Sorry to ask this again

[I have WHAT in my yard?]

I know I saw a thread on this before but I can't find it....

My run is very muddy these days. It has been raining all week and the yard looks like a swamp.

(I can certainly tell who the roo is favoring from the muddy backed hens!! LOL!)

Is there anything I can put in the run, should I bother??

 

[2468Chickensrgr8]

Good Mornin'.....I have read some ideas like sand and shavings....In the late fall when the run was really muddy I threw alot of leaves in the run with some shavings.....It entertained them and kept the eggs a little cleaner....PLUS come spring it will be excellent compost for the garden....
This past week my daughter put pieces of fire wood in the coop so the girls can hop from one to the other and more roosts in the run....they dont like to touch the snow that much ...they actually fly out to the roosts sometimes....
I have a neighbour when she cleans out the coop in the winter months of dirty shavings she throughs it in the run....a large run ...and come spring she removes it for her garden....doesnt smell that much because it freezes...plus her manure pile is a distance awy from the coop....hope that helps....

 

[TaLani]

I'm having the same problem. We're going to use some bark mulch or wood shavings. I suppose u could use sand or leaves too.

 

[SunAngel]

I split 5 tons of sand between my 3 runs this summer and it works great!

No mud, drains quick, dries up the poop, easy to rake up dry grass, leaves, or anything else that I toss in for them. I am planning on adding more sand in the Spring, just to raise up some low spots and counteract the settling from Winter.

 

[HennysMom]

I second the sand - I have it in my run as well and it makes it alot easier on the girls; dries alot faster and much easier to rake the poo out.

Before I put it in there - they were getting all mucky.

 

[UrbanChickenMama]

I put hay to soak up the mess. It keeps the girls entertained, a bit warmer, and definitely less muddy. then I can just rake it up at the end of the rainy season, plant something, and compost the hay.

 

[I have WHAT in my yard?]

Thanks for the replies! I had heard straw could cause leg problems and impacted crops?? Is that only when they are little? I had straw but didn't use it after I read that....

I can certainly use the dirty bedding from inside the coop! But, if straw is really OK I have that too....

 

[patandchickens]

I don't recall seeing anyone with crop impaction problems from *straw*, it is *hay* that sometimes causes that.

DO NOT dump sand into already-muddy ground, unless you have no alternative. It is a waste of money and labor, because the sand will disappear into the mud within weeks or months and you'll be right back at square one. Same with gravel. Sand or gravel do work well (IMO they are the best fix) if put down IN THE DRY SEASON. *Then* they will not mix with the soil below, not even when it gets wet. I do not know exactly why but this is how it works and worth respecting

Personally I'd chuck in some sort of coarse organic material, whatever I could get easily and cheaply, like coarse bark/wood chippings (NOT shavings) or coarse mulch or even straw if that was all I could get. Put in a good thick healthy layer. If mud starts to return in a few months, add more. Then -- and this is important -- as it dries out in midSpring or whenever, rake all that stuff out! Quick while you can, before the soil hardens. It will be great on your compost pile or garden. THen let things stand til the ground is very hard and dry next summer, and apply sand or gravel to prevent the problem in future years.

Oh, also do whatever you can to minimize water input. Put gutters on your coop roof, with downspouts leading well away from the run. And possibly trench around the outside of the run (a couple feet away) to give water somewhere better to go.

Good luck,

Pat

 

[chicksalot]

I hadn't thought of trenching, but may have the need to utilize that in the spring after the birds destroy the 'natural' groundcover...it would be a great way to direct all the runoff from snow & spring rains out of the run. I will use sand though, when I need to put a barrier between the birds & the dirt. I love the ideas spread over these threads...

Keep up the networking folks!

 

[rooster-red]

Sand, and lots of it!