Free Ranging?

[coopdeville15]

The other problem with free ranging is them getting into places you don't want them, eating garden or ornamental plants, pooping every where, dust bathing in flower or garden beds, etc. Particularly around the patio, courtyards and the pool.

 

[FlyWheel]

Regarding your garden, and I'm surprised that no one has mentioned this yet, you can give your chickens a very special treat and greatly benefit your garden by letting them forage. Wait until the last harvest, then let your chickens have full reign in your garden area. They'll chomp up all the spent vegetable remains, turn it all into the best fertilizer available and even dispose of every single weed seed for you.

Once the garden area is barren, lock them out again and till their contributions into the soil so that the natural bacteria can process it over the winter. Next spring plant as usual, no additional fertilizer needed.

 

[Arya28]

Regarding your garden, and I'm surprised that no one has mentioned this yet, you can give your chickens a very special treat and greatly benefit your garden by letting them forage. Wait until the last harvest, then let your chickens have full reign in your garden area. They'll chomp up all the spent vegetable remains, turn it all into the best fertilizer available and even dispose of every single weed seed for you.

Once the garden area is barren, lock them out again and till their contributions into the soil so that the natural bacteria can process it over the winter. Next spring plant as usual, no additional fertilizer needed.

Great idea! We will definitely be doing that!

 

[apryl29]

In case I've missed it in reading thru this thread, I wanted to add that. I learned here on BYC that some breeds are better at evading predators than others. I am raising some brown Leghorns because I have heard they make excellent free rangers. Our neighbors have some type of game breed and they've successfully free ranged for decades. I'd like to ask them for a rooster. I lost 2 of my big heavy breed hens to coyotes and locked everyone up a year ago. The quality and amount of of the eggs has gone down, and the girls are bored, even with over 100 sq ft of run each...they've eaten every bit of grass. After the Leghorns begin laying, I hope to let them out every afternoon...and see what happens.

I just created a new section for my hens that was much larger. Since they're separate, once they get a few days of going to the new section I'm going to block off the old section and toss down some grass seeds and hopefully let it grow some before I let them back in.