Shadrach's Ex Battery and Rescued chickens thread.

[Molpet]

I used to have wild black raspberries and gooseberries in the poultry yard. They ate the berries and then the leaves. I don't have any left in the Poultry yard

 

[Perris]

Mine aren't particularly fond of raspberries; most will try one if I pick a berry and offer it to them, but they're left on the canes for me to enjoy, which I'm very happy about

I imagine grape, olive and pomegranate will do well where you are @fluffycrow , but most of what I'm familiar with couldn't cope with the dryness.

 

[Perris]

I tried a bit of planting this year, hopefully it helps a bit. So far, that is one bougainvillea glabra, two larger nerium oleander bushes, two lavenders bushes (not sure which exact species), one myrtus communis bush (which I’m most excited about)

I'm jealous; they are all so beautiful or fragrant (the varieties that will grow here are not so good as those that love the heat).

 

[Perris]

This is Phoenix the ram. He was the most dangerous domesticated creature we kept

He really liked knocking people over. He did this a lot. He is probably responsible for the heart attack I had while I was at the smallholding.

It became my job to deal with him. I did daily, twice a day or more usually. Every year he would put me on my back once.

Is the last photo after one such episode, with him coming to check you were OK?
My takeaway from this is: never turn your back on a ram

I got to like Phoenix. The tipping point was watching him tread care fully around an egg one of hens had laid on the floor in his shed

 

[kattabelly]

Mine aren't particularly fond of raspberries; most will try one if I pick a berry and offer it to them, but they're left on the canes for me to enjoy, which I'm very happy about

Mine eat everything but the canes!

 

[Perris]

Shepherd's warning this morning

 

[Shadrach]

Is the last photo after one such episode, with him coming to check you were OK?

It is, but that's not me on the ground.

 

[Shadrach]

Love the way the light shines through Glais’ comb in the coop photos .

Is that a young Cillin in the last photo?

No, that's one of his sons.

 

[fluffycrow]

View attachment 4241819
The Portuguese laurel.

Hmm that looks nice. I’m sure it can grow here, but not sure if it will act in an invasive way. Will keep an eye out for it next time I’m at a plant nursery.

Protect the blackberry starts for a few years. I've had deer eat the raspberry starts and either rip them right out or mow them off which also kills them as they've been there less than a year.

In my opinion, any shrub/tree that can double as a food source for people or chickens is a better option over one that simply looks pretty/provides some shelter. All should provide some shelter, but things they can browse on later are double duty. If you have deciduous trees/bushes, then definitely some sort of evergreen too. If you have lots of evergreens, then add some deciduous instead.

My birds like eating grass seeds. I have several different types....not sure what they all are, so a variety of grasses that WON'T be mown (until after they enjoy the seeds).

Thank you. Yes, I’ve tried to keep the blackberries from getting trampled over. No herbivore (or omnivore, if you don’t count dogs) has access to the property, so them getting eaten completely isn’t my top concern.
some of the new bushes theoretically provide food for the local wildlife and chickens (the myrtle and the blackberry bushes), along with what we already have growing here. I’m definitely more interested in bushes that produce berries or fruits, or something of the sort. Grasses are abundant here, and the group nibble at the seeds quite regularly. The the seniors love them a lot.

I don’t think we have any deciduous trees here, and I certainly wouldn’t know where to start. They’re not that common here; where you really start to see them is up North, in Macedonia, Thrace and Epirus, for example

 

[fluffycrow]

Mine aren't particularly fond of raspberries; most will try one if I pick a berry and offer it to them, but they're left on the canes for me to enjoy, which I'm very happy about

I imagine grape, olive and pomegranate will do well where you are @fluffycrow , but most of what I'm familiar with couldn't cope with the dryness.

Thank you. We already have a few of those. Three pomegranate trees in the area the chickens use, and one or two more further up the slope.
Most of the fruit drops to the ground, but the chickens don’t enjoy eating it much (same for fresh pomegranate). Most insects love it though.
Three grape vines on the property, though one is really struggling right now. The chickens love the grapes, and the have decimated any clump growing within their reach.

Olive trees are a must! Two wild olive trees, both of which are/were used by the tree huggers (one grows in the bantam pen, so it gets constant use), and then 5 really old “normal” ones. Planted by my grandfather ages ago, they host most of the cicada population on the property, and are a frequent spot in the summer. They don’t get much use in the winter, and no chicken has shown desire to perch on them.

Another unconventional fruit; Opuntia fruit. Another prehistoric plant on the property, that is left completely untouched because I don’t have a death with. The fruit that falls to the ground gets little attention from the group. Lucia once hid a nest within the Opuntia pads. Smart nest choice, I think