Growing fodder for chickens

[simply blessed]

Hmmm... I've done small amounts of sprouts for treats but recently ran onto info for grazing frames and was wondering if anyone had tried these. It would be almost zero maintenance for me. Basically, it's fodder grown in trays or on the ground with a framed screen on top so the chickens only get the tops. What would you use for the screen? (I have some 1/4" hardware cloth?) Favorite plants? Any successes or problems with these? Height of sprouts to screen? Can't put it out until weather warms but thought I might start planning and building trays. Thought I'd experiment with some nutritious plants they don't get from me and weeding. Any experiences, thoughts, or opinions would be appreciated!

 

[jamesjr]

Im new to this site but hope I can get some help. Ive been thinking of growing fodder but all I can find is rye seed. So I was thinking of doing the 5 gal bucket method but is that enough and is rye seed enough nutrients for my girls? I have 30 plus rir's and I live in polk county fl I have feed stores all around and no barley or anything any advice on how many pounds of dry fodder seed do i need a day for all of them birds?
Also how sanitary does this operation have to be ? Ive heard of using bleach but not to keen on that for my birds

 

[PetRock]

Hmmm... I've done small amounts of sprouts for treats but recently ran onto info for grazing frames and was wondering if anyone had tried these. It would be almost zero maintenance for me. Basically, it's fodder grown in trays or on the ground with a framed screen on top so the chickens only get the tops. What would you use for the screen? (I have some 1/4" hardware cloth?) Favorite plants? Any successes or problems with these? Height of sprouts to screen? Can't put it out until weather warms but thought I might start planning and building trays. Thought I'd experiment with some nutritious plants they don't get from me and weeding. Any experiences, thoughts, or opinions would be appreciated!

I have been doing this for over 2 years. I went to a home improvement store and purchased large black plastic trays that are used to mix cement, etc. My DH drilled holes in the bottom and made a wood frame and hardware cloth lid. We use compost for the soil and fill the trays up to about 2- 2 1/2 inches from the top. We usually plant them with Omega 3 Chicken Forage mix from groworganic.com . http://www.groworganic.com/omega-3-chicken-forage-blend-irrigated.html We have also planted our sprouted seed mix which has a high quality wild bird seed with BOSS, wheat, barley, and oats. My birds love foraging on the trays. The plants last for a few months and then when they start looking past their prime, I put a lid made with larger wire openings so they can clean up the old plants. If you don't have some kind of lid on the tray, the birds will scratch a large amount of the dirt out of the tray. Here in CA, I can keep the plants growing year around which is nice!

 

[simply blessed]

THANK YOU! The pics are great too! Can't wait to try it!

 

[zarafa121]

Im new to this site but hope I can get some help. Ive been thinking of growing fodder but all I can find is rye seed. So I was thinking of doing the 5 gal bucket method but is that enough and is rye seed enough nutrients for my girls? I have 30 plus rir's and I live in polk county fl I have feed stores all around and no barley or anything any advice on how many pounds of dry fodder seed do i need a day for all of them birds?
Also how sanitary does this operation have to be ? Ive heard of using bleach but not to keen on that for my birds

I read on this site somewhere that rye seed isn't the best for the birds but can't remember why. Mine started eating wheat and barley but lately have ignored the wheat. I got my seeds from local farmers. I think you can order barley seed online, too. I've also had better success with just sprouting the seeds. Hope that helps. BTW, welcome to BYC!

 

[jamesjr]

That's all I can find and ordering it will cost to much ill keep looking for barley and thank u !

 

[Flowerbh]

Im new to this site but hope I can get some help. Ive been thinking of growing fodder but all I can find is rye seed. So I was thinking of doing the 5 gal bucket method but is that enough and is rye seed enough nutrients for my girls? I have 30 plus rir's and I live in polk county fl I have feed stores all around and no barley or anything any advice on how many pounds of dry fodder seed do i need a day for all of them birds?
Also how sanitary does this operation have to be ? Ive heard of using bleach but not to keen on that for my birds

Hi, I had trouble finding good seed also. Found some poor quality wheat seed at a feed store. It has a poor germination rate, but I found that the hens love the seeds so it doesn't matter to me that they don't do well. I called a barley seed company and they told me where I could find the seed locally. The barley grows fabulously but the birds don't seem to like it as much. I have grown wild bird seed and they had fun with that. As far as I am concerned, my fodder is just a fun healthy treat.....they still eat their regular food, so anything I can grow that gives them a little green is good with me.

The bleach is used to help control mold. If you have the right set-up, and follow some basic directions, you won't need bleach or anything else. Look back a few pages and someone posted an online fodder book they all said was good.

 

[jamesjr]

How much bleach and how all im growing is 4 handfuls at a time ( I have fairly big hands tho)

 

[lazy gardener]

I've heard that rye is harder to digest, and the birds don't get as much nutrition from it. Try Walmart. I've heard that they sell bulk wheat. You can also use BOSS, and millet. What ever you use, be sure it's meant for feed and not for growing purposes. Seed meant to be planted is often treated with fungicides.

 

[jamesjr]

Ok what is millet? Is it kinda white? And my rye got little white fuzzy mold on it