Best bedding for wet muddy run

[henless]

Leaves, pine straw, grass clippings & garden leavings have always worked for me. I pile it deep and let the chickens dig through. Gives them something to do and a nice "spongy" area to walk.

 

[LulaBell]

Wood bark in the run should help.

Our local tree trimming service is always looking for somewhere to dispose of wood chips. I have requested to have a load dumped at our house and plan to use it for our run. The chips are free AND they deliver! It's a win-win

 

[PNWJewele]

Our local tree trimming service is always looking for somewhere to dispose of wood chips. I have requested to have a load dumped at our house and plan to use it for our run. The chips are free AND they deliver! It's a win-win

Same here with the tree service, the chips we get from the service who has the PUD contract are wonderful. Unfortunately, now everyone wants them and there is a list you need to be on.

 

[Cryss]

I live in southern Georgia. There’s a lot of draining issues here because of all the clay in the ground. Everything kinda puddles and sits for weeks after a big rain. Luckily my coop/run are in a spot where that doesn’t happen. I’m just sick of a muddy floor in there. I will try the bark though. Thank you!

Ramial wood chips and bark are not the same thing. Ramial wood chips are from small whole branches from a tree that have been run through a wood chipper. The wood absorbs water in its cells whereas bark alone doesn't do that as well. Just call a local tree service and offer to let them dump a load on your property. Be ready to move it because they don't usually go past the top end of a driveway or, in my case, the edge of my backyard along a side road.

 

[LittleMissPurdy]

Same here with the tree service, the chips we get from the service who has the PUD contract are wonderful. Unfortunately, now everyone wants them and there is a list you need to be on.

We have the opportunity for this also.
Being in the mountains of PA, there is no-shortage of trees= wood chips! Lots of hardwoods here too!
We use this in all of our beds, flower & veggies. Even the entire garden is mulched.
It breaks down & becomes the most glorious soil.
This would be great for clay soil as it would add carbon material to help "loosen" or break-up clay.

 

[Cryss]

We have the opportunity for this also.
Being in the mountains of PA, there is no-shortage of trees= wood chips! Lots of hardwoods here too!
We use this in all of our beds, flower & veggies. Even the entire garden is mulched.
It breaks down & becomes the most glorious soil.
This would be great for clay soil as it would add carbon material to help "loosen" or break-up clay.

 

[Hessk]

Ramial wood chips and bark are not the same thing. Ramial wood chips are from small whole branches from a tree that have been run through a wood chipper. The wood absorbs water in its cells whereas bark alone doesn't do that as well. Just call a local tree service and offer to let them dump a load on your property. Be ready to move it because they don't usually go past the top end of a driveway or, in my case, the edge of my backyard along a side road.

Do they need to be stored in a covered area? Can you just throw a tarp over the wood chip pile?

 

[Cryss]

Do they need to be stored in a covered area? Can you just throw a tarp over the wood chip pile?

I don't know because I've never covered a pile. I can imagine covering would encourage mold. My piles grow mushrooms but that's actually a good thing meaning its alive and perfect to use as mulch in your garden. Mushrooms=good. Mold=bad.

 

[MROO]

The floor of my run is currently dirt mixed with straw that the chickens are always kicking out of the coop. We live in a humid climate that gets lots of rain. A majority of the year it is wet/ muddy and mixed with the poop it’s just terrible. I rake everything out twice a week (as long as the weather permits). I wanted to switch to sand but have heard mixed reviews. I’d also have to buy bagged sand from an home improvement store (no truck to buy bulk) and I don’t think places such as Home Depot sell the correct kind of sand for chickens. Any other ideas of what I could use?

If you can build your run up a bit, that would help. My run is a pair of built-in sandboxes under a playhouse and "porch" set-up. The porch side of the run still gets rain through it, as the planking is slatted a bit, so it got really muddy when the rains hit or the snow melted. After a nasty bout with coccidiosis, I knew the wet mess had to go! I started with a layer of small gravel and sand in the bottom, leaving the original sandbox sides in place. That got followed up with hardwood mulch (no dyes.) The run floor is now four to six inches above grade, and so far, so good!

The mulch is breaking down into good dirt and most of the wet drains through and out the bottom. I'm half considering planting some fast-sprouting seeds in there, just to give my biddies something to destroy. I'm definitely adding some around the outer edges, so leaves will grow in trough the wire. With the rich run-off from inside the run, we ought to get some nice greenery growing there.

 

[rosemarythyme]

Do they need to be stored in a covered area? Can you just throw a tarp over the wood chip pile?

No need to cover them (that just holds moisture in), it's fine to just leave them sitting in a pile somewhere. As you use them up just skim off the top and it'll let the layer under that air out, and so on.