging
and built a movable ark thing with an enclosed run, I once forgot: that
night a fox killed the lot.

If fox can get in they don't necessarily wait for the dark hours. We had
lots of chickens killed (not eaten) in broad daylight when we've been
around. Only a very high fox-proof fence stopped it.

Mary

Buddleia is great we have 3 very large plants, which our chickens love. The more adventurous climb into it, the lazy ones snooze underneath it in the heat of the sun.

Are you going to get a cockerel? If you do I have a gun you an borrow if you'll do the same for me

Keep all your peelings from the house, cook and mix with layers mash,
theylove it! Also, any leftovers from the table, mash, greens, mine
love pasta!

On Sat, 5 Aug 2006 09:02:51 +0100, An Oasis
wrote:


David \(in Normandy\) Wrote:

I plan to keep a few (4) free range chickens next year. Just enough to

provide eggs for the two of us. They will have around 1/4 acre to
themselves
that they can roam and scratch about in.

Buddleia is great we have 3 very large plants, which our chickens love.
The more adventurous climb into it, the lazy ones snooze underneath it
in the heat of the sun.

Are you going to get a cockerel? If you do I have a gun you an borrow
if you'll do the same for me

Mary Fisher wrote:
They need grit which you can buy from poultry feed supplieers, as well as
oyster shell. Sand isn't the same as either. It's quite a complicated
process.

I grew up in a village store, and we used to sell all this stuff.
Layer's pellets, off-lay feed, brood feed, corn, mash etc. There were
3 grades of seashell sold, Oyster&Mussel (came from the essex coast),
White shell (mainly scallops) and a couple of patent brands which I
only stocked when we couldn't get the generic stuff. The white shell
was supposed to give the best results. Some brands of Layer's pellets
had the shell built in, others didn't. It was important to read the
ingredients [1]. I used to do that at the wholesale end, and only
stocked the calcium enriched ones. People still bought the shell. It
came pre-ground, but we had an old mill in the corner from the time in
the 1920s when it used to come in sacks from the railway station, just
as collected.

We used to sell derbyshire grit, but some places sold seasand as grit.
The birds need it to help process high-celulose feed before digestion,
and it has to be topped up quite regularly.

Old village hands used to starve the hens on Friday. The idea being to
discourage fussy eating. Fussy eaters could get an unbalanced diet and
lay less. Another trick was to use the friday fast to check feeding
rates. If the lay on Saturday and Sunday was just as good as during
the week then the daily feeding rate was too generous.

[1] brands without calcium were still high in protien, other minerals,
and vitamins. Different balance to brood feed.