Chip Drop, getchipdrop.com is a great source to have wood chips delivered for free. It basically connects arborists who would rather have a nearby place to dump their chips than pay to take them to the landfill, with homeowners who want chips.
You have to be willing to get a huge pile when the timing is convenient for them, though. And have a place near (but not in) the road for them to dump, they won't drive on to your property.
It's a great service, I got my pile of chips within a couple days of signing up, the timing is different for everybody, though.
Mine did have a lot of cedar, but it's fine for chickens if you let it age for a few weeks and you only use it in a place that's well-ventilated, like the outdoor run, not the indoor coop. I got mine when I was almost finished building my new run, so I put a deep layer in the new run and it was a few weeks later until the run was ready to let the chickens into it.
I also collected a lot of large stumps and branches and put them up against the edge of the inside of the run, so the chickens couldn't dig holes against the wire. It's really worked out great! My run is at the bottom of a slope too, and the deep layer of coarse chips has kept the surface totally mud-free.
Any coarse material you can put in the run will help keep your chickens out of the mud. Twigs, sticks, branches, rocks, dry leaves, woodworking scraps. Spreading straw and hay is fine, as long as you don't mind digging it out and replacing it every few months, because it does tend to rot more quickly - I used to use straw before I built the larger run, and it worked fine. It was more work, but also created a lot of good compost for the garden.
You have to be willing to get a huge pile when the timing is convenient for them, though. And have a place near (but not in) the road for them to dump, they won't drive on to your property.
It's a great service, I got my pile of chips within a couple days of signing up, the timing is different for everybody, though.
Mine did have a lot of cedar, but it's fine for chickens if you let it age for a few weeks and you only use it in a place that's well-ventilated, like the outdoor run, not the indoor coop. I got mine when I was almost finished building my new run, so I put a deep layer in the new run and it was a few weeks later until the run was ready to let the chickens into it.
Any coarse material you can put in the run will help keep your chickens out of the mud. Twigs, sticks, branches, rocks, dry leaves, woodworking scraps. Spreading straw and hay is fine, as long as you don't mind digging it out and replacing it every few months, because it does tend to rot more quickly - I used to use straw before I built the larger run, and it worked fine. It was more work, but also created a lot of good compost for the garden.
