Composting...

[Red-Stars-in-RI]

I could use all the compost I can get right now! We are new construction on what was wheat field until this year so the ground desperately needs some organic matter before the garden goes in.

You may want to locate your deep litter chicken run over your intended garden area - that would be the fastest, easiest way to add nutrients and organic material in a hurry.

If you have the space, I’ve always dreamed about a setup with a coop in the middle, garden on one side, chicken run on the other…then every fall, switching the run/garden to the other side.

 

[Gammas Bearded Babies]

You may want to locate your deep litter chicken run over your intended garden area - that would be the fastest, easiest way to add nutrients and organic material in a hurry.

If you have the space, I’ve always dreamed about a setup with a coop in the middle, garden on one side, chicken run on the other…then every fall, switching the run/garden to the other side.

Yeah would LUV to do that...thought bout it as I sat out there last night with the chickens but run way too large to try and move.
I think I'm gonna do a small chicken tractor to move the chickens around the backyard so that the run can have a chance to grow grass again! That way the entire yard will be beautiful and ready for planting!!!
Hubby can have the front yard and I'll have the backyard and we'll see who's looks best LOLOL!!!

 

[dirkandlorie]

You may want to locate your deep litter chicken run over your intended garden area - that would be the fastest, easiest way to add nutrients and organic material in a hurry.

If you have the space, I’ve always dreamed about a setup with a coop in the middle, garden on one side, chicken run on the other…then every fall, switching the run/garden to the other side.

You are a genius!! I love this idea and am going to steal it one day!

 

[Red-Stars-in-RI]

You are a genius!! I love this idea and am going to steal it one day!

I better print this post out FAST so I have proof of my genius.

If you always work with the idea of working WITH nature and livestock instead of against them, you'll usually feel smart at the end of the day.

 

[Red-Stars-in-RI]

I think I'm gonna do a small chicken tractor to move the chickens around the backyard so that the run can have a chance to grow grass again! That way the entire yard will be beautiful and ready for planting!!!

Once I get my grass to grow better (compost will help), I may do a small tractor as well. I don't have a ton of real estate, but using chickens to cut and fertilize the yard sound better to me than me pushing a lawn mower.

 

[Red-Stars-in-RI]

I was doing a little chicken run compost work today since it was warm up here in RI (50's). Finally finished getting the partially composted materials from my big composter turned/moved into the haybale compost system. That frees up the big composter to start taking materials again once the hay bales are full.

There is a little bit of compost still in the big composter, but I think I'll leave that to inoculate the next round of material. I went in and dug into the remnants with a pick ax to aerate, turn and expose some worms for the flock.

The worm load was pretty amazing, considering it's January in Rhode Island. I didn't have my phone on me at first, but a few spots I turned over, there had to be hundreds of worms in a space the size of a dinner plate. Dinner plate is the right term, as the flock went CRAZY and went to work getting a little extra protein.

Collected about a dozen barrels of leaves to add to the hay bale setup, as well. It was kind of wet out, but my son wanted to have a campfire and I figured I'd tidy up some leaves while he poked away at the fire.

Someone mentioned having "more compost than they need" and I'm in that camp by a large margin. I expect to eventually replant my entire yard with better grass and clover. I'll do it in sections and use LOTS of compost - I did a 25' x 15' section this fall and used about 15 wheelbarrow loads of compost. But even at that rate, I'll have way more compost than I need. In addition to the big piles, I do deep litter in the rest of the run, and just in those areas I find TONS of great compost...I swear I end up with a shovel depth a year build-up in some areas.

 

[SpicyDisaster]

A person has to use what is available. I used straw for many years, but it gets moldy and smelly if it gets wet or soiled. I find wood chips for my chickens works much better for me than straw. I would think straw in a sheltered coop would work better than straw in a chicken run where it would get rained on.

This winter I am using free paper sheds I make at home inside the coop as litter instead of using wood chips like I have the past 2 years. So far, I am really impressed on how well the paper shreds work as deep bedding in the coop. Another benefit of the paper shreds is that they will compost down much faster than wood chips when I clean the coop in the spring and dump everything out into the chicken run. Since it costs me money to haul our paper products into the town recycle center, I am better off shredding off our paper and light cardboard material at home and using it for the chickens.

I did not have any luck with chipdrop where I live - about 10 miles out of town. But I discovered that we have a county landfill where the arborists dump all their wood chips. They have to pay a fee to dump the chips there, but it is free for me to take as much wood chips from the piles that I can haul out.

For us, that would be whatever garden scraps we have this year and any straw bales we bring in. Pictures attached show what we are working with. Bare ground under that snow and surrounded by wheat fields. It's gonna be a journey getting back to self-supporting compost again. Grass and cover crops will get seeded in the spring to add some more greens (and dried browns). The most visible space is where the garden is going, so the chicken run will be bordering it, making it easy to transport chicken compost in the fall into the in-ground beds.

Paper shreds are currently going into the worm bins. We also have to transport our recycling into town ourselves so I have been figuring out more and more ways to use it ourselves rather than bring it in. It's regularly windy so putting it in the run isn't really an option. We already lost several straw bales worth just from the wind. Though we don't have to worry about the straw getting wet very often with how dry it is here.

I love the idea of going into the landfill and getting woodchips for free!! I'm going to have to check that out and see if it's an option for us as well. I'm really hoping to put chips between the garden beds and in the chicken run.

You may want to locate your deep litter chicken run over your intended garden area - that would be the fastest, easiest way to add nutrients and organic material in a hurry.

If you have the space, I’ve always dreamed about a setup with a coop in the middle, garden on one side, chicken run on the other…then every fall, switching the rungarden to the other side.

That is an awesome idea! We won't be doing it on a regular basis due to permanent fencing installations going up, but for now the pasture/run is a temporarily fenced area over where about half the garden will be. The girls will have had about 9 months on it before we plant in the spring. Then the pasture will get moved (after planted) to run alongside the garden area.

 

[SpicyDisaster]

The worm load was pretty amazing, considering it's January in Rhode Island. I didn't have my phone on me at first, but a few spots I turned over, there had to be hundreds of worms in a space the size of a dinner plate. Dinner plate is the right term, as the flock went CRAZY and went to work getting a little extra protein.

View attachment 2948252View attachment 2948253

That soil looks amazing with so many worms and awesome decomposition! Happy chickies you have there

 

[gtaus]

You may want to locate your deep litter chicken run over your intended garden area - that would be the fastest, easiest way to add nutrients and organic material in a hurry.

If you have the space, I’ve always dreamed about a setup with a coop in the middle, garden on one side, chicken run on the other…then every fall, switching the run/garden to the other side.

On the Justin Rhodes YouTube channel, he uses his chickens to break new ground for a garden later. He set up mobile coops and fencing to lay out his plots. The chickens dig up all the grass, scratch up the dirt, and add chicken poo fertilizer to the plot. Then he moves the setup to a different location and plants a garden where the chickens prepared the new garden plot.

I like your idea of switching the chicken run and garden every year. If you switch the plots in the fall, then the chicken poo should have more than enough time to cool down for a spring planting.

I have been moving away from tilling the garden, but I think if you are just starting a new garden plot, then it is better to till it up initially. I don't know if you could plant directly into chicken run deep litter. You might have to rake it away to get down to the dirt for planting. Then put the litter back as mulch once the plants grown tall enough. If it was a brand new plot of yard to be used as a garden, then I would till in all the chicken run litter into the soil and let it sit over the winter.

Years ago, I dumped all kinds of leaves on my garden in the fall. In the spring, they had compacted and composted somewhat, but I decided to till them into my sandy soil before I planted. I think it improved the soil conditions for my garden. Although I like the concept of no tilling, so as to not upset the bio life in the soil, at that time my sandy soil was so bad that I think tilling in organic matter such as leaves and grass clippings only helped. I certainly started to find more worms in my soil after I tilled in all that organic matter.

 

[Red-Stars-in-RI]

That soil looks amazing with so many worms and awesome decomposition! Happy chickies you have there

Thanks...yes, the richness of the compost coming out of the chicken run is really impressive. My soil here is typical New England woodland soil...thin and acidic. When I put down a thick layer of compost and then plant into it, it's really amazing how well stuff grows!