Landscaping with free range chickens

[MissChick@dee]

Tomato fruit they love. The plant itself is toxic to chickens. Beans to fall into this category. I don’t plant them around my chickens. Uncooked beans are also toxic.

 

[CannedMonster]

I have 2”-4” rocks as “mulch” all around my flower beds.
They do scratch in it but they don’t move it around much.
And my birds DO like raspberries so that may or may not be an option.
I had a large raspberry patch with thorns and they loved hanging out in the middle lol.
It’s gone now because it got dug up to make room for the walk-in coop.

My garden was created by the former owner of our house.
It’s very nice.
There are 26 rose bushes and each is surrounded by scalloped stone edging and my birds love dust bathing in the rose beds.
Doesn’t harm the roses at all.
Unfortunately they almost destroyed my hostas but I caged them to save them but they look terrible lol.
Also had to cage the Dusty Miller from being trampled and dug.
They left the daisies alone but ate half of my clematis even though it’s supposedly toxic to them.
Somebody didn’t tell the chickens.
They loved my asiatic lilies too.
And trampled the irises but didn’t eat them.
Trampled the day lilies too.
They’re not dead they just look like crap.
The bigger problem that’s already been mentioned is they dig and trample plants.
So anything newly planted or not yet established has to be fenced off or caged in some way until it’s big enough not to die from their “attentions”.
Look for hardy plants and shrubs with sturdy woody stems/branches and/or thick leathery leaves.
Amazingly most of my flowers have survived the chickens but I have a massive lawn they love to snack on so that helps.

 

[chickengeorgeto]

My advice is to forget landscaping and chickens. The two things don't mix. Even if your birds don't eat up your new plantings they will happily up root them.

 

[MissChick@dee]

True but that’s why god invented chicken wire. I put it on the ground around the base of my plants/shrubs. They can lay under them but can’t dig. When they get fixated on one spot they can root up anything. Winter they get super board. I’m going to try different things and keep working at because I want the two to get along (chickens & garden). Funny this year I planted sweet potatoes without fencing with the full intentions to let them have at it....a peck here and there that’s it....sheesh.