post your chicken coop pictures here!

[FarmerPhronc]

When to start depends on WHAT you start and when your planting season for those crops starts.

If you use a heating pad as a seed starter, make sure it is the kind that can be washed (the PAD, not just the cover) or make real sure that no water can get to it. Water and electricity don't play nice together.

This is what I use under my seedling tray.




I grow year round indoors using hydroponics so I can start what ever I want when ever I want.



What ever my wife and I don't eat gets fed to the chickens.

 

[pennyJo1960]

I will be starting mine in short order also

 

[ShrekDawg]

I've used plywood sheathing for other projects and it is a bit thin but still better than OSB. Sounds like you'all weatherproofed the outside well. If you plan to use a ladder ramp you can have it going up the wall with a platform halfway up and continue the ladder ramp from the platform up to the rafters - I would build the ramp wider than a foot because chickens will barrel down those ladders 2 and 3 at a time side-by-side! Seems a shame to deprive them of a high roost if there's enough space to give them ample room to fly down or use a ramp down whichever they choose for themselves. The rafters look high though and for myself would be worried a chicken would break a foot or something when landing on the floor. I had a Silkie that got a surprise shove off a nestbox landing down a couple feet to the floor and got badly bruised -- had to take her to the vet because she wasn't moving. I was lucky she didn't have any injury but certainly had the wind knocked out of her!

Hadn't thought of attaching it to the wall, that's a good idea and would take up less room in the coop too. But yeah, I was worried about injuries too especially since we all know chickens aren't likely to ALWAYS use the ramp and may just fly down in the morning LOL plus I was worried because there's 4 beams/rafters (2 feet apart) and the coops 4x8 with 4 foot walls plus the roof, that there wouldn't be enough landing room to glide down at a nice angle without hitting something and without being injured. Plus I'm worried that they will freeze to death since I had read once they should be below vents but then again they sleep on trees in the wild and have slept on the roof when it's not too too cold so maybe I'm just paranoid lol if I block off the rafters will they still be able to see them and be unhappy they can't get up there or will the get used to the roosts given to them?

When to start depends on WHAT you start and when your planting season for those crops starts. If you use a heating pad as a seed starter, make sure it is the kind that can be washed (the PAD, not just the cover) or make real sure that no water can get to it. Water and electricity don't play nice together.

This is what I use under my seedling tray. I grow year round indoors using hydroponics so I can start what ever I want when ever I want. What ever my wife and I don't eat gets fed to the chickens.

I will be starting mine in short order also

I hadn't thought of starting indoors, that's a good idea. Anyway, it's mostly summer veggies. Squash, cucumber, pumpkin, peppers, that sort of thing

 

[cavemanrich]

@KDOGG331

Hadn't thought of attaching it to the wall, that's a good idea and would take up less room in the coop too. But yeah, I was worried about injuries too especially since we all know chickens aren't likely to ALWAYS use the ramp and may just fly down in the morning LOL plus I was worried because there's 4 beams/rafters (2 feet apart) and the coops 4x8 with 4 foot walls plus the roof, that there wouldn't be enough landing room to glide down at a nice angle without hitting something and without being injured. Plus I'm worried that they will freeze to death since I had read once they should be below vents but then again they sleep on trees in the wild and have slept on the roof when it's not too too cold so maybe I'm just paranoid lol if I block off the rafters will they still be able to see them and be unhappy they can't get up there or will the get used to the roosts given to them?


Simply attach some chicken wire triangle shaped barriers so that chickens are not able to land on those rafters. You still allow for excellent airflow and it still allows for open ambiance.
As to chickens roosting in trees, it is true , but most likely in warmer weather. If it is cold and windy, they would seek out shelter where ever. During winter, I see wild birds sleeping inside my evergreen trees. They choose that over the leafless branches most likely for protection from wind/weather/ predators.

 

[pennyJo1960]

I am only doing raised beds this year

trying to eeck a garden from
pasture land failed horribly our first summer here none of us could stay
bent over or standing to weed the the beds or stay in the sunshine to do it...
was given 6 tires where James bought tires for his truck that will be used for tators
have to do pumpkin, zucchini, acorn squash, carrots and beets..
I have a separate herb garden all year long

 

[PrimroseMom1]

I am in Louisiana and have to have super ventilation and be in the shade. So I built panels that can be added in the winter. I just put the panels up yesterday.

 

[PrimroseMom1]

A year or so after I built it I made a waterproof poop sling that is so easy to clean. It made a huge difference.

 

[ShrekDawg]

@KDOGG331


[COLOR=333333]Hadn't thought of attaching it to the wall, that's a good idea and would take up less room in the coop too. But yeah, I was worried about injuries too especially since we all know chickens aren't likely to ALWAYS use the ramp and may just fly down in the morning LOL plus I was worried because there's 4 beams/rafters (2 feet apart) and the coops 4x8 with 4 foot walls plus the roof, that there wouldn't be enough landing room to glide down at a nice angle without hitting something and without being injured. Plus I'm worried that they will freeze to death since I had read once they should be below vents but then again they sleep on trees in the wild and have slept on the roof when it's not too too cold so maybe I'm just paranoid lol if I block off the rafters will they still be able to see them and be unhappy they can't get up there or will the get used to the roosts given to them?[/COLOR]
[COLOR=333333]  [/COLOR]

[COLOR=333333]Simply attach some chicken wire triangle   shaped barriers so that chickens  are not able to land on those rafters.   You still allow for excellent airflow and it still allows for open ambiance.[/COLOR]
[COLOR=333333]As to chickens roosting in trees, it is true , but most likely in warmer weather.    If it is cold and windy,  they would seek out shelter where ever.  During winter, I see wild birds sleeping inside my evergreen trees.   They choose that over the leafless branches most likely for protection from wind/weather/ predators. [/COLOR]

I never thought about chicken wire, that's a lot cheaper although i think we have some vinyl coated chicken we got at the feed store a while ago for the underground skirt we never put in. But yeah, chicken wire is a great idea for the inside cause if the outside is secured it's perfectly safe, thanks

And very true, I never thought about

 

[ShrekDawg]

I am only doing raised beds this year trying to eeck a garden from
pasture land failed horribly our first summer here none of us could stay
bent over or standing to weed the the beds or stay in the sunshine to do it...
was given 6 tires where James bought tires for his truck that will be used for tators
have to do pumpkin, zucchini, acorn squash, carrots and beets..
I have a separate herb garden all year long

We've never grown anything but a year or two ago we planted some peppers and tomatoes and stuff in a sandy spot on a hill in the sun, probably not the best place. They did eventually grow but I don't think we got any vegetables cause they died and the deer ate the tomatoes to the ground. This year I'm gonna plant in a better spot

 

[pennyJo1960]

Quote:

We've never grown anything but a year or two ago we planted some peppers and tomatoes and stuff in a sandy spot on a hill in the sun, probably not the best place. They did eventually grow but I don't think we got any vegetables cause they died and the deer ate the tomatoes to the ground. This year I'm gonna plant in a better spot

We have great soil here but no sign a garden ever lots of really old trees little clear to sky
because of the huge old fruit trees one oak one maple tree ... the deer are great at going after gardens
our dogs keep them at bay yours should