Mud Mud Mud

[KelliR]

Oh, I know where to buy shavings....I use pine shavings or pellets...pellets would be good in this case as they are super absorbent...I would never use anything treated like colored mulch....Lowes has Cyprus mulch right now...just wondering how it would do.....with my magnolia leaves, pine shavings etc mixed.

 

[TalkALittle]

I wouldn't use the pellets at all. When wet don't they breakdown into a sawdust material. That is going to form a solid mat in the litter, not allowing air to reach down. It will promote the bad kind of mold and anaerobic decomposition that leads to odor.

Don't think about drying out the ground or trying to absorb all that wetness. Think about creating a lofty, multi-texured layer that sits above the wetness and elevates the birds off the wet ground.

 

[yellowchicks]

Deep litter is definitely the answer for a fix. Don't worry too much about what to buy as bedding. Look around your yard for leaves, grass clippings and any yard waste.

I have two runs, both use DL, but in different ways. The run that is attached to the coop is covered, its bedding is from the pine shaving clear out from the coop from time to time. I like to keep the bedding in the covered run drier so the chickens don't get muddy feet onto the eggs and stay clean. I never need to clean the chicken poop in the run, chickens just scratched the poop into a powder form, which I scoop out each spring to the compost bin. From time to time, I would spray the dust off and moisten the bedding as needed.

There is another much larger run area adjacent to the coop behind our shed that is not covered. This area is probably the lowest part of the neighborhood. It consistently pond with several inches of water every time there is a heavy rain, but it does infiltrate into the ground in a day or so. It was a wasted space but ideal to let the chicken roam there. So we put grass clippings (make sure there is no chemical) and mulched leaves there to create a rich based. Then I mixed a year worth of "aged" chicken poop from the compost bins into the bedding. The leaves (as carbon) neutralizes the poop.

 

[KelliR]

Got it! That makes perfect sense....poor things are so sad and muddy. I let them out for a few hours a day to roam the yard, but the yard is wet too and the rain has been relentless. I think tonight they may get a good feet cleaning before bed!

 

[Bnemi]

We use corrugated plastic drain tile here in Ohio buried in the soil 2ft down. We are getting a lot of rain too.

 

[donrae]

This year has been simply horrible for mud. And it's only December......

You've had some excellent advice. The only thing I'll add is to toss scratch or sunflower seeds or whatever you like in the run every day or so. Scratching for food is a natural behavior we often deprive the birds of, with our nice contained feeders. They'll get the natural behavior, the good exercise for their leg muscles, and as a side benefit they'll turn that litter over for you and help keep it from getting quite so compacted.

 

[TalkALittle]

We use corrugated plastic drain tile here in Ohio buried in the soil 2ft down. We are getting a lot of rain too.

Haha! My water table is so high that if I dig 2 feet down I hit water. That's why my run became so saturated when I had sand. It is a covered run and wasn't getting wet from rain. It was getting wet from water seeping in from the ground around it.

 

[donrae]

Haha! My water table is so high that if I dig 2 feet down I hit water. That's why my run became so saturated when I had sand. It is a covered run and wasn't getting wet from rain. It was getting wet from water seeping in from the ground around it.

This is me, too! We try to dig post holes and the posts are literally floating/bobbing in the hole. My next place will have some slope to it and be a touch higher overall. things you don't necessarily think of when you're looking at property for the first time.

 

[Beekissed]

So....deep litter in the run? The straw about broke my back when I went to remove it and it had compacted. Let me get this straight.....pine pellets, shavings, mulch.....pile it up on top of the mud and come spring just turn it all in with the dirt to refresh? That was kinda what I was leaning toward. I have some angry birds! They do however have a large, dry coop that honestly I could put a dust bath in.....poor girls...I feel so sorry for them! Thanks for the replies! Oh...and there is one French drain in there already, and yes it is in a lower part of the yard....had to build off of where the old playhouse was...it can't be moved....sheet metal!

No, you don't "turn in" deep litter. You just keep building it..and build it deep. It's best to stay away from things that are all one size and kind of material, as these take a long time to break down and can be a sodden, compact and smelly mess until it does~all straw, all hay, all pine shavings, etc. You'll want things that lets water and air into the middle of the litter pack and a variety of materials seems to work best. Heavier materials at the bottom like ramial wood chip, lawn and garden debris, grass clippings, etc, to act as a sink for your water. Then layer in small amounts of straw, twigs, lots of leaves, bark, pine needles, etc. Build it deep in the run~try to keep it 10-12 in. deep~ and you'll start to see some amazing things instead of mud and stink....you'll notice a lack of smells, even in wet weather, a lack of flies, a busier and more contented flock and even better health in the flock.

It will compost in place and you never have to refresh it, clean it, or anything else...just keep adding to it. Depending on how much compost is being produced~probably a lot considering where you live~ you may want to remove some of it every year to place on the garden, flower beds or even just spread it on the lawn. Another neat thing to do is place a few grow frames over it and seed it with some nutritious greens for the flock so they will have even more variety in their diet. If you provide them with a composting run floor, the bugs and worms will move into that litter pack and they will benefit from that food source as well. In the end you'll have healthier habitat for the chickens, for your soil and for your own benefit and time spent.

Grow frames...

 

[KelliR]

Thank you SO much for your advice.....I decided a long time ago to opt out of the deep litter method inside the coop. I only have three birds right now and I use a poop board that I built with a lip around it under their roost. It has Sweet PDZ granuals in it kind of like kitty litter that I scoop every other day. Coop stays so much cleaner. The run on the other hand has been the challenge.....sand, top soil...no matter what it ends in a mucky, sticky mess when we have rain. So here is what I have done so far.......

Layer 1: Dead tomato plants (dried up stalks
Layer 2: Magnolia leaves (not mulched) including Magnolia grenades....(southern for the seed pods)
Layer 3: Twig, sticks, random yard items
Layer 4: Oak leaves....tons of them

I have PLENTY of all of this stuff so there will be no issue keeping it filled in. When I walked in I could feel a nice cushiony , springy floor which is what it sounds like I want? I'd LOVE to finish it off with some nice clean pine.....the bigger pieces....I have to say...I threw in some weeds and they are in there going to town.....no muddy feet! The only thing is that the leaves and such are damp from the rain...the front that blew in dried it up some but I am assuming it was ok to go ahead and use them slightly damp. Anything has to be better than the mud wrestling pit they were in!