Chickens ; Run ; Sunflowers?

[the Precious Ladies]

Hi, I want to plant sunflowers on the outside of the run where the dirt is all turned over from burying the wire. Are sunflowers posions to Chickens? ( incase they take a little nibble of them )

 

[featherbaby]

No, sunflowers are not poison to chickens. I would recommend you plant the seeds where the stems will be out of reach of those sharp little beaks. Nibbling the leaves won't kill the plant, but pecking holes in the stem will. Also, if they are the tall variety, plan to stake each one with a bamboo or dowel stake. The heads get very heavy and a good wind or rain will blow them over easily.

You said you were a vegetarian and your friends thought you were insane? Someone on this forum (I can't remember who) replied this way to the same issue:

"Good garden 'o peas, ma'am...WE'RE ALL INSANE! That's why we're on this website talking to each other!"

It was so funny and so true I've never forgotten it. My theory is: Say NO to drugs, say YES to chickens!

 

[the Precious Ladies]

Thank you for the advice

 

[VerlonCox]

Precious, I mix my own feed and I actually put sunflower seeds in there. I agree with featherbaby, once they get a taste for it there is no saving the plant. Make sure that you have a little wire or something around them. You should consider alfalfa or lespedeza as a cover grass (if its a big area) the alfalfa makes the eggs taste better and the lespedeza is a natural wormer for your birds and goats and anything else that eats it.

 

[featherbaby]

What is lespedeza? Is it a type of grass? where do you get seeds?

 

[greenpeeps]

I just traded a dozen eggs for a bad of sunflower seeds from a friend. They are the huge sunflowers. I figure I could store them in the basement and give them to the chicks as treats this coming winter.

 

[VerlonCox]

Featherbaby, Lespedeza is a type of grass. It is only one specific type of lespedeza (sericea) though so dont waste your money on any other type. My chickens only eat it when it is very short but the goats help them out with that!

 

[VerlonCox]

I didn't see the second part of your post, you can get the seed online or at the local co-op if you have one in the area. I am all organic up to a certain point but I never mass medicate or eat the eggs or birds that have been medicated. Sunflower seeds will do wonders for your birds feathers (the oil I guess) and if you dont have alfalfa planted around the barn you are really really missing out.

 

[goldenoldiesfarm]

Oh man, I just have to add that lespedeza sericea is EXTREMELY invasive and almost impossible to get rid of! It will out-compete all of your natural vegetation, so if you HAVE to plant it, plant it in containers and DON'T LET IT GO TO SEED. Seeds are viable for *decades*, so good luck with all that.

A lot of states in the US are fighting this crazy weed since it was introduced as an erosion control plant, so check with your local agencies to make sure it's even permissible by law to grow it in your area.

 

[the Precious Ladies]

Thank you all for your great advice