Deep litter method

[microchick]

I have been using pine chips to DL since day one and have noticed that the bedding stayed dried evenly with daily turning. When I cleaned out the coop at the 3 month mark and put the shavings on the compost pile I noticed that they were as dry as a bone. Late summer rolled around and I switched to brome hay as bedding as I have a 6 foot bale. Even with good ventilation (including two entrances for the birds that are open every day giving the coop cross ventilation) I'm noticing that the hay is not drying. The top layer of hay has areas that when I push my hand in, are very damp while deep in the bedding, the thin layer of chips that I kept in the coop are dry.

I'm worried that with winter coming on I'm going to be fighting frost bite if the brome doesn't dry properly. Should I switch back to pine for the chicken's or am I doing something wrong here? I turn the bedding daily and urge the hens to scratch around by sprinkling a little corn in the grass but nothing seems to help. I was thinking maybe I just need to keep a thin layer of chips down under the brome hay but once winter sets in I'm really worried about frost bite. I've been scraping out the soiled brome every couple of days and sprinkling it around the run. I rake the run out about every 30 days and pile it on the compost pile where I have noticed it composting.

Any ideas anybody?

 

[layne517]

The only way you'll ever know is to try it. Just jump in and start composting materials right in the coop and run on top of the sand and DE and see what happens. Anything is better than sand and DE, so throwing leaves, grasses, pine needles, yard wastes, etc. on top of it can't really hurt. I'd throw in some fresh, rich soil or compost first to get it started and then see what happens...by spring you should know if you've successfully achieved a working deep litter.

I'd avoid using wood shavings or straw, though, as they take forever to decompose even in a coop with a soil floor. I'd use materials of different size and composting times, build it deep and leave it be~don't stir it all the time, in other words. Just flip the manure in the top layers and send it down into the under layers....keep the underneath a tad moist, keep good ventilation throughout the coop and see what happens.

The only way you'll ever know is to try it yourself...the best kind of knowledge is practical, first hand knowledge.

Thanks Beekissed! I think I'll give it a shot. I know there is a plethora of opinions and options so you have to go with your gut (it never fails

) but what about the stuff I've read about DL being a hotbed for bacteria? Personally from what I've read on this forum, I tend to not believe it, but this opinion comes from a very, very reputable and experienced chicken lady

(who uses sand)

 

[Beekissed]

Thanks Beekissed! I think I'll give it a shot. I know there is a plethora of opinions and options so you have to go with your gut (it never fails

) but what about the stuff I've read about DL being a hotbed for bacteria? Personally from what I've read on this forum, I tend to not believe it, but this opinion comes from a very, very reputable and experienced chicken lady

(who uses sand)

Don't know what diatom dust has to do with breeding bacteria, but I'd not worry too much about all that. A good, cultured DL will build its own, healthy microorganisms to aid in the digestion of the materials and, if one has the proper ventilation and manages the DL well, they should soon override any more harmful pathogens or molds in the coop and run. I'd just keep thinking "forest floor" and then try to mimic that as closely as you can.

Just use common sense and that about covers it.

 

[Latestarter]

Hey there @layne517

and the thread! Throwing my 2 cents in: I hope it IS a "hot" bed for bacteria... that's what breaks down the carbon based materials and gives you that beautiful compost! Without the bacteria, you'd have nothing but a big pile of "stuff". The thing is, in a compost situation, the bacteria are GOOD bacteria, not bad! As for doing it over concrete... Have you ever left a pile of leaves on a concrete walk over winter? then looked under and in them in the spring? If they've been wet at all, they will generally have started composting and be chock full of worms and bugs! THAT is the IDEAL! That's exactly what you want in your DL.

The best garden soil (loam) is a combination of sand, clay and organic material (compost). The sand shouldn't hurt your DL as long as it eventually gets mixed in, and with chickens, it should... As for the DE, eventually it too will "go away" but don't add any more! One of the major attractors for me about DL is you DON'T have to do daily cleaning! One of the major DE-tractors of sand is you HAVE to do daily cleaning! And what do you do with all that stuff you clean out of the coop daily? why you throw it into your deep litter that you call a compost heap! Hmmmmm...

Anyway, good luck with whatever you choose!

 

[cowchipss]

I'm getting ready to start deep litter in my hoop coop that is my chicks' coop & run. I will be building them an outdoor run but they will spend most of their time in the hoop coop.

Do you guys put down wire under the deep litter so that the chickens don't dig near the edge of the run (up against the sides) and end up digging out of the run? I will have a wire skirt along the outside for predators but what about the inside?

I plan to put a large container in the hoop coop with sand for dust bathing but know that they may decide they still like digging their own holes. Have you guys found that once you put in the deep litter they don't dig? I know getting my setup correct is an ongoing process but am curious what you all have seen in your experience. Do they dust bath in the deep litter? To be clear, I'm not asking if that's good enough for them. I still plan to put in a dust bath but am curious if they will keep digging and if I should consider putting wire around the border on the inside. Thanks!

 

[Beekissed]

I'm getting ready to start deep litter in my hoop coop that is my chicks' coop & run. I will be building them an outdoor run but they will spend most of their time in the hoop coop.

Do you guys put down wire under the deep litter so that the chickens don't dig near the edge of the run (up against the sides) and end up digging out of the run? No...I've never heard of anyone having chickens dig out of a run that has adequate deep litter going on.

I will have a wire skirt along the outside for predators but what about the inside? Not necessary.

I plan to put a large container in the hoop coop with sand for dust bathing but know that they may decide they still like digging their own holes. Have you guys found that once you put in the deep litter they don't dig? They can and will dust bathe in the finer particles of the composted deep litter and that's okay. They don't actually dig holes, as the litter gets kicked back into any impressions they may dust in at any given time. If your litter is dry enough and shallow enough for them to displace permanently and dig holes in the soil underneath, you aren't building it deeply enough and you aren't keeping it moist enough. In the summer when it's very dry you might find it dries out a good bit and they find dusting spots, but I'd never keep it shallow enough that they have permanent "holes" in the landscape.

I know getting my setup correct is an ongoing process but am curious what you all have seen in your experience. Do they dust bath in the deep litter? Yes, they do, as the litter eventually just turns to fine, silty soil.

To be clear, I'm not asking if that's good enough for them. I still plan to put in a dust bath but am curious if they will keep digging and if I should consider putting wire around the border on the inside. Thanks!

 

[cowchipss]

Thanks! What I thought but wanted to hear from you peeps.

 

[layne517]

Hey there @layne517

and the thread! Throwing my 2 cents in: I hope it IS a "hot" bed for bacteria... that's what breaks down the carbon based materials and gives you that beautiful compost! Without the bacteria, you'd have nothing but a big pile of "stuff". The thing is, in a compost situation, the bacteria are GOOD bacteria, not bad! As for doing it over concrete... Have you ever left a pile of leaves on a concrete walk over winter? then looked under and in them in the spring? If they've been wet at all, they will generally have started composting and be chock full of worms and bugs! THAT is the IDEAL! That's exactly what you want in your DL.

The best garden soil (loam) is a combination of sand, clay and organic material (compost). The sand shouldn't hurt your DL as long as it eventually gets mixed in, and with chickens, it should... As for the DE, eventually it too will "go away" but don't add any more! One of the major attractors for me about DL is you DON'T have to do daily cleaning! One of the major DE-tractors of sand is you HAVE to do daily cleaning! And what do you do with all that stuff you clean out of the coop daily? why you throw it into your deep litter that you call a compost heap! Hmmmmm...

Anyway, good luck with whatever you choose!

Thank you SO much for your input Latestarter!! Good advice!

 

[ana2707]

I'm considering the deep litter method, my question is how do you keep it dry after rain or snow? I feel like bedding would saturate all the way through very quickly.

 

[Latestarter]

If you start out and keep it deep, that normally won't be an issue. It will get wet (that's desirable) but the moisture should wick down. If it's a puddle (too wet), you add more dry stuff (leaves, wood chips) to absorb it.