Do Chickens Like Buckwheat?

Barry Natchitoches

Songster
11 Years
Sep 4, 2008
649
47
194
Tennessee
Buckwheat is used by organic gardeners to build soil and keep weeds out of garden soil that is not going to be planted for awhile. In my case, I want to set up a new garden bed for use next year, and want to begin building the organic matter in the new bed by planting buckwheat.


But what I am wondering is if my chickens would like buckwheat?


If they would, I'm thinking about penning some of them out on the new garden bed after the buckwheat comes in, and let them eat the plant, enrich the soil with their manure, and dig in the soil for me. All would help build a richer garden bed for use next year.
 
I am not sure! I know I decided not to use buckwheat in my whole grain feed mix, because the seeds are large and angular. The young buckwheat grass may be a treat for the chickens. (Many people find chickens like young wheat grass.)

I have used clover for a cover crop and my chickens enjoy it.

ON
 
Quote:
I cook it for them.

Ahhh
That makes sense..
smile.png

ON
 
Buckwheat can cause photosensitivity in people and animals, horses especially. When I purchased buckwheat seed for a cover crop and asked the people at the feed store if my chickens could graze it, they emphatically said no, that a friend almost lost all her chickens due to this. Don't know anything more than that, just thought I should mention it. There is plenty of info online if you google: buckwheat photosensitivity.

I'm going to plant the buckwheat in my front yard where the chickens don't graze and will plant a pea/bean/oat/vetch mix in back that the chickens can eat. The mix will also fix nitrogen in my soil, which the buckwheat will not.
 
I chopped up some of the leaves from my buckwheat and they chickens would not eat it (Isa Browns) but a few did happily eat the whole grain seed.
 

New posts New threads Active threads

Back
Top Bottom