Garden is now chicken jacuzzi

[NuggetTender]

Hi. I just joined BYC, and have a question that I don't know if it has been addressed already.
my flock is 7 months old. they've been given free range of my back yard all day. but they've turned my garden into their favorite dust bath houses.
I don't want to put up fencing or any barrier that prevents or hinders me from working my garden. are there any other tips or tricks to keep them out?

 

[DobieLover]

No. That is their new favorite hangout and they won't stay out unless fenced out.

 

[NuggetTender]

No. That is their new favorite hangout and they won't stay out unless fenced out.

thats what I'm afraid of. google said I can sprinkle cinnamon and paprika over the topsoil. but another tender friend said to avoid that because of respiratory issues.
just looking for something besides inhibiting or invasive. not sure there's a perfect strategy

 

[SilverBirds]

thats what I'm afraid of. google said I can sprinkle cinnamon and paprika over the topsoil. but another tender friend said to avoid that because of respiratory issues.
just looking for something besides inhibiting or invasive. not sure there's a perfect strategy

Yeah, spices aren't going to keep chickens away. They'll just keep digging holes. The only way to keep the garden chicken free is by putting a fence around it or the chickens.

 

[NuggetTender]

Yeah, spices aren't going to keep chickens away. They'll just keep digging holes. The only way to keep the garden chicken free is by putting a fence around it or the chickens.

they have a fenced-off run, but I let them range most of the day. just don't want to have to fence of ny garden unless I have to. but I'm starting to realize they're even more stubborn than I am, and I may have to

 

[Ridgerunner]

Hi, welcome to the forum! Glad you joined!

Chickens love to scratch. If you mulch a landscape bed or your garden they love to look in that mulch for treats. They can empty a landscape bed pretty quickly or they can dig up mulched plants. Chickens like to take a dust bath. Sometimes bare soil is irresistible for that. Chickens like to eat a lot of the same things we do, so they can do a lot of damage to a vegetable garden.

The only thing I've found to control that are fences. Either fence them in to where you want them or fence them out of where you don't want them to be. I understand it is frustrating.