Pros: Beautiful photographs throughout of real gardens with free range chickens in multiple settings.
This book has a broad definition of free range that includes chicken tractors, chicken greenhouses, multiple and movable runs and fenced gardens. Gets you thinking about your landscape and chickens in ways that you have never considered. I found a copy to borrow recently at the internet archive.
This is an excellent book for someone who is thinking of getting chickens. It's also inspiring for chicken keepers that want to improve or add some creativity or whimsy to their current chicken environment.
It is full of great ideas for coops and runs, plantings for chickens, as well as, caring for chickens. Good tips and info about dealing with waste and predators too. Lots of pictures and illustrations to get you thinking!
I checked this book out from the library and I wish now that I owned it! The photos are gorgeous and I really enjoyed reading the whole book. I would of liked to see more photos of the authors personal garden, but I was able to get a lot of ideas and a lot more wishes for what I would love to have!
Reading this book gave me a better idea of how much space chickens really need. I knew the 10 in the run, 4 in the coop was unrealistic and not going to work with boys, especially if I wanted anyone to be happy, including the plants. Jessi stresses that chickens need more space than most think. Do not collect chickens. I was nearly guilty of this because of the classic requirements I had always heard. This book woke me up. 250 in the run, not 10.
I cannot wait to get my garden going after reading this book.
Pros: Lots of information, many pictures, great ideas
Cons: n/a
When my flock turned my yard into dirt and ate all of my plants, I decided I needed to do something creative with it (now that I am working with a clean slate). I ordered this book online and read it cover to cover. This book is awesome. It has so many great ideas and a ton of wonderful pictures. This book is full of information on coops, plants, a chicken's natural diet, and chickens themselves. It has lists of plant types to help you find some that fit your needs (shelter plants, forage plants, chicken resistant plants, etc.). I cant wait until spring so I can get started making my very own "free range chicken garden."
Pros: Informative, beautiful pictures, well written
Cons: None that I can think of
Has a little bit of everything, but mainly covers, of course, chicken gardens. Gave me a lot of good ideas on what plants to plant and what not to plant, also describes plant uses, such as using plants for shelter, to use as food, for medicinal purposes, chicken resistant plants, plants to use as a noise barrier, etc. Also gave great ideas on how to design your yard, landscape materials and chicken houses. Has a little bit on breeds of chickens, diseases and parasites and chicken problems. And as I've already said, lots of gorgeous pictures in this book as well.