Cheaper Organic Feed? - Lettuce, Tomatoes, Mealworms, Etc.

[Dandelioness]

I think lack of fresh greens and quality animal proteins are what's lacking in most feeds, even organic. But obviously, you can't put those in a bag for one reason or another. I have the ability to safely range my birds during the day, but I still supplement these components of their diet in the winter.

I think when we talking to each other, it's important to recognize that folks who can't free range or have harsh winters are looking to make up for the lack of fresh food in the typical bag of layer ration. Birds with access to pasture & bugs regulate themselves very well and find what they need or leave what they don't much more than birds raised in confinement (whether that is by choice or dictated by circumstance).

I've culled too many birds who were raised on conventional feed with bad livers and weird growths vs organic/pastured birds of the same age with nice livers you could eat to believe everything necessary for optimal health comes in a 50# bag, organic or not. Just my $0.02.

 

[tatswell]

You all have great input- I appreciate it! As mentioned by Dande, I too think it differs on the purpose of the poultry. I have 5 girls for a backyard hobby- their treats are not only a treat but also a training mechanism to lure them back into their coop as they have access to (when it is not frozen or mounds of snow on the ground) a large yard, stream, garden, etc, where they eat whatever they find- grubs, fish, weeds, as well as grit. They do not have this option when they are cooped up in the winter. At the moment the hill down to the stream is a sheet of ice, so they will not be going out. Their coop is large enough, about 12x10, to keep them from being too bored. But they are not happy having been cooped up for a couple of weeks- they are yelling at me!

I did start regrow in the ends of the romaine lettuce- but that too will only last so long.

 

[ChickenCanoe]

... Just my $0.02.

Whatever happened to the cent sign on keyboards?

 

[OkanaganPeppers]

So how can I suppliment Methionine?

I thought I'd share a link to "Foods with highest ratio of Methionine+Cystine" though I can't recomend any praticlular one.
http://nutritiondata.self.com/foods-000990600300000000000.html

I keep it simple with my small flock. I"ll sprout a tray of BOSS so they can have greens in the winter I also sprout wheat berries to the point that it has lil tips sprouting out (4 days) I also take some of that wheat and I ferment it in a quart jar for 6 days before feeding it to them. A interesting link you might find interesting on bennifits and how to Lacto-ferment http://naturalchickenkeeping.blogspot.ca/p/fermented-feed.html

 

[nayeli]

Wow! Your spending a LOT of money! You can grow your own mealworms CHEAP. It might cost you $30 to get started than pretty much kitchen scraps! You should also look into growing fodder, just get some organic seed like barley etc and sprout it. It doesn't take to long to sprout, you can have many going at once, start a new one every day that way you feed one and have a new one. There are many things you can use for fodder, not just barley...
last but not least I would recommend duck weed. It is supposed to be really easy to grow, people just say to throw some in a kiddie pool or fish tank and it takes off!

 

[fruity7]

To get a bit of extra free food for our birds we have a big tin with holes cut in the bottom hanging in their yard. We throw a bit of scrap meat in the tin, and have a pretty constant drip of maggots dropping out the bottom. Surprisingly, it doesn't smell. We also keep our bokashi composter outside on the porch and it always gets colonised by soldier flies. Every couple of weeks we have a load of soldier fly larvae to scatter in the yard. We have pretty mild weather all year, I'm not sure if this would be any help where you are.

 

[ginia]

I go to the local organic grocery store and ask for their
"discarded" greens: this is what the produce guys/gals
trim off the vegetables, lettuces, etc to make them
look perfect. They have a big boxful of beautiful
greens EVERY DAY (usually late mornings).
Besides lettuce, there is often, bok choy, kale, broccoli,
parsley, peppers, etc
Tho sometimes they save boxes for local groups
who feed the homeless, I pick up a boxful once a week
and it lasts all week if I process it by putting it into bags
and in the fridge or cooler.

 

[Deborahspoultry]

Good idea!

 

[Goronson Chicks]

We have an arrangement with a local sandwich shop and when they are cutting up their veggies in the morning, they save all the tomato, pepper & cucumber ends for us.

It's a shop that I frequent and I was shy about asking at first, but they were so glad to do it because otherwise it just gets thrown away. They said better to give to a local hobby farm than throw it away.

I stop by and get a bag or sometimes a whole box every 2 days. Our flock is really happy with the fresh tomatoes and greens all winter.

 

[Heme]

Cold 14 degree chill: Making out well: Treats are lots of greens, crushed legumes, rice, and cut up apples.