more "edible landscaping for chickens" :P

[patandchickens]

I did figure I might have to protect one or both of my veg gardens now that I've started letting seven of the chickens run loose in the yard in the afternoons.

What I did NOT anticipate, I can't imagine why not, was that the wild strawberries I've been encouraging as a "ground cover with benefits" in my big back flowerbed have ended up benefiting only the CHICKENS this year. They found them today. They came, they ate, they conquered. I was able to find four surviving berries, one for each person in the family. That's all

Fortunately we have some more wild strawberries in the lawn out towards the road, where the chickens can't get, but they are much fewer and smaller.

Sigh


Pat

 

[wifezilla]

Helpful critters aren't they?

 

[herbsherbsflowers]

But just think how good those eggs will be.

 

[patandchickens]

And now they've got into the new little veg garden and levelled and de-hilled about half my potatoes.

Grrrrrrr.

Just whining,

Pat

 

[vfem]

I put some temp fencing around little things like that to keep the chickens out until the are big enough to do for themselves. Like I made little chicken wire tubes and stuck them in the ground around each individual pumpkin I planted to keep them out.

Little 2 ft high chicken wire fence around the strawberries.... and if they manage to jump anything, I have some bird netting to lay on top if they try. So far they haven't though!

 

[lesa]

They are quite the destroyers! On the subject of wild strawberries- I have been encouraging mine as ground cover for about 4 years. This year I had more berries on those, then my "real" plants! They were good sized too, like the size of your thumbnail.

 

[ninnymary]

I thought my full grown bamboo was safe from the chickens. Wrong.... They are making holes right next to them and exposing the roots. Every week, I go into the run and cover the holes up. Never ending battle. Hopefully this weekend we will put up chicken wire around them like Vfem does.

Vfem...What do you use to stake up the chicken wire cage? I also will plan to do it about 2' high.

Let me know.

Thanks
Mayr

 

[fl_deb]

:bun

I know them girls love the strawberries cause I took a 10 day trp thought I'd come home to some nice berries nope nada zero

after a few days my neighbor's husband told me my friend felt terrible about the girls being "cooped up" so she had them out every night free ranging!

yeah they enjoyed that I'm sure!

 

[EdisonCheug]

But just think how good those eggs will be.

I agree! LOL.
so, tell us how do those eggs taste!