Need some ideas for shade bushes in a non roofed chicken pen. (Updated w/ pics pg 2)

[BallsEleven]

4' plastic fencing is enough to keep my birds out (flock below) - they defeat it by landing on the 4' gate, then hopping over. In addition to thornless blackberry (ours are wild, native, have thorns and small fruit, sadly) which my birds like, blueberry will also do well in your soils (we have similar climates, you and I - though you have been much wetter these past two years with the unceasing pounding of the hurricanes - and it takes a while to put on size.

I've had good luck with rosemary, once its beg enough that they can't break off low branches by tripping over/thru it (more a problem with the ducks, who like to nest and lay eggs next to it).

A final consideration, though again you are looking a couple years down the road, would be to build a grape arbor with posts and wire, a handful of plants. The first year, it should climb the post and begin down the wire before freezing back. The second year's growth might get you 6-8 feet down the wire, but not much shade below. By the third year, you should be seeing fruit, good shade projected by each wire for most of the 12-15' length during the summer and fall. Mine love the fruit (of course - we have wild muscadine, plus some varietals I planted deliberately) - but completely ignore the vine and leaves.

If you'd rather do trees - look to serviceberry and jostaberry, but check your needed frost hours, you may be borderline on those.

I'm not sure how the blueberries would do there. That corner is the lowest spot of the yard and it tends to be wet majority of the time. I have 2 blueberry bushes in pots that I got back when I lived in your neck of the woods. They are still somewhat small though.

Grapes going up the covered run is a good idea. I would probably have to stick to muscadine because of the heat.

There was a meyer lemon and satsuma tree in that area but we had a nasty ice storm in February that knocked out all of my citrus.

 

[Krugerrand]

Hijacking, just a moment, to say how much I love this.

Ours are more traditional. 8' posts, sunk at an angle, steel wire with earth augurs. My plants are 10' apart, on 20' runs - but there are places I could definitely do this on the property.

I have a hardy kiwi vine growing on a cattle panel trellis ... but it's too young to share any pictures of it yet. Let's jsut say, it's not offering ANY shade at the moment.

 

[BallsEleven]

I guess I need to be paying attention to plants I shouldn't place in there also.

2 of the plants I was looking at, honeysuckle and azaleas, appear to be no-go's for chickens. I never would have thought.

 

[U_Stormcrow]

I'm not sure how the blueberries would do there. That corner is the lowest spot of the yard and it tends to be wet majority of the time. I have 2 blueberry bushes in pots that I got back when I lived in your neck of the woods. They are still somewhat small though.

Grapes going up the covered run is a good idea. I would probably have to stick to muscadine because of the heat.

There was a meyer lemon and satsuma tree in that area but we had a nasty ice storm in February that knocked out all of my citrus.

If its constantly wet, you are correct - the blueberries would do terribly and likely succumb to rot the first season.

Muscadine, i agree, best bet for our climate and disease hardy as well. I'm trying a flame red seedless this year, as well as a Thompson green seedless, planted between my Cowart and my Triumph Muscadines. Have to say, the Muscadine are doing 20-30% better this year in terms of growth rate than the others - but thought it was worthy of at least trying some others to see how they would do.

Struggle with peaches here, too. Lots of clay in my soils, not enough sand.

 

[Brooks_]

I guess I need to be paying attention to plants I shouldn't place in there also.

2 of the plants I was looking at, honeysuckle and azaleas, appear to be no-go's for chickens. I never would have thought.

Mine have only pecked at azalea. Though I think they would destroy a small azalea in the run by digging around it.

 

[3KillerBs]

I would probably have to stick to muscadine because of the heat.

If you're thinking of getting muscadines I have to recommend Ison's as a source.

The ones we got from Isons for this property are so much more vigorous than the ones we got from Lowes at the last property. Good named varieties, not just "Muscadine" and "Scuppernong".

https://www.isons.com/?gclid=CjwKCA...kHngPgzD5dMkF6T9zQ9egRQZ1PGIZLbRoCZnQQAvD_BwE

 

[BallsEleven]

Y'all are going to get me in trouble with the wife with all this grape talk. It will give me an itch to try homemade wine (if they produce enough).

 

[cmom]

I have some crape myrtle's in some of the pens.

 

[BeckyOB]

So I've got my coop and run, but also have fenced off a section of my backyard just for the chickens. Since a couple of the ninjas have figured out a way to hope over the 4ft fence, I don't let them out unless I am home since they always seem to make a bee line for my garden.

I want to give them some shade in the pen. I am thinking maybe a blackberry bush and fig tree? It won't bother me if the fruit are picked clean.

Any other thoughts on some bushes? I am in south Louisiana and it gets hot and humid down here. Their coop doesn't offer a ton of relief since it is lacking some ventilation (I will be fixing this in the near future).

This is my exact situation nearly! So I'm following this thread for sure!

 

[raingarden]

For something that is inexpensive, easy and fast growing look into Wax Myrtle, Morella cerifera. It forms a thick hedge as tall as you want to prune it to be. In Louisiana you should be able find stands of it on disturbed fallow ground. Most people consider it worthless. It tolerates being dug up and transplanted easily. Just cut it back after planting and keep it watered until it starts to regrow. The chickens and wildlife will eat the berries but not the foliage.