Bird netting over run

[cmom]

I have netting and trees and big pens. I put the netting up in sections around the trees. It isn't pretty but functions well. I do also have several coops. There were no trees initially I planted them all. Our land is mostly open pasture. I don't know if these pictures will give you any ideas. The netting is attached to the front of the coops. My fences are 5' tall. Good luck and have fun ...

This is a section of the netting I used.

 

[Aunt Angus]

I have netting and trees and big pens. I put the netting up in sections around the trees. It isn't pretty but functions well. I do also have several coops. There were no trees initially I planted them all. Our land is mostly open pasture. I don't know if these pictures will give you any ideas. The netting is attached to the front of the coops. My fences are 5' tall. Good luck and have fun ...
View attachment 2482883View attachment 2482901View attachment 2482904View attachment 2482912
This is a section of the netting I used.
View attachment 2482900

This is pretty much what I'll be doing tomorrow. I'm going to attach the netting to the side of the coop and have it angle down to our 4 ft fence. This is temporary, though. I will try to get pics of that.

With our plans for the new coop, I will have a 6' fence around the yard, and I'll use the tension wires mentioned earlier with maybe some 4x4s on pier blocks to prop up the center. We'll see.

 

[WallyG74]

Do you have any rough measurements of the run space? Biggest issue covering a wide span is working in enough supports to elevate it high enough so you can get in and out without having to crouch.

I'd hate to take out the trees but it'd probably make things easier to lay out... though you might be able to use some of them to help elevate and support netting. Heavy duty netting is pretty tangle-free to work with, so it may be doable if you get creative with wrapping it/wiring it around trees.

Elevating it around the edges is a bit easier. T-posts or U-posts with tension wire strung around the top will form an edge to rest the netting on. I have about a 6' head clearance around the edge on the short wall part of my set up, which is enough for me to have full upright access through the whole run.

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Do your chickens have a tennis court? Super clean, flat, green grass. Very nice!

 

[Aunt Angus]

I'm picturing tennis-racket wielding hens with sweatbands now.

 

[rosemarythyme]

Do your chickens have a tennis court? Super clean, flat, green grass. Very nice!

What we have is "grass," aka it's a lot of buttercups and moss mixed in. Beauty of that is no watering in the summer, no fertilizing or special treatments, no nothing but mowing.

 

[WallyG74]

What we have is "grass," aka it's a lot of buttercups and moss mixed in. Beauty of that is no watering in the summer, no fertilizing or special treatments, no nothing but mowing.

Remember the movie “The Village”? Really good watch if you haven’t seen it. Anyways, the color red was strictly forbidden. My chickens feel the same way about the color green. If they see it, they scratch, eat, nuke, obliterate green. It’s not allowed.

 

[David61]

Share a picture of your run! | BackYard Chickens - Learn How to Raise Chickens
scroll down you'll see my post. pinion farms had the best netting and price i found. Your One Stop Poultry Supply Shop! (pinnonhatch.com)

 

[Lumikko]

Remember the movie “The Village”? Really good watch if you haven’t seen it. Anyways, the color red was strictly forbidden. My chickens feel the same way about the color green. If they see it, they scratch, eat, nuke, obliterate green. It’s not allowed.

This is the best description I have read about chickens and plants.

 

[linguini]

Does anyone have pictures they'd be able to share of how they've covered a large space with bird netting?

Our girls have a roofed run that they're in when we're not home and then a bigger area that's 3/4s covered with bird netting. We need to do the remaining area but I'd also like to work out a way that doesn't look...well...terrible. The current set up is function but is not ideal. So figured I'd reach out to those on here for inspiration! We have a decent sized yard but it isnt remotely level (read it's an uneven hill) so coming up with something functional and decent looking has been a challenge. Thanks all!

We have a 8x8x8 cube run which is covered by chicken wire and hardware cloth. We then put up an extended fenced-in area (with deer net) around the cube/coop, and covered the entire top with bird net. My husband used rope to keep the net from sagging. I think the entire area is about 45x45 or 50x50.

I also have a divider net that allows me to alternate their day-run to upper or lower lawn for grass to recover.

The metal posts are pretty inexpensive, $6 or so. Easy to implement, too.

 

[cmom]

This is pretty much what I'll be doing tomorrow. I'm going to attach the netting to the side of the coop and have it angle down to our 4 ft fence. This is temporary, though. I will try to get pics of that.

With our plans for the new coop, I will have a 6' fence around the yard, and I'll use the tension wires mentioned earlier with maybe some 4x4s on pier blocks to prop up the center. We'll see.

I made T-posts. Because the netting does sag a bit I use the
T-posts to hold up the netting. I originally ran short but put some crappy netting up which I have since replaced with some good netting. Here is a picture. That's an owl that went through some crappy netting. Since I replaced that section with some good heavy duty netting, no issues.