My chickens won't explore the tall clover!

[big mami]

Hey everyone - My 40 pullets/cockerels (3 months old) have about a 1/3 acre fenced area for foraging daily. My DH weed whacked some of it so we wouldn't get ticks while walking to the coop. They love the weed whacked area and don't venture into the rest of the place, which is as tall as they are in clover. Should he weed whack the rest of it? Or will they eventually figure it out? BTW, once when we were walking around in the tall stuff several of them followed us and enjoyed it, but left the area when we did. Sigh...

 

[nurse_turtle]

Their little chicken DNA tells them that tall grass hides predators. They like something less dense to scratch around in.

 

[Spangled]

Hey everyone - My 40 pullets/cockerels (3 months old) have about a 1/3 acre fenced area for foraging daily. My DH weed whacked some of it so we wouldn't get ticks while walking to the coop. They love the weed whacked area and don't venture into the rest of the place, which is as tall as they are in clover. Should he weed whack the rest of it? Or will they eventually figure it out? BTW, once when we were walking around in the tall stuff several of them followed us and enjoyed it, but left the area when we did. Sigh...

Yeah, chickens are unpredictable. If they have shade out there in the middle of the clover ... like under a tree ... they probably would go out to it. Eventually. Chickens are more of a forest dweller and like to laze about in the hot afternoons under trees or bushes, dustbathing, and digesting lunch. Or maybe scratching in the leaves under the trees. They especially like the protection that the trees and bushes provide.

How long have they had access to this area? Eventually they will cover it all ... or make paths as they trample more and more of the 1/3 acre.

If I had a 1/3 acre fenced, I would probably weed whack a few paths through it. Then I would start setting their feeder out in different spots each day. Close enough so that they can see it, but still a little ways away. That way the area around the coop may be able to keep its vegetation.

I guess my goal with chickens is to preserve the grass/weeds/clover as long as possible. I want to keep the 1/3 acre covered in some sort of vegetation all summer and fall. If I weed whacked the whole thing, then if drought came, I could lose the whole field (or at least a good portion of it) and end up with a poop-covered dead zone. Even without a drought, the chickens themselves could totally kill the vegetation by their trampling and pooping. Just a hot August can dry up a patch of grass lickety split. Maybe you don't mind watering. Continually, I try to preserve my grass/weeds for them to eat. I do just about whatever I can to avoid having to plant grass.

Bugs! The vegetation preserves the moisture in the soil and keeps the clover green longer, which attracts more bugs, which, of course, are free and excellent for your chickens.

You could also trim a small section of the clover just a little bit ... you know, a little bit off the top ... so that it's still fairly tall, but the chickens could see over the top. Your chickens are still young. They will probably get used to the field before they're 5 months old, but you can never tell with chickens.

My chickens will go out in the field, with tall weeds, and hunt for bugs. They do a lot of their scratching under the bushes or near them for the sake of safety ... or what they feel is safety. Their usual time for hunting and eating grass is first thing in the morning and then and hour or two before sundown. On warm days (anything over about 80F?) they like to be in the shade.

I'm thinking that maybe you could split the 1/3 acre in two and let them work over one side for a while (a week? or more?) and then let them at the other side until the first side has recovered. The middle fence doesn't have to be anything fancy, just a temporary roll of chicken wire will do in a pinch and then can be rolled up and put away when not in use.

Anyway, no, I would not weed whack all of the clover.