Dandelions

[Sara K]

Mine love watermelon! One gets a piece and starts running and then the others run after her. It's like football, chicken style/

 

[PrimroseMom1]

My hens love dandelion and pretty much any greens including the elm leaves that fall off the tree.....they also strangely enough like to eat tomato plants which most people say aren't good for them...go figure...the LOVE melon and grapes and berries and they go berserk over yogurt and sour cream. They also know now that anytime I emerge from the shed with a gold bag, it means mealworm time....and without me even having to whistle first they come running and galloping over in a whirlwind of gluttony....kinda like the Tazmanian Devil from Looney Tunes

To be honest, chickens are pretty much like mini-garbage disposals....the eat EVERYTHING and ANYTHING....but they are pretty sharp at knowing what they like and don't like and what things aren't so good for them....like I wish SO MUCH that they liked button weeds as much as they like dandelions because I am overrun with those stinkin' things....My ducks have also acquired a taste for mushrooms and basil leaves....silly critters...

Here in Louisiana we get Buck Moth caterpillers every Spring. They are large awful critters that carry a very mean sting. They are everywhere on oak trees for a few weeks. Well, the new chicken yard is under a large oak tree. This was their frist Spring under the oak tree and I thought, "cool, they'll eat those awful caterpillers." Nope, they wouldn't even look at them. Dang! so, we just had to endure until they were gone. I didn't do a lot of chicken yard sitting during that time, just got in and got out hoping to not be stung.

 

[PrimroseMom1]

Our girls love when I bring them a log from the bottom of the wood pile-lots of interesting bugs to fight over! I am thinking of just "growong" bugs by laying some old baords onthe ground.

I put a lot of my chicken droppings into a garbage can in newspaper until it goes to the compost pile. A neighbor wanted some poop, so I was digging out a bunch and noticed LOTS of segmented (with a semi hard shell) worms. I'm not sure what they were, but the girls went crazy over them. So, apparently I am growing some kind of bug they love in the poop can. Today I went and got them some more. After only two days they went crazy when they saw me take the lid off of the can.

 

[PrimroseMom1]

Primrose Mom1 - What do you do with the screens? I see the greens coming through them. Are they laid on top of the seeds that you sow in their pen?

Yes. I bought some old wooden screens cheap. Took out the screen and put in small gage hardware cloth, then threw the seeds in and watered. The chickens love it and I pull some for the bunnies. When it starts looking bare, I just toss a few more seeds. They can't eat the seeds and they can't destroy it, they can only eat the greens. It's a super idea I got from a BYC thread DIYers.

 

[redrstr29]

That is a good Idea!!!!! I wanna move down south sooo bad, I was thinking Georgia, Virginia, or Louisiana, I live in CT and am a country boy at heart, and these folks up here are...well,,, ya know

 

[Deb B]

Mine don't seem to care for dandelions, but they love clover, chickweed, and the wild strawberries that grow in the shady spots in the yard. What they really don't like is bananas. They will go running around wiping their beaks off for several minutes after tasting bananas!

 

[LDev]

That is a good Idea!!!!! I wanna move down south sooo bad, I was thinking Georgia, Virginia, or Louisiana, I live in CT and am a country boy at heart, and these folks up here are...well,,, ya know

My best friend now lives in Savannah, she totally adores it, was meant to be going this year, but needs to wait until next year now. Can't wait! Although her accent is slightly bizarre...Scottish with a southern twang lol!
Started building my permanent chicken pen today, has a concrete slab base around the edges to stand the structure on and to stop foxes digging but have left the centre area for a scratching zone with bark chips, sand and dirt.....don't think any dandelions will get a chance to grow though with my hens there all the time lol!

 

[pickitfarm]

Hey I could serve that to my in-laws lol jk. When I make it I do large batches and freeze single helpings if they see it I usually get a look of disgust

It is not like it would be good for you but it is not always about the taste....LOL The idea of making and freezing it pretty smart.

 

[PrimroseMom1]

That is a good Idea!!!!! I wanna move down south sooo bad, I was thinking Georgia, Virginia, or Louisiana, I live in CT and am a country boy at heart, and these folks up here are...well,,, ya know

I love the South. The people really are so friendly. Here in Louisiana it get really hot in the summer, I mean REALLY hot for several months. Mind blowing hot. And, I lived in lots of places, but no place where the heat is this intense (I was born here, but it's just not something that can be adjusted to). It's the humidity. Basically we stay in the pool. But, stuff sure grows here. I lived in EastTennessee and loved the weather and the 4 seasons. Just enough of everything. No snow here or ice. Sometimes winter just forgets to come at all. LOL I think I'm here to stay, no plans to move out of state again. All in all, it's a great place to live.

 

[Mountain Wampus]

Look it up, roots in dandelions even fight cancer among other great health benefits. Good for man and beast! My ducks / chickens love em! I pull them up roots and all if I can and toss them in. Now when ever I go outside my ducks talk to me about how I should weed the yard around their aviary for them! lol