Shadrach's Ex Battery and Rescued chickens thread.

[Mother of Chaos]

So do mine and we have loads growing in the polytunnel at the moment. Lettuce is about the only "edible" plant I can think of that they have access to but won't eat by choice.

Brassicas are always a favourite and most of them love chard. They eat dockens and dandelion with such enthusiasm that I've had to start transplanting more from other places where they'd be considered weeds! They'll eat smaller amounts of nettles and common hogweed too, apart from one point earlier in the year when they were all going mad for the hogweed for some reason. They really like the long, coarse cocksfoot grass that grows in big clumps as well. Chickweed, goose grass and clover don't survive long in places they have regular access to but I can either take them to visit places where they grow or bring some to them.

They're doing a lot more scratching and digging at the moment, looking for insects and grass and other seeds that have ripened and dropped on the ground from what I can see.

I picked up a head of cabbage and lobbed it into the run. *crickets* They seem quite terrified.

 

[z3lda3]

Like the vast majority of chickens, including so called heritage breeds, she isn't a breed at all. She's a mixture and without knowing what breeding interference has been done in the past, all I can say is like all the other chickens, she's a female chicken.

The majority of my flock are mixtures as well. All I can tell you is if the daddy is a Cochin or leghorn. (My Cochin is heavily booted, and a bantam). I like the mixtures, I’m the same way with dogs, give me a “mutt” any day of the week!

 

[kattabelly]

I picked up a head of cabbage and lobbed it into the run. *crickets* They seem quite terrified.

View attachment 4235808

It's like something out of Jurassic Park or one of those piranha feeding frenzy videos when I bring cabbage from the giant, ancient plant on my polytunnel plot (it's been there longer than I have - I think I'd actually need permission from Historic Environment Scotland to dig it up at this point)

 

[Mother of Chaos]

I think that it lacks interest because in essence, they have permission to eat it.

Whereas they are working away on the leaves of cousin Brussels sprouts plants through the not-very protective chicken wire. I guess this is good, because it still hasn’t started producing the sprouts, so at least someone is benefiting:

 

[RoyalChick]

I picked up a head of cabbage and lobbed it into the run. *crickets* They seem quite terrified.

View attachment 4235808

I hang mine and they play tether ball with it.
They are quite skilled at timing their lunges at the cabbage at the right point in its swing.
A head of cabbage lasts about a half a day.

 

[Mother of Chaos]

One pumpkin pretty much taken care of, starting on the next:

 

[Mother of Chaos]

I hang mine and they play tether ball with it.
They are quite skilled at timing their lunges at the cabbage at the right point in its swing.
A head of cabbage lasts about a half a day.

Do you have it in a heavy-duty net, or do you use a giant eye-bolt, or ?

 

[RoyalChick]

Do you have it in a heavy-duty net, or do you use a giant eye-bolt, or ?

I tried a net and that was OK but the net got grungy.
Then for ages I used one of those long S-hooks that you use to hang hanging baskets. Those won’t go through the tough stem but that doesn’t matter.
And then I got some of these - game changer!
They are like kebab skewers but with a hole for a hook at the sharp end.
https://a.co/d/aZXxnBk

Not sure you can really see it in this picture because the cabbage is gone - it is at the end of the chain in the foreground. I will try and get a cabbage tether ball video next time I get a cabbage.

 

[Mother of Chaos]

I tried a net and that was OK but the net got grungy.
Then for ages I used one of those long S-hooks that you use to hang hanging baskets. Those won’t go through the tough stem but that doesn’t matter.
And then I got some of these - game changer!
They are like kebab skewers but with a hole for a hook at the sharp end.
https://a.co/d/aZXxnBk

Not sure you can really see it in this picture because the cabbage is gone - it is at the end of the chain in the foreground. I will try and get a cabbage tether ball video next time I get a cabbage.
View attachment 4235831

Thanks!

 

[Mother of Chaos]

Went down the Amazon rabbit hole, because I didn’t know the category name for these things (spiral stake): this is what I was envisioning. Has anyone used something like this to hang cabbages from?