Can I get pine needles for litter at my feed store?

[can you hear me now?]

just curious. I don't want to use hay agaon they scratched it all out of my bottom boxes because they love to scratch through things.

 

[Sunny Side Up]

I've seen bales of pine needles sold at some plant nurseries, but I would rather go under some pine trees rake them up myself for free.

 

[can you hear me now?]

see that is where my problem is. I don't know where any pine needles are. All I have on my property is spruce and cedar.

 

[nccountrygirl]

You can get bales of it from Lowes for 4.25 a bale.

 

[MandyH]

Unfortunately, living in the south we have an over abundance of pine trees. We had ours cut several years back, but all of my husbands family live all in a row up the highway here, and I just take my wheelbarrow and rake and go get some of theirs. Lowe's and Home Depot carry them, they are usually in a 18 wheeler trailer out next to the garden center. If you don't see them, just ask.

 

[Sunny Side Up]

You said your reason for wanting to try pine needles was that the hens were wasting the hay by scratching it out of their nests. It seems they would do the same with pine needles too. Why not try something free and easily available for you, like the cedar or spruce needles, or other leaves, or grass? I heard of someone who shredded their junk mail & lined their nest boxes with that. Actually, the hens don't need a fluffy nest, they'll even lay in a shallow hole they dig in the dirt.