Garden & Compost planning?

[Meeker]

Hi All,

I'm a newbie not just to this forum but also to raising chickens so please forgive my ignorance. I'm going through the research/planning mode and have an idea I'm trying to explore before committing to anything. So here it is...

We plan on starting small and expanding as the learning curve improves. I want to take a rectangular space, size will increase over time and needs, and divide it in half or even fourths. For example purposes let's say in half. In one half use it for gardening, growing various crops and on the other half put in a movable coop. This would allow the chickens to roam freely in "their" half, pooping wherever. The following year switch them. (the short version)

I'm hoping this will add some, not lots, nutrients back to the soil minimizing some of the labor involved with composting.

Thoughts?

 

[ChickensAreSweet]

You may want to think about the Balfour method too.

In the Balfour method, there is a stationary henhouse in the middle between two gardens. So the henhouse has two doors. The chickens are in one garden one year, and they till and fertilize it. They will eat all the green matter from it if the space is small enough. The other side is used as a garden by you. Then turn them into the garden when it is done to eat the remaining plant matter.

In this way they get on new ground each year (very good for chickens).

The pasture method would be the same thing but maybe more rotational grazing pastures than just two.

 

[Meeker]

That sounds exactly like what I've been thinking, just goes to show how much more I need to learn and that knowing the "lingo" is key to any activity.

Thanks for pointing this out! Stick around I'm sure I'll have some more (novice) questions.

 

[ChickensAreSweet]

That sounds exactly like what I've been thinking, just goes to show how much more I need to learn and that knowing the "lingo" is key to any activity.

Thanks for pointing this out! Stick around I'm sure I'll have some more (novice) questions.

https://www.backyardchickens.com/newsearch?search=pasture+method+balfour
If you scroll through these, some of these may be helpful to you.

I forgot to mention that chicken tractors don't give them very much room during the winter since you live in a cold area. They pretty much may want to live indoors when the snow is deep, and a shed or larger area is nice for them and is nice for the chicken keeper as well so it is warmer when you collect eggs.

My chickens don't mind a little snow but when it gets a little deep they stay in their shed.

 

[Meeker]

I would avoid the tractor style coop altogether and have a fix structure in the middle with the two doors as you pointed out, makes much more sense. cheers

 

[lazy gardener]

I agree that a larger stationary coop would be the better choice. I built an 8 x 8 cattle panel "tractor" with a 4 x 8 loft, but it was too big to be portable, so we parked it. It's not big enough to support my expanding flock, so there's plans in the works for a new stick built coop. Your plan to place it between 2 garden areas is great, if you have the space. My only other recommendation is that you need to carefully consider sun exposure. You don't want the coop to shade the garden. Perhaps place the coop to the north, with a garden space to the SE and SW. If I had the perfect yard with plenty of space, I'd do that set up, and have more pasture to the NE and NW, and rotate the 4 sections with electronet fencing.