Are "vegetables and fruits" good food for my chickens?

[Dreyadin]

Things from my garden they snack on when they invade... (aside from tomatoes & cukes & baked squash)

strawberries
ripe tomatillos
LOVE (Concord & wild) grapes- (which we are using at the moment to administer powdered antibiotics to our rooster)
black raspberries
mullberries
dried radish seed pods & mature sunflower heads
beans- in particular dried beans that I don't want them to eat
fresh sweet corn- they will try to run away with the whole cob
blueberries
elderberries
parsley
pears
cherries
peas.. especially pea flowers
broccoli stems (they only get a little of this or the eggs taste weird)
pineapple (this they stole from the compost heap repeatedly)
melons of any sort- the scrapings of the seeds they love
(mine will eat squash seeds raw.. but like winter squash cooked & soft)
cranberries
plums.. the little wild plums around here in particular (they are like candy- omg good)

cooked... potatoes, sweet potatoes, carrots, (one rooster likes parsnips- the others don't care), rutabaga, turnips (smallll amounts or funky eggs)


Something about the Concord grapes that mine go absolutely insane over. A lot of people around here have them.. they make a little juice & jelly with them.. and give away the rest... so we get 5 gallon buckets full of them. All of October they have purple-ish poop... mullberry is the worst as it seems to stain more.

If you are getting it from the store.. just be cautious as some produce is pretty heavily sprayed. Farmer's market's/ farm stands are another good place to ask about seconds.

In a few days.. we'll be loaded up with pumpkins from the neighbors as they take down their Halloween displays.

 

[goodb]

"If you are getting it from the store.. just be cautious as some produce is pretty heavily sprayed. Farmer's market's/ farm stands are another good place to ask about seconds."


GREAT IDEA!

 

[Dreyadin]

Bakeries are another for day old/stale bread (which we used to get for our horses).. but I rarely give my birds bread.

Some give their birds fat (suet) in the winter.. there is a butcher/ small processor not far from us- they'll give away for free bones and fat for pets. We render down the fat in water (boil it down- the water keeps it whiter and more mild flavor)- then let cool & harden- remove from pot as the lard will lift out. Can melt it down a little to soften it from there and pour into a lined pan full of dried fruits & seeds. A suet block for wild birds.. or something to hang in your coop for the chickens. Mine get it one super cold days when they can't go out. The colder- the better- otherwise they devour it- and I want them to work for it to keep busy. (If you want to get super geeky... try a bundt pan to make it look like a wreath (which they will obliterate in minutes.. but for those few minutes you feel like Martha Stewart lol.)

 

[Nutcase]

Good ideas for cold weather people. I myself am in the tropics so suet isn't really beneficial to my flock, plus they need less body fat to keep warm. I don't feed my chickens bread much, they much prefer veggies.

 

[kate86]

The rooster loves fresh bread and banana, but wasnt keen on the sweetcorn. The chickens loved it all. I am going to try apple and pears as i always have a few left over that dont get eaten. With veg such as cauliflower and broccoli is it best for them to have it raw or cooked? Also when i cook porridge and ready brek i always have some left over as i always make to much, can i give the chickens whats left? Sorry to ask so many questions.

 

[goodb]

I have never seen a hen heating up the stove to cook what she's going to eat in the garden.

 

[Dreyadin]

Porridge, cream of wheat, oatmeal, barley... they'll happily eat those leftovers- just make sure they don't have too much sugar or salt.. and in moderation (especially when it comes to cooked rice & cooked pasta.)

Broccoli & cauliflower- the florets.. the stems.. some like it raw.. some like it cooked. With the stems they can be very fiberous on the outside- just split it down the stem so they can get at the middle. (I am mean- I leave it whole so they have to work for it.) Just with veggies in the brassica family (cabbage, kale, brussel sprouts, broccoli, cauliflower, etc.) only a little for the hens or the eggs taste weird.

 

[Nutcase]

Mine love porridge. They gulp it down and then scrape their beaks clean on my feet. Yuck! I give the flock a bit of plain yoghurt every 10 days or so as well.

 

[ChickenWaterer]

Most fruits and veggies are fine but no citrus and no avocado skins or potato peels. Remember that these are supplements to their normal diet and should not really account for more than 10% of what you feed your flock.

 

[WindingWater]

what about sweet peppers?