Can grass seed be spread in a chicken yard?

[katelk]

That is the space needed per bird for general living though--not the space needed for maintenance actual greenery. With that amount of space there will be no living plants ANYWHERE in the run. Chickens are pretty destructive. 

But, to the OP, there are ways around it. If you can find way to protect the bottom part of the plants and just let the hens munch on the tops you can have continued growth. You might want to look into grazing frames or a living feeder. I would also be interested in knowing what sort of space people are able to pasture birds in and maintain green life. But, I would guess that unless your yard is large enough to be considered a pasture or something close to I am going to assume they will likely eat everything given enough time.

You could also think about making a tractor or run that can be moved around so that you plant one side/area and let it grow then move the run there while the other side grows and keep switching.

http://www.thegardencoop.com/blog/2012/02/07/grazing-frames-backyard-chickens/

Another option is to keep the chickens confined to one part of the yard and grow fodder for them.

https://www.backyardchickens.com/t/713334/growing-fodder-for-chickens

Never heard of grazing frames. I will look it up. I have been thinking about letting them into the "people yard" just long enough to grow grass in their yard. Will have to put up a fence for that though. However, I don't see any truly easy way to keep grass lol

 

[ChickensRDinos]

The link I posted from thegardencoop.com has a number of good ideas and good pictures of grazing frames. I would check that one out.

 

[ChickenCurt]

When buying seeds just check to be sure they aren't seeds with chemicals.
An interesting fact; poo straight from a chicken is perfectly balanced for growing, it is by exposure to sun and moisture that composition changes often making it too "hot". This is one of the reasons I put fresh straw down daily; the dry straw captures that balanced plant meal and preserves it.
Chickens love fresh sprouts so new grass is a treat to them. Multiple runs/yards or simply moving them (if space permits) keeps everybody healthy including the grass. I learned this lesson the hard way, don't keep chicken grass too short, I recommend 4"-6", too long gets trampled, too short becomes a wasteland.

 

[ChickensRDinos]

When buying seeds just check to be sure they aren't seeds with chemicals.
An interesting fact; poo straight from a chicken is perfectly balanced for growing, it is by exposure to sun and moisture that composition changes often making it too "hot". This is one of the reasons I put fresh straw down daily; the dry straw captures that balanced plant meal and preserves it.
Chickens love fresh sprouts so new grass is a treat to them. Multiple runs/yards or simply moving them (if space permits) keeps everybody healthy including the grass. I learned this lesson the hard way, don't keep chicken grass too short, I recommend 4"-6", too long gets trampled, too short becomes a wasteland.

Do you have source for this? I would be interested in reading it. Everything I have read suggests that based on the ammonia levels and PH of fresh chicken manure that it would be either composted or dried before adding to soil.

 

[kimberley848]

Never heard of grazing frames. I will look it up. I have been thinking about letting them into the "people yard" just long enough to grow grass in their yard. Will have to put up a fence for that though. However, I don't see any truly easy way to keep grass lol

If you hit one of the links that ChickensRDinos posted, the gardencoop link, it also has links to a book "Free Range Chicken Gardens" by Jessi Bloom that is very informative and hits on tons of options and recommendations for it seems like everything for chickens and gardens.

 

[Judy]

I have 9 hens in a 70' x 70' yard. They keep the grass cropped, and a lot of the plants get killed. There are weed bushes over 8' tall in there, even a couple of pine trees, and various green weeds that they won't eat. They don't kill all the grass plants, but they sure keep it cropped to the dirt. They even eat it through the fence.

We're talking about putting up another yard about the same size and alternating every year, perhaps gardening in the off one.

 

[ChickenCurt]

I'll try to find my book...it's called "Chicken Tractor"...but my books are packed away due to moving my office recently. Soon though

 

[FenikT]

It's a bit late in the season to plant grass.

Best bet is to overseed in late summer or early fall with rye grass, 1# per 100sq FT. It's best to seed after the birds roost else they will eat it as fast as you drop it. Water everything down well. Don't toss hay over the seed because that only urges the birds to scratch and dig.

You might want to get their mind off looking for the seeds by overindulging them with some snacks or giving them something big (like a melon or pumpkin) to snack on.