Buckwheat

[Sharylva]

I have wire edging that I covered with chicken wire that is about 8 inches tall and 6 inches wide and about 7 feet long. I live in an area where I am unable to let my two chickens free range so I am wanting to be able to provide them something green in the cage that they can eat as it grows. I have the cage set up where they will not be able to uproot the plants but I'm still trying to figure out what plants would be best to grow. I bought some buckwheat seeds and some cream peas that the nursery recommended. Do you all think these will be good choices? I live in Central Texas and our temps are already close to 100 degrees. If anyone knows if these are good choices or if there is something else you all could recommend I would really appreciate the suggestions.

 

[Ohhhdear]

They're both ok choices, but the buckwheat grows faster and will give a faster turnaround. The real problem is your chickens will eat anything green faster than it can grow very large. Can you have several of these planters so you can rotate them into the chicken's run? If the 3 chickens in your picture are your complete flock, then it may take them only a few days at the most to eat the greens down to the roots.
Another alternative is to get grass clippings from neighbors who do not spray their lawns with chemicals.

 

[ralleia]

Buckwheat is a warm-weather annual, commonly used as a cover crop (often succession-planted to get three sets of growth in a summer), and is also used for sprouting. If you grow buckwheat to a plant, it's going to grow into a rather slim stalk with leaves, flower, set seed, and die, in two-three months.

I'm not sure what "cream peas" are, but if they're a type of peas, the pea prefers the cooler weather of spring and late fall, and would not like 100 degree heat one bit.

Perhaps you can do a succession of sprouts for your chickens?

Buckwheat is a great one for sprouts. I sprout sunflower seeds in a cloth bag and feed them to my chickens (I prefer alfalfa for my personal eating, with a little bit of salad dressing). If you venture into the world of sprouting there are all sorts of possibilities for your chickens--clover, broccoli, radish, kamut, sunflower, buckwheat, alfalfa, etc.