A Needy Future Chicken Farmer's Impossible Journey of Raising Chickens. Ideas appreciated.

[BigBlueHen53]

Can you make adobe bricks? Straw and clay, scrap lumber for forms?

 

[Acre4Me]

The area is in a flood zone, the coop must be elevated in the event of high water. I'm also going to use the space underneath the coop as a shady spot for my birds. Its already started so a dirt floor will not work. See pic above a couple posts.

Good idea. I don’t live in a flood zone, but rather flat. We can have driving rain, and heavy rains that create large puddles and a fast moving/wide water way between my yard and neighbor yard. We built our coop 2.5 ft above ground, and this works very well to help coop dry out and for shade. Our coop is also a walk in. We added a 6-8’ long deck with a few steps at the end. We lined this up with the gate so we can get a wheelbarrow up to (and slightly under) the deck for ease of clean out. The chickens love to roost on the deck railing, which is only on one side. Our coop is behind the barn as well, which helps for shade and some wind protection.

 

[2ndTink]

Any chance of finding a free dining table or old desk? Even if they didn't last forever outside, maybe the wood / laminate would last you a year or two and at least get you started.

Another member mentioned rope, it would take a good bit of rope but you could weave a bottom to your coop, it would allow good ventilation in the summer, you might be able to layer something in there through the winter to keep cold drafts out.

 

[teddyjames]

I have thought about making my own bricks from straw and mud but don't think they would last as long as I would want them to. It really bums me out that every single idea just don't work for me. My original budget of $900 has dwindled down to $250 due to the fact that I have to pay so much extra for food. Its not going to be long until I won't be able to buy anything at all. Its just not meant for us as a family to have chickens or anything else for that matter that requires a truck or money. I wouldn't mind to stifle through peoples garbage for supplies if it wasn't so much like this around here:

When it comes to finding materials...

 

[teddyjames]

The caveat I have with using fresh cut logs or lumber is the fact that it shrinks no matter what and I don't want to have to go back and cover it again. I don't have enough saplings to cover it twice nor do I feel very inclined to use stuff thats 1/2 inch diameter because that would take 10 years to cover 1000 sq feet of surface (floor and four walls). My idea of using a donated table saw to saw some useable lumber fails because again it would be green. I'm at a standstill until I find some plywood or older lumber within walking distance. (not going to happen) Anyone have any other ideas what a person could do to help with food? Chickens ARE NOT GOING TO WORK for me :-( Or anything else that requires a "coop". I grow a garden, what else can I do? Hobbies that generate income? Time to move this thread to the, " How to have something when you got nothing" thread. lol

 

[saysfaa]

... Anyone have any other ideas what a person could do to help with food? Chickens ARE NOT GOING TO WORK for me :-( Or anything else that requires a "coop". I grow a garden, what else can I do? Hobbies that generate income? Time to move this thread to the, " How to have something when you got nothing" thread. lol

Have you considered quail? They need much less housing for enough of them to feed yourself. They likely need a bit of research about their requirements - not hard, I understand, but different than many people expect.

Do you grow grain? Many people don't think of that at a garden sized scale. Gene Logsdon's book "Small-scale Grain Raising" is worth requesting at the library to see how doable it is. It has quite a lot of detail so may be all the info you need.

 

[teddyjames]

quale has been mentioned before, I'm just not into that much killing. As far as grain, I'm afraid in order to really feed us to any amount I would almost have to have a tiller or at the very least a mule + turning plow etc. I don't see me raising a big garden with just a garden hoe although we have managed to have some tomatoes and peppers come in but thats just basically a treat. Chickens would be a perfect answer plus would be a nice way to battle my constant boredom. Personally I just like chickens, have a lot of experience with them its just today's times and people's ways have changed along with my living conditions and location.

I have located 1 piece of 7/16 untreated osb board. My neighbor said he could buy a piece of plywood for me if I had a way to haul it. I found a nice big Oak tree about 1/2 mile away up the mountain that would make for some nice lumber if I could get it home, had a saw big enough, and didn't care to wait 4 years for it to season. Lost cause I suppose. If anything comes up or any progress is made.. I'll be sure to post. Hard times.

 

[GCrumb]

@teddyjames How close are you to N. Carolina?

 

[saysfaa]

Quail lay eggs.

He says the space to grow 1 bushel is:
Field corn, 10' x 50'
Sweet corn, 10' x 80'
Popcorn, 10' x 80' (regular ears; not necessarily strawberry type varieties)
Oats, 10' x 62'
Barley, 10' x 87'
Rye, 10' x 145'
Buckwheat, 10' x 130'
Grain sorghum, 10' x 60'
Wheat, 10' x 109'

He says these are just ballpark figures. Weather, variety, knowhow make a lot of difference. A really good wheat grower with a little luck can get a bushel from a plot half that size.

He also covers how much grain a family might use for cooking and sprouting in a year:
Wheat, 4 pecks (1 bushel)
Corn, 2 pecks
Popcorn, 2 pecks
Soybeans, 4 pecks
Grain sorghum, 2 pecks
Buckwheat, 1 peck
Oats, 1 peck
Triticale or rye or barley, 1 peck
Navy (or other soup bean), 2 pecks
Alfalfa (for sprouting), 1 or 2 quarts
Lentils, field peas, cane sorghum, ??

This can be expected to take 1/6 of an acre. For all of them. That is, all of the pecks a family could expect to eat (not the one bushel of each kind given before that).
Obviously, families vary in size and tastes. Mine is quite a lot different in the mix used, although probably not much different in total amount. A cup of grain makes about a cup of flour, if someone wanted to figure how much they use by how much whole grain, rolled or cracked grain, and flour they use.

A sixth of an acre for a family is less than 2000 sq ft per person.

I'm pretty old and pretty decrepit and turned that much over with a shovel, breaking the clods and shaking the roots out with my hands starting with sod. 20x50 the first year, that plus an additional 20x25 the second year, ...

You don't have to do it all at once. Do some now for the buckwheat, some over the next couple of months for the winter wheat and rye, some late in the fall to frost seed the plant the spring wheat and oats in, some next spring for the corn, sorghum, barley, and beans.

Besides, you can grow part of what you can eat the first year, more of it the second year. Or just part of it as an end goal - it can still be a help.

Tomatoes and peppers are a good start. You might consider zucchini, chard, and beans as a next step.

Mulch cuts down on the need to hoe.

 

[Krugerrand]

Asparagus is a GREAT option. The only draw back is that it takes several years to get established. But, once it is, it just keeps coming back every year. It's so delicious fresh. If I get my sugar snap peas planted between Valentines Day and St. Patrick's day, they're usually ready to start picking by the time the asparagus starts to dwindle off.