Two super-foods that love the heat!

[Mervin]

Mine get lots of greens, one word of caution though. I have read that spinach can block the absorption of calcium. I wouldn't have thought much of it, but I think I may have had it happen in my own flock. I've never had trouble with soft-shelled eggs or anything, but a couple of months ago I started getting a few. I started reading threads about soft-shells and came across the spinach thing. They had been getting a lot of greens at the time, especially spinach. I cut back on the spinach and things seemed to firm up, so to speak.

Also, in humans at least, vitamin K (abundant in leafy greens) can contribute to blood clotting. Imagine getting a call from your doctor indicating that you should lay off the salad and quit taking vitamins. "Hey doc, can you call my wife and tell her my diet should include more beer and wings?"

 

[Newbie in Screamer Al]

I ditto the Collards. We also plant Mustards and Turnips for greens and roots. We and the birds love em. I would think you would have no problem g-momto11 with growing them there. I am in lower bottom east Bama, and they are fine in the heat. Put em up NOW and you will do well with them I think. They are not as good to eat when grown in the heat of the summer, but we plant a bunch in mid Feb. for puttin up for us, and then do a fall crop again in Oct. Seeds are cheap, and benefits are good......
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[HeritageHens]

Newbie in Screamer Al, :

I ditto the Collards.

x3

I let the chickens clean up the garden last fall. The collard greens were the first thing to go. They had access to spinach as well but much preferred the collards.​

 

[BitsyB]

Quote:
Yes, the oxalic acid in spinach blocks the absorption of calcium, but I think (I could be wrong though) it's only the calcium in the spinach, and not from other sources.

But it brings it back around to what I said earlier- if we give our chickens access to a variety of nutritious foods, they'll most likely eat what they need to be healthy. Maybe that's why HeritageHens' chickens preferred the collards before the spinach? Smart girls, must have done their research...

 

[bigoledude]

Never would have considered collards because they get a little bitter when the temps rise. But, I bet the chickens wouldn't care a lick! Good idea!

 

[Sorin]

I give mine kale as a treat and they go nuts over it!

 

[ranchhand]

I've grown the Malabar, be aware that it reseeds ALL over the place! I treated it like spinach and had many tasty salads from it. And collards? I lost all of mine to the chickens, they LOVE them!

 

[g-momto11]

Hey ranchland

That's great news. I'll just keep dragging the tractor over the areas that have reseeded.

That's not meant to be sarcastic. The area they will be growing in is along a canal and growing stuff that the chickens will benefit from is a bonus.

 

[Pineywoods Peepers]

Quote:
I ordered some Malabar seeds from http://rareseeds.com/ but then I read somewhere that it was fairly invasive. Do your chickens keep it thinned down, or has it become problematic in your yard?