building a chicken "grass salad bar" in the run.

[lharper]

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WOW! It sounds like you live right down the road from me lol Our town is the SAME way, but *knock on wood* we havent had any trouble yet.

 

[elmo]

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I'm thinking of doing that this spring. I have a low spot in our big run that tends to get soggy from water that seeps in from outside the run (the run is roofed), and I've been trying to think of easy ways to bring up the level of the ground in that area.

Was there anything left of the sod after the chickens finished with it?

 

[elmo]

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Hawks are the main daytime chicken predator ...hence the term "chicken hawk." And for our tiny bantams, even roaming neighborhood cats would be trouble.

 

[elmo]

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I use day tractors in the spring, summer and fall. I don't put the chickens in the tractor in winter because there's nothing growing for them to eat. They go back to their stationary coop and run at night because it's really hard to make a tractor predator secure.

 

[cleoandtheo]

This thread inspired me to make a "salad bar" for our girls. The buckwheat and spinach are especially huge hits!!!

 

[yuanyelss]

I created a salad bar run out - the girls can eat it through a lot of fence, I have enough for their own spinach (and hand feed them.)

 

[Gallo del Cielo]

I've done something like you're thinking. I also used sod as others have suggested. I have grape vines that cover the run, but after the first freeze the leaves fall off and I put in sod. We did it last year and the sod lasted all winter until late spring (when a faulty irrigation system killed it off while we were out of town). Just to provide background to understand the sorts of pressures on the grass in the run, my coop and run is 200 sq.' and I only have six chickens. My chickens also free-range most days, so they're usually not torturing the grass all day long. This winter I put in 80 sq.' of sod (it's actually not that expensive) and it's holding up well again. I also made a wire cover (using 1" X 2" 14 gauge galvanized wire) measuring about 5' long X 2' wide and 2" tall to cover one section of grass to see if that will help to keep the grass under it alive for a longer period of time. I don't know how long into the summer the grass will survive. The heat coupled with burning droppings will be tough on the grass. Also by mid-June it will be relatively dark in the run as the grape vines cover it all. This arrangement obviously wouldn't work for everyone. I think your success will depend, in large part, on the number of chickens you have and the amount of space to which they have access. I think just about anyone could have some success with having a wire basket-cover over grass, providing the growing requirements for grass are met. While putting sod into the run wasn't my idea (it was the DW), I really like the fact that my girls have constant access to fresh greens when we can't be here to let them free-range.

Here is what the grass looks like after nearly 4 months of abuse by the chickens. You can see the wire protective cage at the bottom left of the pic.

 

[wannabchick]

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Ahaa thank u., so they don't just rip the grass right out of the ground?

 

[PapaChaz]

wow these are some very neat ideas! i've wondered what the best way to get some greens to the girls would be, i can't let them free range a lot, we have a pair of hawks that live close by. they know there is plenty to eat here, they've helped with the rabbit population, tho not enough to let me get much from the garden! now i know what to do for the girls. we have a sod farm not far from here, i've bought scraps from there to fill in places in the yard, now i have another reason to go out there!

 

[mtpockets]

Hi new here, just a few questions...I have researched this idea alot lately due to the fact that my free rangers are about to be jailed because of neighborhood threats. (Dogs, not people LOL) My main concern is about the hens walking on the hardware cloth. Has anyone had any problems with toes getting caught, or twisted ect? I just can't picture them scratching around on that stuff and not getting hurt. Other question, what are the differences between using hardware cloth and chicken wire? Does one work better than the other? And last, for those of you who have sprinkler systems set up do you think the chickens would bother a really simple dripper system? Above ground type of thing with everything hanging out. Thanks in advance for any help.