Grass-less Dirty Chicken Run

[Ascholten]

I got bahia too, it'll grow in anything, and the centipede snakes in with it too. bahia i think is also the stuff they grow on the side of the highways if I am not mistaken.. I mean you can blow up a tanker truck of gasoline on this stuff and a week later it's growing back.. THAT is what I want in my yard !

Aaron

 

[Hip Hillbilly Acres]

Please post pictures of your setup.

As the others have mentioned, grass does not last long in an area of high population density and/or less than ideal growing conditions with the stress of constantly scratching chickens.

You need to provide the flock with 15 sq ft of space in the run per bird. I personally like wood chips as they have a variety of sizes, drain well and are organic so they slowly decompose with the poop load. I never clean my run.

In addition to good litter for the run, you should also provide areas of full shade and rain/snow protection, things to perch on like branches, old wood chair, pallets, whatever you have handy.

This is how mine is currently setup.View attachment 3238656

Love the tree stump(s).

 

[Hip Hillbilly Acres]

Love the tree stump(s).

I am right behind you; new to all of this so this was an informative post for me. My plan is to do the permaculture, chicken pasture arrangement like Mr. Rhodes and Mr. Salatin discuss. I am looking into cover crops as well.

I am amassing hardware cloth/chicken wire to keep them out of anything I do not want them in like my newly planted comfrey and Rose of Sharon. I watch a lot of You Tube channels and saw a guy from Edible Acres demonstrate how to keep plants safe from chickens while feeding them and letting them do their thing. Win~win from what I can tell. Feed them; feed us. ❤

 

[GreenieBeaner]

This is a video of my babies and their coop for those wanting to see my setup!

 

[GreenieBeaner]

It doesn't say that the vid sent so here's it again lol
I'm very new to this
Let me know if u can see it!

 

[3KillerBs]

It doesn't say that the vid sent so here's it again lol
I'm very new to this
Let me know if u can see it!

You'll need to upload the video on YouTube or some other platform and link it here.

 

[Granny23]

Hi!
I have 3, 21 week old hens, (I'm a first time chicken owner) and within the first 2 weeks of them being in their coop and run, they destroyed and ate up all the grass! All that's left is feathers, dirt, and chicken poop. I try to let them out every day to free range for a bit, but I'm worried it's not enough. (Plus, their feet get all dirty when they go back to the run, and it doesn't smell all that great either!!) What do I do? Should I try to free range them more, and give the run floor a break? The coop is right next to my house, so predators aren't a big issue, but it's still a worry I have.
Should I get another attachment run and lock them out of the old one until the grass comes back?
It's really embarrassing to have people come and see the chickens since it looks so gross, and stinks, too.
If you managed to get through all that reading (lol), could you help me? Any suggestions?

I just spent a sh**load getting new sod in my little back yard....including the new enclosure attached to my 4 x 8 coop. It's been 2 mos... look at it now! When they free ranged I had grass but when I got my goldendoodle puppy the combo became a problem so I decided I needed to confine the hens....I have 6.
I feel your pain. It looks horrible!Starting with the bottom picture you can see the grass in the yard and the enclosure. The middle one you can see the difference in greenery and the last the grass is GONE. I may divide and reseed and see what happens.If I can keep the girls off of it it may work.