Climbing Ivy for the Chicken Yard?

[Bleenie]

I found some Beautiful Varigated Ivy... that stuff that climbs and takes over anything & Everything! and I am wondering how it might do if I plant it next to the Chicken Yard so that it can climb up the wire and give some natural shade & beautify things a bit. The Good news is that they DO NOT eat the Hops!!

Opinions?

Right now I just have a whole bunch of starts in a pot, hopefully they'll root and I can move them outside after Winter.

 

[Imp]

My chickens never touch the english ivy that creeps into my yard.

Imp

 

[tammyd57]

Yeah, that's English Ivy, and the chickens won't eat it because it's toxic. It also smells terrible and I'm not positive but pretty sure it tastes really bad.

 

[jessylee]

Thanks for asking this question, I already have this established in my yard and was not sure if I should rip it out or keep it... Are the chickens/ ducks smart enough to not eat this since it is poisonous? Or should I rip it out to be safe? Any bad experience with this toxic plant?

 

[eggface]

I've heard hops are bad for the chickens but why? Will it kill them to eat hops? I'd love to grow some up over my enclosed chicken run, but I guess its a bad idea. I'd be wary of planting the ivy or anything that grows "anywhere and everywhere" if you don't like it, you can't get rid of it and you're hosed

 

[tammyd57]

I think chickens are smart enough to avoid eating ivy, but probably because of the taste and not because they know it's bad for them.
I, personally, would not plant ivy near my chicken coop/run, even if it wasn't toxic. Ivy is really good cover for rats, mice and snakes. All things you don't want hanging around your chickens. It might be okay if it was only growing UP (like on a fence or trellis) and not all over the ground.
My brother used to raise Silkies but finally gave up chickens at that house because he lost so many eggs and chicks to snakes and rats coming out of the neighbor's ivy that was growing all along the property line.

 

[Bleenie]

It would only be growing up the wire. The only snakes we have around here are the little Gardner Snakes(sp?), so no worried about that, mice/rats are a different story though! Hopefully the little kitties i got for mouse control will start to do their job once they're old enough to go outside

lol.

We have Hops that grow all over around our chciken area here, the plant has been here for over 100years so its got roots everywhere! The chickens ate the little starts that i planted next to their run(wanted it to cover the wire) but they wont touch the established plant/leaves/flowers. I read onlien that hops flowers(the part they make beer from) are good for chickens though, some sort of antibiotic properties in them. Every once in a while i pick a bunch and throw them in the chicken pen and it doesnt seem to bother them. The Hops are easy to get rid of after they die off for the year but they will also cover everything they can climb on, they're Very pretty!