Pix of Deep litter runs soil

RoseMarie1

Songster
7 Years
Mar 31, 2013
2,168
170
236
Hattiesburg,Ms.
My Coop
My Coop
This is the soil right outside my chickens run. Our soil is VERY sandy as you can see. I have tried putting sand in my chickens pen and I did not like it. I spent hours out there scooping poop out of it and in just a weeks time the smell was horrible. Standing up I could even smell it.

Anyway this is the soil just outside the pen like I was saying.




Then this is the soil inside the chickens run where I have been doing deep litter now for I don't know how many years. I have NEVER seen puddles of water in their run and I am in the hot humid south Ms. area.




This hen was being a little nosey. lol






As you can see it needs replenishing again. Hopefully going to do that tomorrow. I try to keep it in there and it's breaking down VERY well now since I don't use any sort of chemicals and I don't use that powdered stuff that people use and say is safe. I don't use the stuff.

Another pic of the soil outside the pen.





and one inside the pen. Just LOVE this method and another great thing about it is I can go in there and scoop out soil for my garden just like a compost and they're not having to wade in their own poop it just disappears in the deep litter. Can't say enough about this method!!
 
In the coop we have 'deep bedding', it's just 4-6 inches, depending on the season, of pine (flake) shavings. There is a poop board under the roost which I sift out everyday or 2 which helps keep the floor clean. We clean it out/replace twice a year (spring & fall).

In the (covered) run we have 'deep litter'. We use grass clippings, straw, pine needles, hay, leaves and garden debris. They get their fruit & veggies in the run, so anything left from that decomposes as well. We clean some of that out once a year.

Everything goes on the garden.

We have no flies and no odor.

700
 
I don't put grass clippings in mine. Also wanted to point out that it's very dry right now or that soil in their pen would be much darker. We've had no rain and loads of wind for weeks now. So it's very dusty and dry so it's not as dark as it usually is.

I basically use what is under trees in the woods. I use leaves and pine straw. I also use it in their roosting area. All their poop gets lost under the roost so I don't have to do anything to it. To start with you might have to turn it until the good bugs get in there to do it for you. Like I already said I do not use any chemicals at all. So I have plenty of good bugs now and they're really doing a good job keeping it turned. They dearly love rooting around in the D L to. When let them run out of it and I start piling it in there you should hear them singing. They LOVE it and it keeps them busy finding food in it and eating some bugs. I have flipped it saw crickets running so they come inside the pen to get under the litter. They are some happy campers when they have this stuff to root around in.


Notice in my pix and in the pic above this post, do you see ANY poop? See what I mean. Lots of people don't understand it, but when there's no chemicals used in the pens the good bugs will stay there and turn every thing over and keep it clean so they don't have to wade in their own poop. If the deep litter wasn't there you'd see lots of poop unless they've stomped it all into the soil and that is if they've been there long you'll see poop in the pix you take.
 
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