Fresh grass during winter?

[Yetti]

I have to laugh, my son was plowing the yard in the pens this morning to make grass available to the ducks & geese. what does everyone do for their birds to make it easier on them during winter?

 

[quesodano]

fly them south for the winter

 

[Yetti]

Quote:
I can bring them as far south as Deltona. problem is they wouldn't be welcome on the golf course

 

[Oregon Blues]

It's been very cold, but little snow. If the snow gets deep, the ducks get some pathways shoveled out for them.

Greens are pretty much hauled in from the grocery store. Grass is done for the year, won't be back until late spring.

I'm still trying to sprout oats for them. Haven't got it perfected yet to get the volume that I need for them.

 

[goosedragon]

NC tends to be pretty much snow free. The geese would dig thru 2" snow for what was available the ducks didn't. I would sproat oats with a 4 pan system. the pans were the standard 11X22"plastic nursery flats with about 3/4" of dampened peat. Sprinkle the oats on fairly heavy , press the oats in and stick on top of the refrig to get bottom of pan heating. the second day start the second pan same as the first. third day move the 1st into a sunny spot. most of the oats would be started. start the 3rd pan.4 day every body moves one position and the first pan would be cut like a birthday cake and the chunks dispersed in the waterfowl pen and the pan returned to the houae to start over. Do not give the pan to the geese. they will try to eat it! As it is they ate the green sprouts the oats and the roots and even some of the peat. the geese got the goose share of the sproats, that is most of them.

 

[Cottage Rose]

During the winter, as treats, I feed alfalfa hay, apples, baked & raw squash and pumpkins.
Most of my adult geese don't seem to care for greens from the store or sprouted grains.

 

[extraordinaryfowl]

I get leftover produce from a buyer and so once the snow falls which will be about a month from now the geese will start to get all the greens.

 

[RAREROO]

Does anyone in the southern climates plant winter forage crops for geese ? Luckily here in south Ga, we don't have to worry about snow , but the grass does die off in the winter especially here in this sandy area where I live so we don't have good crass even in the spring, but I can herd/haul them (when I get more geese again this year) down closer to the river and graze them there and hopefully cut down on having to mow down there, but I would like to plant something to feed them during the winter and breeders during breeding season and I was wondering what crops would be good to plant for them. Or maybe something I can cut by hand and give to them so I don't have to worry with them trampling and overgrazing the crop. Any suggestions ?

 

[extraordinaryfowl]

For chickens brassicas are a great crop - stores sell mixes for wildlife. Also turnip greens, and then you get the bulb for the chickens, and later if you'd rather you can force the bulb instead when there is snow and feed those new greens. Dandelion is something else that is easy to grow and they like.

 

[destinduck]

Quote:
I grow winter rye, collards and wheat for mine. They like it.