Chicken Tractor in Winter (in the South)

[GA963]

This is probably addressed in numerous posts here, but I wasn't able to find anything in search. I live in Georgia, where snow isn't a problem (with rare exceptions). I have some birds in a 4x8 tractor and have been moving it daily, which has worked well through the growing season. They could pass over the same area every 2 weeks or so with the grass recovering in between. Now that the grass has gone dormant, there are some winter weeds (chickweed, henbit, bittercress) but areas they graze won't readily bounce back. Do people typically park their tractors in the winter and do a coop/run? At least half the time, I would have to leave them in during much of the day, because I am not around in the mornings. I have some poultry netting around the tractor, which could serve as a paddock, but I wouldn't want to open the door pre-dawn. I have a variety of predators.

 

[aart]

Might want to park it and use some bedding.
How many birds?

 

[GA963]

Six total: five hens, one rooster

 

[NatJ]

I live in Georgia, where snow isn't a problem...Now that the grass has gone dormant, there are some winter weeds (chickweed, henbit, bittercress) but areas they graze won't readily bounce back. Do people typically park their tractors in the winter and do a coop/run?

I have never dealt with that particular situation, but I can think of several possible things to do.

You could keep moving it every day, but cover a larger area overall, so each area gets only one day of chickens and then is left alone until it grows back in the spring.

You could put the tractor somewhere that has a lot of weeds you want destroyed, leave it there for several days so the chickens can completely kill everything, and then move it on to the next spot you want weeds killed.

You could park it somewhere that lots of compost would be good (like on a place that will be garden next year or the year after), and regularly add any available things that can be composted (kitchen scraps, coffee grounds, shredded paper, dead leaves, wood chips, hay, straw, even occasional shovelfuls of dirt.) If it gets wet or smelly, add more dry things. The chickens can enjoy scratching and mixing it, and it might pile up pretty deep. Then in spring when the grass starts growing again, you can begin moving the tractor again. (Or move it several times during the course of the winter, making several shallower compost piles.)

And of course you can do one thing for a bit, then switch to doing another thing.

 

[GA963]

Thanks for these thoughts. I don't have enough space to move them daily to completely new ground from now until the weeds really start taking off. That happens in about early March usually--when the chickweed and cool weather grasses like fescue start growing vigorously and can handle grazing (my yard is an eclectic mix, with a lot of warm-season grasses like Bermuda, as well).

I could park it and let them intensively clear an area. I have done that a few times already to clear spots for garden beds. However, with the number of birds I have, I'm concerned about them getting a little restive as they manure an area heavily and deplete the vegetation. I do have wood chips and give them food scraps, but haven't done that in a focused way so far.

Mixing it up might be the optimal choice and give them some variety--keep them in place for 2-3 weeks, moving them only a couple of times, then send them on a 2-week tour over new ground, then bring them back to the same or similar areas. Thanks!

 

[Alaskan]

Do people typically park their tractors in the winter and do a coop/run?

That is what I do.