Shadrach's Ex Battery and Rescued chickens thread.

[Perris]

Will chickens commonly dig through a few layers of rocks the diameter of a golf ball or larger?

yes they can def do that. We had some rubble delivered to make a trackway for a building project a couple of years ago, and I was (and am still) amazed how far some chunky bits have travelled. Chunks at least 3x golf ball size.

 

[Perris]

I’m planning to cover with hardwood mulch

the chickens will spread that everywhere!

 

[Mother of Chaos]

yes they can def do that. We had some rubble delivered to make a trackway for a building project a couple of years ago, and I was (and am still) amazed how far some chunky bits have travelled. Chunks at least 3x golf ball size.

Really, they’re like small children - if there were only some way to capture and direct that energy! (I will have them tilling the veg beds in the next few weeks.)

 

[Mother of Chaos]

the chickens will spread that everywhere!

 

[Mother of Chaos]

Dear @Shadrach - I owe you a ton of tax, but it rained this morning and the ladies are sulking in their coop…

 

[L-plate chicken mum]

that's a great idea; I'll see what I can rummage up; would be much better from all points of view than an upturned bucket!

hard to say. That border was planted up over 20 years ago, long before I had chickens. Some shrubs do self-seed (notably, pittisporum) and there are some in the leak gap, so they can survive even mere inches tall. I guess it depends on whether the shrub and/or what lives with/on it attract their attention or not. And the existence and attractiveness of alternatives for their attention. My flock definitely work their territory on rotation, as if they were born knowing about mob grazing. They work an area and then move on and give it a rest. Very few things have been wiped out by them.

might be that family but not the culinary herb. It's variegated, leaves much thinner and finer than bay. I must have it noted somewhere; I'll try to dig it out. It's a fine addition to the border. And suits the conditions here very well.

Was thinking Portugese Laurel, Prunus lusitanica.
https://www.rhs.org.uk/plants/89675/prunus-lusitanica-variegata-(v)/details.
Comes in variegated has racemes of white flowers & may have loose bunches of small black berries

 

[Perris]

yes! well done! thank you @L-plate chicken mum that is indeed it.

 

[Mother of Chaos]

tax

I thought that they were re-enacting Colditz once again, but no, they had found a half-eaten Fuji apple:

 

[fuzzi]

I moved to paving slab pieces after my chickens proved themselves more than capable of moving quite large rocks.
I think the paving slabs being flat makes them more difficult to move.
Mine are broken pieces not full slabs. 8-10” pieces.
I have used this approach with shallow rooted shrubs including azalea and they did fine. My only worry is when it gets very hot - I worried about the stones absorbing heat and overheating the roots. I haven’t actually had an issue, but to be cautious I piled some weeds over the stones at the peak of the summer heat.

Generally the soil will be cooler and damp under a rock, even in the sun.

 

[Shadrach]

I've thought for a while now that it's the type of plant that interests the chickens because different types of plant attract different bugs and mycelium. The chickens aren't just vandels.
Another point is if one has enough room and and healthy amount of shrubs, plants and bushes and of course the right number of chickens for a given area most things will survive.