Topic of the Week - What is the purpose of your flock?

[patirosaj]

How do you stop them from eating your tomato plants? I had to give up planting tomatoes! One day I found they had eaten all my tomatoes, leaves and all just left the stalks!!! They look at me as if to say hey mum we left you the rest of the plant.

 

[patirosaj]

How do you stop them from eating your tomato plants? I had to give up planting tomatoes! One day I found they had eaten all my tomatoes, leaves and all just left the stalks!!! They look at me as if to say hey mum we left you the rest of the plant.

I have raised planters (built out of pallets - cheap and easy to do), so I staked the corners and stalled bird netting around it. The girls still get through to a few, but many more survive.

 

[Jojosine]

Reasons for keeping chickens:
Started: Eggs
Discovered: Entertainment
Turned into: Addiction
Now also: Meat

Went from 4 chickens a year ago to:
1 rooster, Harvey
9 adult hens &
13 chicks
= 23 birds

Mind you, the young cockerels will end up on our table if we can't give them away, thankfully one is spoken for, but the others won't be so lucky. It's sad, but we knew this would happen when we started breeding.