Using leaves for deep litter bedding?

[PunkinPeep]

Quote:
I would imagine that lumber yard shavings probably includes shavings from treated lumber, which you probably don't want in your coop. It also won't compost too well.

If they separate it somehow, then great! Make sure it doesn't include anything from plywood either - 'cause that means glue.

 

[Gypsi]

While we're on the topic, I have a pile (10 ft in diameter, about 1 ft deep) of aged wood chips that I got when they were freshly chopped from my neighbor the tree trimmer. (2 dump truck loads 2 years ago) I was going to try to use them for deep litter, but after all the rain we've had I think I'll put them on my flower beds instead. I'm afraid of mold & mildew that are probably in them. Valid fear?

I don't think I'll do the deep litter bedding - I'd rather use a sheet of pondliner on the floor and empty it out every couple of weeks than have a really big mess once or twice a year - I swept out a couple of weeks worth of straw and droppings from the original coop aka the "brooder" the other day - wasn't that bad. It's 2 ft by 3 ft, a couple of nest boxes bottom back - before I realized just how BIG chickens were going to get.

So if I do thin bedding - straw or grass clippings or leaves are ok?

 

[rooster0209]

I usually change the litter when ever its too dirty to turn and have "clean" on top.

The birds free range all summer so they dont spend too much time inside the coop. The winters here get pretty bad and I lock up the birds. I don't change the litter all winter, just add new stuff to the top. The first day of warmer weather (40-ish) I change it.

 

[tokies]

we grow backyard rice. so along rice straw. we use leaves. but we put the rice hulls at the entrance. then in spot location in the coop. and the leaves and straw everywhere they mix it together themselves

 

[monkcat]

There's a thread on here that goes into great detail about the deep litter method. I am using it myself. However, I'm a newbie and don't have personal practical experience to speak from. Except that I am using pine straw, oak leaves, grass clippings. Whatever is available. I have 8 chicks in my coop. I have turned it once. Added a fresh layer once. Now, I am barely coating the bottom of the coop when I do this. I may have an inch or two of litter throughout. They stomp, scratch and mix it pretty thoroughly now that they are getting a little bigger. They are effectively shredding it and it is mulching and composting. I know 'cuz I turned some today just to look and see what is going on in there.

Oh, my avatar shows the floor of the coop right after some adding litter to it.

To me, the point of deep litter is to NEVER HAVE to clean it out. I will remove composted soil to add to my garden next year. But that is as much as I want to clean it. And it won't have to be added to compost. It will be composted already. At least that is the goal and looks attainable from what I am reading and seeing.

A long time flock keeper on here, Beekissed, has not changed hers out in three years. And it is beautiful. She has a video on the thread. Will try to find it and link to it.

The different sizes, textures and composting speeds of the various materials keep it from matting. It will be looser to allow air flow and composting to occur. The moisture tends to wick to the bottom. My chickens feet are dry. But below the surface is damp with nice plant/leaf mold going on. Not dangerous to the birds. It is the same as when I rake it off the forest floor. It is composting. The chicken poop adds to this glorious un-stinky decay. My coop doesn't stink. At all. It is very well ventilated. We live in a hot, humid climate which will accelerate the process but has also led us to build a very open air coop. Ventilation is excellent. But I still expected smell. So far, none exists. We have roosts up and their poop will fall directly into the litter. Very little maintenance and cleaning to be done. I want to enjoy this experience, not be a chicken slave.

 

[monkcat]

https://www.backyardchickens.com/t/643302/results-from-first-year-with-deep-litter-method

This should be page 1 of the thread. Seems a pain, but read or at least skim a lot of it and pay particular attention to the comments by Beekissed. Tremendous practical knowledge.

 

[Blooie]

I add dried leaves and anything else I can get my grubby paws on to the litter in our run and coop. That includes pine shavings, grass clippings, weeds pulled up, and a little chopped straw. The leaves seem to break down the fastest, but that's because as soon as those leaves hit the ground the chickens are scratching like crazy in them, and they manage to shred them to unrecognizable bits in no time!

I cleaned my coop and run this spring after a year, but I didn't strip it down completely. I left a good layer of "starter" litter in there when I cleaned it. Now that I have a better idea what I'm doing with deep litter, I don't think I'll need to do it again for a couple of years.

 

[monkcat]

Now that my little bits are getting some size to them and are able to scratch well, they are tearing those leaves up! Love watching them go after bugs, worms, whatever they find in there! I am amazed at the utter lack of smell.

 

[sophiaw00]

Hi

I thought I was doing deep litter, but I actually found out I was doing deep bedding instead

. When my chickens were first old enough to go to the coop, it was lined with straw & alfalfa hay. I kept adding hay onto it, thinking I was doing deep litter. I kept noticing that even though I was adding layers to it, it wasn't getting any thicker. I think that is because they eat it or kick it out of the coop. A few weeks ago, I got a bag of wood chips and added that onto it too. I have never had a smell in my coop, but that is because it is very open air and well ventilated.

Anyways, after reading through some of the posts on the thread mentioned earlier, I added a layer of leaves, twigs, dried grass clippings and whatever else I collected in the yard. I only just added them, but I'm hoping this will help the deep litter instead of just deep bedding. I also removed the poop bin that was under the roost so that all their droppings will now fall directly onto the litter. I plan on flipping the litter under the roost every 2 days, and adding on a thin layer every day to the part under the roost. I'll probably add layers to the whole coop once every week/2 weeks.

Am I doing this right?

 

[RonP]

I do deep litter outside, and deep bedding inside.

Depending on your coop, deep litter composting inside, could be a bit more complicated than in an outside run.

For the litter to properly compost, you will need moisture, which I try to avoid in my coop, since I have a wood floor, and most especially during the colder season.


I start with 8-10 inches of pine shavings inside, and add if necessary to keep the level.

It dries the manure nicely, no smells nor ammonia buildup.

It does create a lot of dust. Click here to see how I deal with dust.

Once a year, I replace the shavings, dumping it into the outdoor deep litter, where it completes the composting process in around 6 months.

My outdoor run consists mostly of shredded leaves and wood chips, which I gather and store in the fall.

I am left with rich compost.