Recommendations for safe weed-killers nearby to coops & runs, please.

[Villa delle Rosa Silkies]

We have an area of weeds in the area that our Silkies' coops & runs are ..... we do allow our Silkies to free-range twice a day, under supervision, as there are cats around ..... but they don't go into the area where there is a mound of weeds, quite near to one of the coop & runs. We have weeded by hand before, but it is just too big an area for us, at our age of over 65, to manage by hand. Are there any safe weed-killers to use, with coop & run only a few feet away? Or any homemade weed-killer recipes out there, that are effective? I have found a recipe using 1 gallon of water, 1 gallon of bleach, & quarter of a teaspoon of detergent to make it stick ..... has anyone used this one with good effect? Thanks.

 

[SueT]

Chickens are usually good at killing weeds....make a temporary pen around weeds, and put chickens in, and they'll remove everything alive....
I would not use herbicides around chickens, cats, or yourselves.

 

[Acre4Me]

Yes, I would be careful with using herbicides. Fence off the area if you want to ensure they do not go there. Some herbicides are labeled to be “friendly” to certain things...but it’s not garden season here yet, so products are not on the shelf.

When ever I’ve sprayed anything on my garden, I’ve done it later in the day, and lock the chickens in their coop so they are not getting any spray mist. My veg garden is near to their coop/run, so there would be a slight risk. Most products dry pretty quick and it is considered safe for humans/animals to be in the area after the application dries. Check any labels as they would indicate what is considered safe.

Since the chickens do not venture into that area, then anything you apply and allow to dry is not likely to be disturbed or ingested by the chickens.

FWIW, we have farm fields on both ends of our small property. We’ve been thru one harvest season. We were all outside, including chickens, when the crop duster flew above our heads and went low over the fields to spray something. Was there residual in the air? Possibly, but no one suffered any obvious effects.

 

[Brahmachicken240]

We have an area of weeds in the area that our Silkies' coops & runs are ..... we do allow our Silkies to free-range twice a day, under supervision, as there are cats around ..... but they don't go into the area where there is a mound of weeds, quite near to one of the coop & runs. We have weeded by hand before, but it is just too big an area for us, at our age of over 65, to manage by hand. Are there any safe weed-killers to use, with coop & run only a few feet away? Or any homemade weed-killer recipes out there, that are effective? I have found a recipe using 1 gallon of water, 1 gallon of bleach, & quarter of a teaspoon of detergent to make it stick ..... has anyone used this one with good effect? Thanks.

I use roundup “fast action total weed killer”
Never had a problem with any of my animals.

I’m sure it’s fine unless you spray your hens with it.
Maybe keep them closed in for an extra 2 or 3 hours after you spray to let it dry.

 

[Acre4Me]

I use roundup “fast action total weed killer”
Never had a problem with any of my animals.

I’m sure it’s fine unless you spray your hens with it.

Yet, sometimes we chicken owners spray or dust them with permethrin to get rid of the lice/mites! And they live to tell the tale!

Of course, all compounds are not created equal and some would be harmful.

 

[Brahmachicken240]

Yet, sometimes we chicken owners spray or dust them with permethrin to get rid of the lice/mites! And they live to tell the tale!

Of course, all compounds are not created equal and some would be harmful.

Yes of course, that’s why I put the name of the weed killer in my post.

 

[Molpet]

Chickens are usually good at killing weeds....make a temporary pen around weeds, and put chickens in, and they'll remove everything alive....
I would not use herbicides around chickens, cats, or yourselves.

x2
it can take a couple years for the issues from chemicals to show up in people or animals, and the issue may not be immediately linked to the chemical.

 

[Villa delle Rosa Silkies]

Chickens are usually good at killing weeds....make a temporary pen around weeds, and put chickens in, and they'll remove everything alive....
I would not use herbicides around chickens, cats, or yourselves.

We can't put the chickens in that area. It's a high, large mound which is covered with a rampant weed vine that a chicken could very easily get tangled up in or even strangled. We don't let our little dogs in that area, for that reason. My silkies don't eat a great deal of weeds when they are out free-ranging ..... they are usually scrounging around for worms & bugs lol .... I wouldn't use herbicides anywhere near animals or birds. I try to find homemade recipes for spraying my roses & now for spraying these weeds.

 

[IamRainey]

I like the idea of setting up a pen around the weeds. If that isn't workable for you I wouldn't use anything more chemical than boiling water around my birds.

You may need to repeat it a number of times but if there isn't any photosynthesis eventually the roots will give out.

I would so not use Round-Up for anything!

 

[Villa delle Rosa Silkies]

I use roundup “fast action total weed killer”
Never had a problem with any of my animals.

I’m sure it’s fine unless you spray your hens with it.
Maybe keep them closed in for an extra 2 or 3 hours after you spray to let it dry.