Fastest growing plants that a chicken will eat?

[Kayla's Lunch]

I couldn't help but notice the pun value of this sentence. Sorry. I'm easily amused.

I would not plan on green matter to provide all of a chicken's nutritional needs. Check out this book:

It is by far the most comprehensive book I've found. He outlines the details of making a balanced feed, as well as alternative feed sources. He also goes into depth about waste management so that your flock does not create a nutrient overload which can poison your soil and cause water run off issues for you and your down stream neighbors.

Good posts by all regarding provision of greens, sprouts, fodder and other materials to enhance the poultry diet.

I do have that book and have slowly been reading it. I am not opposed to feeding grains exactly. It just bothers me when some manufacturer says their product is "complete" and that is all that is needed. I think fresh foods and variety are needed. Also, I keep hearing how scratch should be fed in moderation, but there seems to be a lot of corn in most feeds. That seems to make it "junk food" with some vitamins thrown in. It just makes me think of someone eating a twinkie with a vitamin and thinking they're okay. Right now, my 11 week old chickens are roaming the backyard every day for 1-3 hours. They aren't too interested in the "green" stuff from me like they used to be. So, they eat what they find and fermented Scratch and Peck brand feed, fermented Flock Raiser and some scratch. We use that often just to keep training them to come when we call them. I would rather give them feed that doesn't have corn in it and then feed the corn as a treat, especially since I have kids who always want to "treat" the chickens.

 

[Kayla's Lunch]

You are absolutely on the mark with this comment, we haven't mentioned nutrition much here. Lazy Gardener suggested a good book as well I will check that out.

I've been inspired by KikiGirl's comparison chart of commercial feeds. I have started a gsheet in the same fashion, listing all the plants mentioned so far on this thread.

Information will include average growth rate, characteristics, and nutrition information, as well as any other footnotes that have been mentioned by posters here, and info I can find elsewhere.

If anyone is interested in contributing to the sheet, please message me your email address, and I will grant edit access to you.

That would be great. Thanks so much!

 

[lazy gardener]

I do have that book and have slowly been reading it. I am not opposed to feeding grains exactly. It just bothers me when some manufacturer says their product is "complete" and that is all that is needed. I think fresh foods and variety are needed. Also, I keep hearing how scratch should be fed in moderation, but there seems to be a lot of corn in most feeds. That seems to make it "junk food" with some vitamins thrown in. It just makes me think of someone eating a twinkie with a vitamin and thinking they're okay. Right now, my 11 week old chickens are roaming the backyard every day for 1-3 hours. They aren't too interested in the "green" stuff from me like they used to be. So, they eat what they find and fermented Scratch and Peck brand feed, fermented Flock Raiser and some scratch. We use that often just to keep training them to come when we call them. I would rather give them feed that doesn't have corn in it and then feed the corn as a treat, especially since I have kids who always want to "treat" the chickens.

Corn has been the main stay of many animal feeds for years. A balanced chicken feed is just that: a blend of grains, (and yes, corn is the primary grain) with added protein, vitamins and minerals.

IMO, corn is not a villain. AS LONG AS IT'S balanced with other grains, vitamins, minerals and proteins.

The big issue about scratch grains: They detract from the bird's overall diet, b/c they do not have the additives. Scratch grain or corn are IIRC 8 - 11% protein. While a blended feed can be any where from 16 - 22% protein. Often, folks go overboard with scratch. A hand full in the morning, a hand full in the evening, and perhaps some low food value kitchen scraps over time will lead to a bird with fatty liver, and so much visceral fat that she can't push out an egg.

The claim of a chicken feed being "complete" is similar to the diet guru's claims that their protein or diet shakes are "complete". A can of Ensure is "complete", and can be packed with protein and calories. But do any of those drinks provide what you or I would consider a good diet? They will sustain life, and even allow for weight gain, but the optimum diet comes from a variety of natural foods grown on healthy soil. Unfortunately, the average back yard flock owner (myself included) can not grow the flock's nutrients. So, we reach for that bag of balanced feed, and do what our resources allow to supplement that feed. (free range, sprouts, fermenting, extra greens, deep litter management)

 

[Kayla's Lunch]

Corn has been the main stay of many animal feeds for years. A balanced chicken feed is just that: a blend of grains, (and yes, corn is the primary grain) with added protein, vitamins and minerals.

IMO, corn is not a villain. AS LONG AS IT'S balanced with other grains, vitamins, minerals and proteins.

The big issue about scratch grains: They detract from the bird's overall diet, b/c they do not have the additives. Scratch grain or corn are IIRC 8 - 11% protein. While a blended feed can be any where from 16 - 22% protein. Often, folks go overboard with scratch. A hand full in the morning, a hand full in the evening, and perhaps some low food value kitchen scraps over time will lead to a bird with fatty liver, and so much visceral fat that she can't push out an egg.
Exactly! That is what I am aiming for. Not just a bag of "complete."
The claim of a chicken feed being "complete" is similar to the diet guru's claims that their protein or diet shakes are "complete". A can of Ensure is "complete", and can be packed with protein and calories. But do any of those drinks provide what you or I would consider a good diet? They will sustain life, and even allow for weight gain, but the optimum diet comes from a variety of natural foods grown on healthy soil. Unfortunately, the average back yard flock owner (myself included) can not grow the flock's nutrients. So, we reach for that bag of balanced feed, and do what our resources allow to supplement that feed. (free range, sprouts, fermenting, extra greens, deep litter management)

 

[Kayla's Lunch]

Corn has been the main stay of many animal feeds for years. A balanced chicken feed is just that: a blend of grains, (and yes, corn is the primary grain) with added protein, vitamins and minerals.

IMO, corn is not a villain. AS LONG AS IT'S balanced with other grains, vitamins, minerals and proteins.

The big issue about scratch grains: They detract from the bird's overall diet, b/c they do not have the additives. Scratch grain or corn are IIRC 8 - 11% protein. While a blended feed can be any where from 16 - 22% protein. Often, folks go overboard with scratch. A hand full in the morning, a hand full in the evening, and perhaps some low food value kitchen scraps over time will lead to a bird with fatty liver, and so much visceral fat that she can't push out an egg.

The claim of a chicken feed being "complete" is similar to the diet guru's claims that their protein or diet shakes are "complete". A can of Ensure is "complete", and can be packed with protein and calories. But do any of those drinks provide what you or I would consider a good diet? They will sustain life, and even allow for weight gain, but the optimum diet comes from a variety of natural foods grown on healthy soil. Unfortunately, the average back yard flock owner (myself included) can not grow the flock's nutrients. So, we reach for that bag of balanced feed, and do what our resources allow to supplement that feed. (free range, sprouts, fermenting, extra greens, deep litter management)

Exactly! That is what I am aiming for. Not a just a bag of "complete."

 

[Brigitt]

Kudzu comes to mind...that stuff takes over, and I know it's edible. (I'm kidding about the kudzu, sort of. It's known as the weed that ate the South.) Hardy kiwis grow quickly and are perennial. They have a tendency to drop fruit, so if you planted some that would grow up over the chickens, they'd have fun with that. I don't know how a chayote would hold up to chickens, but they really put out the greenery and are perennial as well if you mulch them well in the winter. I have no idea if chickens can eat any of these, but they grow fast.

Chayote: l have some planted around one of my chicken coops. My chickens love the leaves and if a fruit falls in their coop they will eat it to its skin.

 

[Peppercorngal]

Grass seed grows fast, plain old fescue would work and doesn't need tons of fertilizer to grow. Corn takes an entire season to mature into ears. Grass, leaf lettuce, stuff like that would work in your climate.

 

[Rennifer]

Does anybody have any ideas for plants for arrid climates? All of our grass is brown by June lol

 

[sonomacluck]

Here's the list thus far, I might not have time to get to the spreadsheet. I started making notes on each but my formatting skills are in disarray.

• Alfalfa
• amaranth
• Barley
• Black Oil Sunflower Seeds - seeds can be thrown around and they will thrive
• Bush Beans - low mantinenace
• Chickweed
• Comfrey
• Duckweed - fastest growing on the least, most interesting.
• Hemp - nitrogen loving, may be able to stand fresher manure directly with irrigation. has many industrial uses and is now being grown commercially in many states. http://nationalhempassociation.org/
• hulless oats
• kale
• Kudzu - very invasive plant, difficult to eradicate. grows in east and overtakes trees.
• Millet Sorghum
• orach
• peas
• Purslane
• Red Clover
• rye
• tatsoi
• Water Hyacinth
• Wheat Grass

 

[Rennifer]

Anybody have any experience with kudzu in Colorado?