Raised grass beds for chicken runs.
The Grass Boxes
The idea is pretty simple.
1) Make a wood frame ( like you would do for a raised garden bed)
2) Built a door. Staple the rubber net ( there are some very thick and heavy duty nets available), then screw another piece of wood to pin the net like a sandwich ( I used a 1x2 on the bottom and a 2x2 on the top ( but I would recommend to use a 1x3 for for top and bottom pieces for a better design) I also preferred a rubber net instead of chicken wire because I felt it would be softer on the chickens feet.
3) Attach the door to the bed frame with hinges, so you can open and have access to the inside the box when you want.
4) Seed the box ( I used rye grass for fast growing), and wait.
5) Once the grass is long enough to reach the net, the chickens will be able to eat the tip of the grass, without being able to scratch with their feet and pull out the roots of the grass.
6) To add more support for the long spanning net, I put few concrete blocks. You can use 2x4 sideways. The net will give a little because the weight of the chickens ( most of my chickens are small bantams), but it can be made to hold the weight of full size chickens.i made my raised beds a little too tall ( because I already had those round posts left from another project , but you only need to be 3 to 4 inches above ground, so using regular 2x4 will make it much easier.
The idea is pretty simple.
1) Make a wood frame ( like you would do for a raised garden bed)
2) Built a door. Staple the rubber net ( there are some very thick and heavy duty nets available), then screw another piece of wood to pin the net like a sandwich ( I used a 1x2 on the bottom and a 2x2 on the top ( but I would recommend to use a 1x3 for for top and bottom pieces for a better design) I also preferred a rubber net instead of chicken wire because I felt it would be softer on the chickens feet.
3) Attach the door to the bed frame with hinges, so you can open and have access to the inside the box when you want.
4) Seed the box ( I used rye grass for fast growing), and wait.
5) Once the grass is long enough to reach the net, the chickens will be able to eat the tip of the grass, without being able to scratch with their feet and pull out the roots of the grass.
6) To add more support for the long spanning net, I put few concrete blocks. You can use 2x4 sideways. The net will give a little because the weight of the chickens ( most of my chickens are small bantams), but it can be made to hold the weight of full size chickens.i made my raised beds a little too tall ( because I already had those round posts left from another project , but you only need to be 3 to 4 inches above ground, so using regular 2x4 will make it much easier.
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