Raised Coop - Pros & Cons

[1muttsfan]

Sort it took so long!

From the door between the chicken area and storage part, looking at the back

And looking toward the right, feeders for granite and calcium grits, cardboard thingy keeps chickens from top of waterer

 

[chancet]

I want to mix my garden with my chicken coop, where they can benefit each other. Here's one idea I found: http://www.backwoodshome.com/articles/silveira44a.html

I really like the raised chicken coop someone shared with the mesh floor, which allows the doo doo to just fall through. What if I had a very raised chicken coop (as to not obstruct the sunlight), and have my garden underneath the chicken coop. The poop could compost my garden. Or does the poop need a year to safely turn into compost before it can be put into the garden? In that case, http://www.backwoodshome.com/articles/silveira44a.html would be a better idea...

If my idea really works, that would require little to no cleanup, and an automatically enriched garden, the garden, which of course, would be fenced in under the chicken coop, to stop the chickens from having their way with it.

 

[yogifink]

Raised coop IMHO is easier to clean. Just make the door as high or higher than your wheel barrow and just push/pull the solid littler out. Less shoveling all around.

 

[chancet]

Yes, thank-you, I gathered that. My idea, though, was putting my garden directly under the coop (which would have a mesh floor so the poop falls down on its own. My idea is to self-fertilize the garden that way. But I was thinking maybe the poop needs to sit for a year to safetly compost before it can be added to the garden?

 

[chancet]

...but if I had a mesh floor, I'd need a separate winterized henhouse for wintertime since I live in Canada. I guess your idea is best... but I've been considering an earth-sheltered henhouse, since my small home is earth-sheltered and adding a side addition henhouse is a thought of mine. I think that link I posted earlier may be the best for ease of use, and in tending to my garden.