Chickens in Permaculture

[Leahs Mom]

So I have some questions.

Can someone comment on your experience with chickweed? I know my chickens love it...would it even be possible to seed an area that is grass/clover just by scattering seed on the ground and making a decent mix? How would that affect what is already there? Would it be wise or stupid?

Also considering somehow planting an area of wildflowers of some type for bee forage. Any thoughts on how to accomplish that? To avoid till, do I just scatter seed on top? What kinds of forage would you encourage for bees?


I'm not on a big farm, but will have about 6 acres to work with after the division (have 12 now but shortly only 6). I currently have nothing but chickens. Will likely have a hive or 2 at some point. Have considered grazing for meat - maybe only 2 cattle on that pasture. Maybe a couple boer goats to clean up the woods overgrowth then process for meat.

So... any thoughts would be appreciated! I'm in Northern Indiana...

Unfortunately we're not too far from a Monsanto test farm. Most the time we're upwind which is at least a consolation.

 

[centrarchid]

So I have some questions.

Can someone comment on your experience with chickweed?  I know my chickens love it...would it even be possible to seed an area that is grass/clover just by scattering seed on the ground and making a decent mix?  How would that affect what is already there?  Would it be wise or stupid? 


Also considering somehow planting an area of wildflowers of some type for bee forage.  Any thoughts on how to accomplish that?  To avoid till, do I just scatter seed on top?  What kinds of forage would you encourage for bees?


I'm not on a big farm, but will have about 6 acres to work with after the division (have 12 now but shortly only 6).  I currently have nothing but chickens.  Will likely have a hive or 2 at some point.  Have considered grazing for meat - maybe only 2 cattle on that pasture.  Maybe a couple boer goats to clean up the woods overgrowth then process for meat.

So... any thoughts would be appreciated!  I'm in Northern Indiana...

Unfortunately we're not too far from a Monsanto test farm.  Most the time we're upwind which is at least a consolation.

Most options I would try will be in conflict with the grazers. Most plants of interest will not tolerate sustained heavy grazing / browsing or are not palatable. Exceptions are the clovers but they can be pushed to hard as well. If you back of in the herd size and employ intensive rotational grazing you may be able to sustain your desired plant community. Also look into warm season plants such as those associated with your tall native prairie and consider use of exclosures to keep the stock off it during the growing season.

A problem I have seen with a lot of the native prairie plants growing here is that nectar flows may be great for native bees and other flower visiting insects but are not heavy enough during the late summer and early flow when the honey bees need it most.

 

[shortgrass]

So I have some questions.

Can someone comment on your experience with chickweed?  I know my chickens love it...would it even be possible to seed an area that is grass/clover just by scattering seed on the ground and making a decent mix?  How would that affect what is already there?  Would it be wise or stupid? 


Also considering somehow planting an area of wildflowers of some type for bee forage.  Any thoughts on how to accomplish that?  To avoid till, do I just scatter seed on top?  What kinds of forage would you encourage for bees?


I'm not on a big farm, but will have about 6 acres to work with after the division (have 12 now but shortly only 6).  I currently have nothing but chickens.  Will likely have a hive or 2 at some point.  Have considered grazing for meat - maybe only 2 cattle on that pasture.  Maybe a couple boer goats to clean up the woods overgrowth then process for meat.

So... any thoughts would be appreciated!  I'm in Northern Indiana...

Unfortunately we're not too far from a Monsanto test farm.  Most the time we're upwind which is at least a consolation.

I don't have a lot of experience with chickweed, so I'm not sure... But I looked it up

It sounds like it prefers to grow in lawns lol, so if grass and clover is what you want to seed it into, that would work perfect. I would scarify the grass in spring, rake it really good and thin it a wee bit. Then sscatter the seed in the already established grass and water in. The grass will hold the seed still so it doesn't wash away and protect the seedlings until they can get established.

Chickens are horrible grazers though, IMO ha-ha... They will crave something and scratch it to oblivion one week, then the next week they won't touch it. It depends on their needs, taste buds, and point of growth of the plant...

What kind if soil do you have to work with? Sandy, clay, loamy...alkaline, etc... Sometimes the weeds that are flourishing can tell you what ails your soil, or what kind of nutrient profile is there for plants to feed on, so letting us know what weeds dominate can narrow the soil type down


Bee garden, absolutely! I have butterfly beds, bee beds... The more flowers to call beneficials, the better, and pretty much ALL herbs or flowers have some sort of medicinal or nutrient that benefits both animals and people

Borage is a HUGE bee magnet. Bees all over, and the flowers are edible and great vitamin punch; my chooks don't touch them, so they're good for something they wouldn't eat that can stay healthy for the bees... Gallardia is another good one, as well as lazy susans and echinacea.. Bee balm, anise, and even cilantro self seed readily, and comfrey, nettles, dill, and wormwood are all great bee/beneficial/medicinal herbs that grow rampant around here.

I literally just toss seed where I want them, and water every day until I see seedlings, and then I never put down seeds again. If they grow, great. If not, ok whatever most times they grow, set seed, and migrate to where THEY want to be rather than where I want them, but sometimes they're a wee bit smarter than we are about selecting the right soil for the right plants

 

[Adorkable]

My chickens LOVE the borage plants. They strip all the leaves off if I let them in the garden lol. It does attract tons of bees, as does my comfrey plants when they bloom. I also let all my herbs flower and see bees on pretty much all of them.

 

[lazy gardener]

Sounds like Borage would be a good plant to add to my orchard. Doing BTE, and planting beneficial plants, as well as other useful plants at the back, and interspersed throughout. So far, have garlic and daffodils at the base of every tree, comfrey between a lot of them, 2 starts of rhubarb. Plan to add mint, lemon balm, echinacea, more garlic, strawberries, just to get some going outside my garden, oregano, chives... Other ideas appreciated.

 

[shortgrass]

It sounds like Borage is another one if those herbs that some chickens like, and some don't.... I've found that with chives, dill, sage, lambs quarters....prettyuch anything in my butterfly garden, they don't touch... But I hear a lot if stories of others' chickens eating them.

The opposite with some things; certain people have great luck with chickens not messing with squash or melons, but mine peck every last one and eat all the flowers

I honestly think chickens can acquire tastes to things that they wouldn't normally find in combination... Like dandelions and comfrey, for example. Mine don't seem to even notice the dandelions until the comfrey is up, almost like they prefer to dine in the together in season


My favorite color is purple... I've also discovered that most butterflies adore the color purple, so my butterfly bed has Lambs ears, Russian sage, cornflower, blue aster, pincushion, echinacea, beauty bush, lavendar, borage, and comfrey... Oh and purple irises

Love purple


Oh and these are Gallardia... The butterflies on these flowers during the final weeks if September was amazing...I hope you can see them!

Here's a close up

I'm always tickled to see so many Monarch butterflies

Even better is seeing their babies in the Dill... They seem to really dig the Dill as caterpillars...

 

[aart]

Are you sure those are monarchs?
Might be monarch butterflies on the flowers there, but monarch larvae only feed on milkweeds.
May be Black Swallowtail larvae on the dill.

Nice pics!

 

[centrarchid]

Butterflies shown look more Viceroys that use willow as larvae. Larvae shown dose not look like a Monarch beyond hint of color pattern. Maybe on off the swallowtails has that look.


I am into the milkweed family. Most do not tolerate tillage nor trampling from grazing livestock.

 

[shortgrass]

Guess I assumed lol.... See how easy it was to "mistake" a larvae?


Looked like a Monarch caterpillar to me lol

I'm not picky lol, butterflies are butterflies

Oh, so @centrarchid, are the Viceroys the ones that are orange, gray, and black spotted? I don't know what those ones are but they were all over the place too....


Are these who the caterpillars belong to?

 

[lazy gardener]

These pics are making me get antsy for spring. Only ?29 days before spring is officially on the way!