Off to Lowes to buy COOP LUMBER...and it's only Feb...

[inohio]

Watch with the treated lumber, that is usually treated with cyanide and you definitely can't use it for organic gardening.

I also have clay... good, easy way to break it up is to put down a thick layer of newspaper or, even better, some cardboard and tack it down. The earth worms will come flying and break everything up for you. If you top it with 10 inches in a raised bed, you'll have a nice setup for the second year and the plant roots will be able to dig down deeper.

 

[Cass]

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I think you are thinking of arsnic....don't think they ever put cyanide in lumber, but I could be wrong. Arsnic isn't all that good for you, but is naturally occuring in nature. I'm not to worried about organic gardening. I did that when my chidren were little to give them the best start at life. Now I need all the perservatives I can get just to get out of bed in the morning.

Thanks for the tip on dealing with clay...my garden area is mixed with ROCKS....lots and lots and lots (you get the idea) of rocks. I wonder if that is why the road is called "Quarry road"?

If it was just clay I would dig a hole, add some compost and let the plants do the work. But I need to add a top of soil to get the plants above the rocks...Just can't dig a hole, period in some parts of the yard. And you KNOW I chose the sunniest part of the yard for the garden, which is also the part MOST filled with rocks. Our compost pile is between 2 bolders, so we don't have to weedwack that area.

I will use your idea in the flower garden however. Not so many rocks there, just need to break up the soil so the plants can spread out like the package said they would.

 

[Judy]

They don't use arsenic in treated lumber any more, either. Had to make it safe for kids to gnaw on in playgrounds, remember. I believe it's copper now but don't quote me. It's fine in coops, anyway, though you don't need it where it's not touching ground or getting wet.

Building it like a deck on 4x4 posts in cement will work fine, relax. You are smart to build up the earth for the run. Chickens DO dig holes to dust bathe in -- I haven't seen one much deeper than 4" or so, though.

 

[maclady]

Cass you need raised beds to be at least 6 inches deep to grow most veggies. Rabbits make excellent compost. Doesn't even have to sit. It can go straight into the garden. We cheated and used untreated 2x6s that we scrounged up and bought some also. The plastic tubs that tidy cat kitty litter come in make great potato growing buckets. You can cut out the bottom or just drill many holes into it. Good Luck with you coop build. Currently building mine and can't wait until it is done. We are building in our garage. I won't say it is a chicken castle but I think they will like it. I only have 4 babies and this is my first time with chickens. Can't wait to see what you are building.

 

[greenfamilyfarms]

Here's you a couple of videos:

 

[Cass]

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Phew...cuz if they dig down 10 inches they are gonna hit hardware cloth. Of course they are going to be able to free range, when I am home....but I want them to have free will outdoor access, hense the run....and raising it so they don't start to think they are ducks in chicken feathers cuz of all the water they are wadding in. Last spring we had ducks swimming in our lower flower garden...the pond overflowed onto the lawn. So, of course, I went out and bought 6 Mallards to raise. The ducks flew away, just like good Mallards should. I am hoping for their return this spring to raise their ducklings in the pond (and only in the pond, not on the lawn.)

And Dawn? The kids DID chew on it....where were the parents? I don't know...but I think that a bad case of arsnic poision might wake a few of them up to their responsiblities as parents. I miss the good ol' days when people said "what did I do wrong" instead of "who can I sue since I got hurt?"

 

[NHchicks]

Thanks all for the gardening info. Since chicken compost is involved, it's fairly on topic.

My husband has this thing about treated lumber and food gardening. Don't bother confusing him with the facts, it's cedar or nothing. But, if you buy at Lowes and the cedar is $16 for 8', then a 4x4 raised bed (which is what I believe Square Foot Gardening recommends, tho the book should be arriving Tuesday) will cost about $32, which is a lot cheaper than $99 online, but maybe not as pretty. I wonder if they'll cut the 8' into two 4' for me. Hmmm.

It would be fun to have a gardening sub-thread on here. I'll bet most chicken farmers have gardens.

edit: greenfamilyfarms, thank you for those great youtube videos. Amazing what you can do in little space.

 

[Cass]

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See Dawn's post. I Don't advocate using pressure treated, but even non presure treated wood will last several years. Your husband wants cedar for it's bug repellant properties and it is pretty rot resistant, so he doesn't have to redo it again any time soon. (Possibly in his lifetime, which is probably what he is hoping for) This is my thread so we can talk about anything we want on it. Right? As far as cutting it for you, Yes, Lowes does cut wood to size for people. Sometimes it is free, sometimes it cost 50 cents a cut. Depends on the mood of the cutter as far as I can determine.

Remember if you use chicken poo on your garden it needs to be aged to cut down the nitrogen concentration ... Nitrogen will burn off your plants if it is too concentrated.

 

[NHchicks]

Cass - Do the timbers you use have *anything* in them except wood?

I think he's more concerned about toxins than labor. Thanks for the info on Lowes cutting, I can stuff 4' in the back of the station wagon, but probably not 8'.

 

[Cass]

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I hope you post some pictures of your coop when it is done. If I am allowed to post pics I will too.

Thanks for idea on potatoes in litter boxes. I don't use Tidy Cat, but I think I'll piggy back your idea on someone else's idea of asking grocery store bakery for their 2 and 5 gallon buckets....they are free and some stores even wash them out for you. There is NO WAY I can grown potatoes in my soil, but I sure can grow them in a bucket.

4 babies? WONDERFUL. Can you tell the gender yet? I ordered 4 girls and one boy. The breeder I am getting them from suggested an Olive egger Roo, so when he breeds with my Marans, Amerucana (sp) and olive egger I will get a variety of colors in the eggs of the offspring. Now I need to learn the "go broody" dance....well, sometime in the future I need to learn it...right now I 'm not even sure my chicks have been HATCHED yet.