Best Daily Green For Chickens?

[ClareScifi]

After reading some posts in this forum about spinach and kale being bad for chickens and especially ducks, due to its oxalate content, I've been hesitant to feed it to my hens, even though it's their very favorite green.

So can anyone recommend other greens that would be perfectly safe to feed them on a daily basis? I give them arugula a lot, and they like it, too, but I'm sure they are probably getting tired of it.

They don't like most lettuces.

They will peck a hung-up whole cauliflower clean in a few days, though they don't really care for cauliflower lying on the ground or broccoli florets. Parsley, cilantro, and watercress were not well received.

It seems they want spinach. I can't find any conclusive research stating it is harmful. I remember when the theory went around about 5 years or so ago that spinach was bad for humans. But has this pretty much been debunked or not? I don't want to do anything to hurt the chickens.

 

[ChickenAl]

Ours love dandelions. Don't even have to cultivate them, just pick them off the lawn. As long as you are not using chemical fertilizers or herbicides/pesticides they are great, and nutritious too.

Cabbage is good, and most weeds are even good to give them if they don't free range.

 

[Alethea]

I'm new in the chicken world and had not heard that kale bad for them. Our chicks get kale frequently and have been fine. They seem to most green things, but not celery or the lighter colored lettuce. I gave them cabbage one day and they loved it and the next day they had abnormal poops, so I'm not giving them cabbage any more.

 

[ninabeast]

I'd like to know more about spinach, too. I've been giving mine frozen chopped spinach on hot days.

In addition to the dandelion flowers, mine go crazy for dandelion leaves, which I cut up for them in manageable strips. And do NOT be in the way when I throw hosta leaves in the run!

I have also given them left overs from the bok choy in the garden. They like the flowers especially.

 

[CacklingCarolyn]

I have been giving mine cubed alfalfa. I soak it until it is soft and they love it.

 

[PippyChicken]

Mine like grass..

 

[peterlund]

Quote:
Ditto. They prefer to raid my garden, but they do like grass.....

 

[Crabby Chicken]

they have shredded all my hosta......and both my neighbors

apparantly they like it....alot

 

[Erica]

Everything in moderation! Spinach is perfectly fine in moderation. So are kale, cauliflower and cabbage. Over time, the brassicas like cabbage can deplete iodine. Remember too most plants have some kind of toxin; alfalfa for instance (a good feed in moderation).

Grass is a fabulous daily green but best if young and tender (higher protein). I agree with the dandelion comment, they're terrific (and high in calcium). Chickweed is a real favourite with chickens, and so is milk thistle.

And apart from 'everything in moderation', the other useful adage is 'variety is the spice of life'... A bit of this, a bit of that... Everything to its season... There now I think I've covered all the cliches of relevance.