Planted Quail Aviary / Garden

[maadroj]

We're finally close to finishing our quail aviary, and now it's time to start adding the plants! If you have a planted aviary, would you mind sharing photos and/or advice?

 

[el dorado quail]

I will when i finish mine
I'm putting rosemary, a dwarf blue willow, and a coffeeberry bush in. I'm also going to try to plant nasturtiums, marigolds, carnations and some other stuff along the front/outside. Plus some grazing boxes with who knows what in them

 

[le_bwah]

Mine ate their fescue, but leave the ornamental grasses alone. I love muhly grass—it gets big enough for the quail to hide and lay in, but it doesn't get so huge or pokey that it's hard to care for. Just whack the seed heads off if you don't want the birds eating them.

The potted plants are oregano, rosemary, and scotch moss—good for nibbling, especially if the pots are tall. There's also a patch of "mini mint" that they completely leave alone.

In my experience, quail will eat most plants to the base—they can be as bad as chickens in that regard. It's sort of trial and error, but I can share a list of plants mine ate if you give me a day or so to go through the old plant tags.

 

[maadroj]

View attachment 1836864

The potted plants are oregano, rosemary, and scotch moss—good for nibbling, especially if the pots are tall. There's also a patch of "mini mint" that they completely leave alone.

Your aviary looks so cute! Thank you for sharing the photo. So you haven't had trouble with the mint plant? I'm hoping to plant a mint border around the aviary to discourage rodents. I've heard they don't like mint. But I think I also read somewhere that it might bother quail. Had anyone had experience with it?

 

[Fishkeeper]

Quail shouldn't mind, but I'm not too sure how effective it'll be against rodents. Worth a try, though, I suppose. It might stop them from smelling the quail feed and knowing it's in there to get at.

Just a warning, though: mint escapes. So much. It will get out of anything you put it in, including a pot with a drainage hole that's set on top of dirt. Resign yourself to having to mow over escaping mint if you have a lawn. My neighbor has a mint patch that's edged by their house on 2 sides and the sidewalk on the other 2 sides, and the mint has gone underneath the sidewalk via its roots and popped up on the other side. An 18" deep barrier of something it can't go through would hopefully keep it in, but it'll escape just about anything else.

 

[el dorado quail]

Rodents don't like eating herbs, could mix oregano and thyme into the border for a stronger scent barrier

 

[maadroj]

Thank you all for your advice! My quail have been introduced to their new home and so far are loving the nonstop dust (and mud) bath party.