Plants or other ideas for stationary coop.....

So recently we noticed mostly by smell that our girls had completely made barren the run of their coop and it is starting to smell like chicken manure, we want to do something temporarily to fix this as we are in the process of expanding to a bigger run setup and coop in the near future and would also like our girls to be in a interesting and clean environment (well relatively since its outdoors haha). Are there any suggestions for what we might lay down in there or place inside there to eleviate some of the smell and also keep them entertained while we are at work and cannot let them free-range? I appreciate the help.

LeiaLayers5 said:

So recently we noticed mostly by smell that our girls had completely made barren the run of their coop and it is starting to smell like chicken manure, we want to do something temporarily to fix this as we are in the process of expanding to a bigger run setup and coop in the near future and would also like our girls to be in a interesting and clean environment (well relatively since its outdoors haha). Are there any suggestions for what we might lay down in there or place inside there to eleviate some of the smell and also keep them entertained while we are at work and cannot let them free-range? I appreciate the help.

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UPDATE: We are actually building a really big new coop and run where we had a deck and above ground pool before we tore it mostly down and are using the framing posts to enclose the run around coop. I am interesting in hearing if anyone has good suggestions for plants or otherwise to line the run inside or to be around the perimeter of the coop. There is a layer of sand left over from when pool was there in middle.

Keep in mind that chickens will eat/peck/destroy most plants. For entertainment lots of suggestions on BYC for chicken "toys". Stringing a head of lettuce or other veggies up in the coop seems like a most popular option.

skunknchatter said:

Keep in mind that chickens will eat/peck/destroy most plants. For entertainment lots of suggestions on BYC for chicken "toys". Stringing a head of lettuce or other veggies up in the coop seems like a most popular option.

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We do have a chicken swing in their current setup but I think we need to weigh it a bit because it moves too much the times they tried to test it out and so they ignore it now. But I was not really thinking along lines of things they could destroy more like as added shade options for them and things that are bigger than what they could really do damage to. Also good ideas for lining ground of run too. I will look into the veggie eatable options as well though.

For shade and maybe something to eat some grow grapes. I sometimes use a indeterminate variety of tomato trained up the run fence on the outside. Anything they can eat you will have to protect until it gets higher then they can reach, even on the outside. Aside from green shade you can roof part of the run. That would also give them a place to sit outside in poor weather.

Den in Penn said:

For shade and maybe something to eat some grow grapes. I sometimes use a indeterminate variety of tomato trained up the run fence on the outside. Anything they can eat you will have to protect until it gets higher then they can reach, even on the outside. Aside from green shade you can roof part of the run. That would also give them a place to sit outside in poor weather.

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The new setup is being built from the remaining frame of a pool deck. We actually built the new coop walls on a portion of the remaining deck and left the front portion half up so we could sit up there and watch them wander around in run below as well as to reach and retrieve the eggs. So they do have a bit of shade under that area of deck. We had considered building sort of a trellis type room for a portion of it and growing vine like plants over that, but since we have decided that we are enclosing it with apiary net on top now, we will probably just do plants that climb along outside edge of wire fencing....that will provide some shade aside from the deck area. Still in planning stage so far. We are completing the walls on the coop itself soon with corrugated plywood pieces so hopefully soon their new home can be lived in. Apiary net is on its way as well.