All about the herbs

[boymom47]

Hey all! I am late getting seeds in the ground, but I have a variety of herb seeds that I bought (because buying 10 varieties was actually cheaper than buying just basil and oregano.....) and I want to make sure that if (WHEN) my silly leghorns get into my garden, anything I'm attempting to grow (read: kill slowly and painfully with my black thumb) will not hurt my birdies. Are there any common herbs that are NOT chicken friendly? I'm growing this stuff mainly for the chickens, because I know they're going to get into it anyways, might as well pretend that was the plan all along, right?

Basil
Summer Savory
Mustard
Dill
Chives (garlic and regular)
Parsley
Sage
Cilantro

TIA!!!

 

[ChickenCanoe]

I think you'll be fine with all those. IMHO, with a good variety of forage, chickens will avoid things they shouldn't eat. However if they only have a monoculture available, they'll eat that even if it is bad.

 

[Sylie]

Hey all! I am late getting seeds in the ground, but I have a variety of herb seeds that I bought (because buying 10 varieties was actually cheaper than buying just basil and oregano.....) and I want to make sure that if (WHEN) my silly leghorns get into my garden, anything I'm attempting to grow (read: kill slowly and painfully with my black thumb) will not hurt my birdies. Are there any common herbs that are NOT chicken friendly? I'm growing this stuff mainly for the chickens, because I know they're going to get into it anyways, might as well pretend that was the plan all along, right?

Basil
Summer Savory
Mustard
Dill
Chives (garlic and regular)
Parsley
Sage
Cilantro

TIA!!!

I am a medicinal herbalist for both humans and animals and I see no problem with any of these herbs for your chickens. Like Chickencanoe said, they will avoid the ones they don't want or like or that will harm them.

 

[boymom47]

I think you'll be fine with all those. IMHO, with a good variety of forage, chickens will avoid things they shouldn't eat. However if they only have a monoculture available, they'll eat that even if it is bad.

Thank you! They are basically free ranging with access to food 24/7, but they are also half pig, I think, and their favorite pastime by far is eating. Can't say I blame them, my jeans size tells me how much I enjoy eating, too.....

 

[boymom47]

I am a medicinal herbalist for both humans and animals and I see no problem with any of these herbs for your chickens. Like Chickencanoe said, they will avoid the ones they don't want or like or that will harm them.

Thank you very much! Too cool to have an expert in the field to put my mind at ease. This is my first go round with chickens, but I have noticed that if I don't take scraps out of the run as quickly as I should, I don't have to worry about them eating it since they have an abundant supply of food, I love that they seem to know what not to eat!

 

[ChickenCanoe]

Chickens are omnivores and left to their own devices will eat a wide variety of vegetatable and animal products. They'll eat fruits, tender greens, nuts, seeds and any vertebrates and nonvertebrates they can swallow. They are diven by hunger when the crop is empty. They are driven by the need for energy and protein. Extensive research has identified a long list of vitamins, minerals, amino acids and fats that chickens need and in what ratios at specific ages. A complete feed free choice and good forage is best. Most people don't have the appropriate amount of forage available to keep modern chickens healthy. Chickens don't eat or drink at night so it is only necessary to provide those things after daylight.

 

[nerfworthy]

My chickies love it when I throw them excess herbs from my garden!

 

[lazy gardener]

Basil
Summer Savory
Mustard
Dill
Chives (garlic and regular)
Parsley
Sage
Cilantro

FYI, I've found that dill, chives, parsley, sage and cilantro are super easy to grow from seed. Mustard should also be super easy. Don't know about summer savory. Join us on some of the many gardening threads if you have any specific questions, or just want to talk gardening!

Parsley is the most finicky. It takes it FOREVER to get started.

 

[Toothpick]

I planted most of that around the exterior fence line of the run. When it grows I’ll just pick it and throw it over the fence.

 

[Sylie]

Thank you very much! Too cool to have an expert in the field to put my mind at ease. This is my first go round with chickens, but I have noticed that if I don't take scraps out of the run as quickly as I should, I don't have to worry about them eating it since they have an abundant supply of food, I love that they seem to know what not to eat!

They will taste almost anything including styrofoam, nails, etc but they will spit it out, just understand that I'm not suggesting that you allow them to forage in the garbage, just saying that they will try to eat anything and will decide once it's in their beak if it is or is not good to eat.