Stop!!!!! Don't throw that away!!!

[lazy gardener]

How much nutrition is going into your trash or down the drain on a daily basis? Water from cooking veggies? Give it to the chickens. Carrot peels and tops? Chickens! Charred bits in the bottom of a pan after cooking meat? Slosh that veggie water in it, and... give it to the chickens. Corn cobs? Toss them in a pot to make a broth for your next soup or, give them to the Chickens! Meat bones? Chickens! Cleaning the fridge? Do it before stuff gets toxic, and... give it to the chickens. Dried bread? Croutons, french toast... or give it to the chickens. Anything vegetable that doesn't go to the chickens? Give it to the compost. Last night, after cooking a beautiful salmon fillet, I pulled the skin out of the trash (put there by an enthusiastic kitchen helper) cooked it up, minced it, gave some to the dog with her kibble, and put the rest with some yogurt whey to mix with chicken feed this morning. The average American throws away more nutrition in a week than some 3rd world folks have on their dinner plates.

 

[NewChick2016]

Can I give them squash and zucchini? If yes, should I cook it first or give it to them raw?

 

[azygous]

I grow a huge volume of squash every summer and store it under my house and feed it to the chickens all winter long. I'm still feeding them last summer's crop of squash while the new crop is growing.

I grow huge zucchini, spaghetti squash, hubbard squash, and pumpkin. I use a hand saw to cut it up and I feed it to the chickens raw. They absolutely go crazy over it.

 

[lazy gardener]

Squash of all types are enjoyed. You don't have to cook it. Especially the summer types. Just toss them in the run, and the chickens will do the rest. You can gather pumpkins after Halloween and store them. Serve them up one at a time. They especially like them after they've gone through multiple freeze/thaw cycles and have gone mushy. Cooking winter squash for yourself? Save the seeds and pulp for the birds. last fall, I bought 14 huge winter squash of all varieties, some of them were over 20# for 99 cents each. I cooked and ate/froze most of them, saved the seeds, and have planted some of them this summer, have a pile of seeds left for sprouts for the flock, or for next season's garden. It was a great way to try all of the varieties I didn't want to dedicate garden space to.

Azygous, hand saw or axe are great for breaking into squash. But I have an easier method. I put it in a plastic bag, and go out and smash it on the road. (any hard surface will do.) It breaks into manageable pieces. Then, if you want it smaller, a sharp rap with a big knife from THE INSIDE cuts it quite easily. I then put it in my huge stock pot with a bit of water, skin side down and cook it. Much easier to scoop the flesh out of the skin than it is to peel it before cooking.

 

[eviemethugh]

Can I give them squash and zucchini? If yes, should I cook it first or give it to them raw?

We rough chop our over sized squash zucchini and cucumbers into 3 inch cubed pieces (give or take, usually I slice every couple inches and don't peel) and freeze them and give the chickens some everyday (1 piece per 10 chickens is usually good to cool them down)