Outdoor Run..."Bedding"?

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bobchristenson

bobchristenson

Songster
8 Years
May 31, 2011
93
7
106
SE Michigan
So, I just checked out the book "Free Range Chicken Gardens" (which was pretty cool by the way) and it mentions having 'bedding' (ie. shavings, straw, or other carbon-based material) not only inside the coop, but in the outdoor run as well. I don't..and am wondering if I should.

Sure, it probably wouldn't be as deep as the indoor bedding, but it actually seems like a decent idea. As the chicks grow (8 weeks now) they're doing a pretty good job on obliterating the plants and getting their all-dirt floor in order.

I suppose alot of this depends on run-size/# of chickens. I have 4 hens with an outdoor run that's about 8'x10'. It seems like some bedding would give me some good compost material, but also might keep them digging and stirring up the soil in there.

Whatta ya think? Do you put any type of bedding in the outdoor run?
 
In my covered runs, I add grass clipping, dry leaves, shavings and the occasional flake of hay. The chickens shred it all up into a lovely compost that I can rake out now and them, and all the high-carbon material keeps the manure/ammonia under control.
 
I've got a ton of pine needles all over my property but no leaves. Sound like a good thing to use since I have it in abundance? I can't really compost it yet because they don't dry out quickly, but chicken-stirring seems like it might help them compost quicker.
 
My chicks are the same age as yours. Our run was built on top of a vegetable garden. We dug out some soil and added sand. We have a heavy clay soil and I thought we could use the sand/dirt mixture in other gardens or around the berry bushes when we cleaned the run. I think we could be wrong. The chicks have the ground so compacted down that it seems like concrete. They constantly dig around the perimeter leaving ditches that we fill in daily with more dirt or sand. The soil is definitely not the light loamy soil we were hoping for. Hopefully someone will chime in and give some recommendations. I also have pine needles and was thinking of adding some peat moss. I am already overloaded with shavings from the other animals and the coop. I am hoping to get a good mixture of compost for the gardens once a week or so, but the ground is so hard that I can't even rake it even anymore.
 
I was wondering about this too. I'm already getting a ton of flies in my run and I was thinking if I had some sort of bedding down the poop would then get mixed in and dry up faster. But my chickens like to scratch at the dirt so I'm a little torn. I've also set up an area where I'm going to put some grazing frames. I'm not sure how that would work with bedding...Decisions, decisions. lol
 
We have our run over a regularly grassy area. We add fresh grass clipping when we mow, recently we added wood chips from grinding down a stump (no cedar however-POISONOUS), we also throw in picked flowers and occassionally we add food that we would compost. Our chickens still scratch through to the dirt regardless of what materials we place in there. This has really kept down the flies and smell. We do keep an area free of anything but dirt so that the chicks can dust bathe.
 
I had a big "duh!" realization this weekend....

Rather than trying to pile things on top of the dirt floor and hope the chickens scratch and turn it over...why not treat it like I would a garden that starts to go hardpan before planting: Pitchfork it! Turn it all over, loosing things up. Let the chickens feast on the goodies undeneath (and take another month or so to pack it all back down...at which time I do it again).

Simple solution that gives me a little exercize in the process. During the summer when it's hot I may throw some straw in there before turning it over, just to give a little aeration, but I think just turning the outdoor dirt, like I turn indoor shavings, seems like a key for me.
 
What worked best? I just finally finished my coop and run and am thinking I need something for bedding. Did turning up the soil work? How was the smell? I'd greatly appreciate any insight because our run is right next to our house and since it has been cooler there hasn't been a bad odor but I'm thinking towards spring and summer. Also, is your run covered? Mines not at the moment but I think I should so it stays dry. Thoughts? -Claire
 
We have put sand in our run and I love it!!! Not to mention the girls (and 1 guy) do too! So easy to lift poo and they love to bathe in it!!
 
I use a crushed rock they call fill lime. It is $7.50 a ton compared to the $25 a ton they wanted for sand. (NE Kansas price) It packs, sheds water and rakes well. The girls can dig in it and use it for grit. Never muddy!! Great stuff. Not too soft or too hard. Doesn't cling to my shoes and not a problem tracking it into the house.
 

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