What do you grow for your chickens during the cold months of winter?

[My Very First 6 Chickens]

Hello hello!
Do you grow greens or anything for your chickens during the cold winter? If so, what?

What do you do different in the winter regarding nutrition for your chickens?

What do you do in general to prepare your coop/chickens for a long, cold, new england winter?

my 6 20wk old GLW’s currently rely on their 18% chick starter feed as their main source of nutrition. They free range about 3hrs a day and I usually give them 1 hardboiled egg every night and maybe a few bites of a fruit daily. Do you think this is ok? I will add oyster shells as soon as I see my first egg.
The winter is coming soon here in CT, and I have never had chickens during a winter season. I want to be ready. Thanks a lot for sharing your expertise.

 

[Lexicon]

Hello hello!
Do you grow greens or anything for your chickens during the cold winter? If so, what?

What do you do different in the winter regarding nutrition for your chickens?

What do you do in general to prepare your coop/chickens for a long, cold, new england winter?

my 6 20wk old GLW’s currently rely on their 18% chick starter feed as their main source of nutrition. They free range about 3hrs a day and I usually give them 1 hardboiled egg every night and maybe a few bites of a fruit daily. Do you think this is ok? I will add oyster shells as soon as I see my first egg.
The winter is coming soon here in CT, and I have never had chickens during a winter season. I want to be ready. Thanks a lot for sharing your expertise.

I had to break the ice on the waterer this morning. Winter is definitely on the way!
I sprout wheatgrass fodder for my hens in the winter. They love it! I break it into clumps and throw it on the packed snow in different spots so everyone can get some.
I also give my hens scratch several times a week during the winter. This gets them moving and they really like it. I know that some people are very concerned about giving treats as 10 percent or less of their feed. I don't honestly worry that much about it. The hens have access to a compost bin, greens, and bugs in summer and a few handfuls of scratch and fodder every few days in winter and so far they seem to be thriving.
I also get straw bales in the winter both for inside the coop and in the run. The hens love scratching and working over the bales and it keeps them occupied.
I live in northern Canada, so we have long, dark and cold winters. This summer we built an addition on to our run with a roofed area in an attempt to provide a snow free area for the hens.
Last winter I shovelled pathways and would eventually try to shovel out sections down to the hard packed snow, but there were some parts under the trees that I just left with the snow several feet deep.
I also give my hens eggs when I have extras like right now as a few are molting and I feel that they can use the extra protein.
I have no idea what your temperatures will be like, but where I live a system for keeping water unfrozen is necessary. I started with a heated pet bowl for water in the coop last winter, but the girls scratched their bedding in it constantly even with it raised up. I ended up getting a heated nipple waterer and it was so much better. After the first snowfall when I had to shovel to even find my outside waterer (heated pet bowl), I threw in the towel and just let the girls eat snow for liquid outside!
I am no expert, but I do have harsh winters and we survived our first one!
Good luck!

 

[rosemarythyme]

Only thing I grow in winter (for myself and the birds) is kale, since it's really the only thing that'll grow between freezes. Our winters are relatively mild though.

Other option would be to use a greenhouse or grow plants indoors, but not going to those lengths just to give the birds a nibble.

 

[Sally PB]

I sprout wheatgrass fodder for my hens in the winter.

I grew barley sprouts for my chickens. It did well, and they loved it.

 

[Lexicon]

I grew barley sprouts for my chickens. It did well, and they loved it.

That's good to know.
I grew some barley in my garden, hoping to sprout them for the chickens in the winter. I tried sprouting oats from the feed store, but they didn't sprout well. The hens were happy to eat the soaked oats anyway!

 

[Sally PB]

https://www.backyardchickens.com/th...re-its-fodder-season-🍀.1429474/#post-23549565

This is a nice long thread about growing fodder.

 

[Happy hen lover]

I sprout wheat for fodder. I tried oats with no luck either. They do like oats soaked though .I have given them warm oatmeal cooked too. I give a few handfuls of 5 grain scratch but more corn based stuff in winter months. I add small amounts of protein treats to their feed if they're still laying then. Things like chopped liver, eggs hard boiled or scrambled , meat scraps, floating fish food. But only small amounts of that. ! They love fodder for sure. I also ferment some if their feed in jars to add some probiotics for them.

 

[My Very First 6 Chickens]

I sprout wheat for fodder. I tried oats with no luck either. They do like oats soaked though .I have given them warm oatmeal cooked too. I give a few handfuls of 5 grain scratch but more corn based stuff in winter months. I add small amounts of protein treats to their feed if they're still laying then. Things like chopped liver, eggs hard boiled or scrambled , meat scraps, floating fish food. But only small amounts of that. ! They love fodder for sure. I also ferment some if their feed in jars to add some probiotics for them.

Love your name! Hey, how do you ferment their feed? Interesting for sure. Probiotics are good!

 

[saysfaa]

It is my first winter, so I'm feeling my way through. I have meal worms started and pots of greens started a month ago to take in and out as long as the temps get above freezing... mostly for us but I might share some with them if I don't have enough fresh veggie scraps to offer. We generate a lot less fresh veggie scraps in the winter.

Soon, I will start either fodder or sprouts for them.

I think fresh food is important for people and chickens- beyond what a chemical analysis indicates. Sometimes from the form the nutrients are in and sometimes from the combinations they are in. We/they can survive without it but we/they are healthier with it.

 

[DatCampG]

I had to break the ice on the waterer this morning. Winter is definitely on the way!
I sprout wheatgrass fodder for my hens in the winter. They love it! I break it into clumps and throw it on the packed snow in different spots so everyone can get some.
I also give my hens scratch several times a week during the winter. This gets them moving and they really like it. I know that some people are very concerned about giving treats as 10 percent or less of their feed. I don't honestly worry that much about it. The hens have access to a compost bin, greens, and bugs in summer and a few handfuls of scratch and fodder every few days in winter and so far they seem to be thriving.
I also get straw bales in the winter both for inside the coop and in the run. The hens love scratching and working over the bales and it keeps them occupied.
I live in northern Canada, so we have long, dark and cold winters. This summer we built an addition on to our run with a roofed area in an attempt to provide a snow free area for the hens.
Last winter I shovelled pathways and would eventually try to shovel out sections down to the hard packed snow, but there were some parts under the trees that I just left with the snow several feet deep.
I also give my hens eggs when I have extras like right now as a few are molting and I feel that they can use the extra protein.
I have no idea what your temperatures will be like, but where I live a system for keeping water unfrozen is necessary. I started with a heated pet bowl for water in the coop last winter, but the girls scratched their bedding in it constantly even with it raised up. I ended up getting a heated nipple waterer and it was so much better. After the first snowfall when I had to shovel to even find my outside waterer (heated pet bowl), I threw in the towel and just let the girls eat snow for liquid outside!
I am no expert, but I do have harsh winters and we survived our first one!
Good luck!

I had to break the ice on the waterer this morning. Winter is definitely on the way!
I sprout wheatgrass fodder for my hens in the winter. They love it! I break it into clumps and throw it on the packed snow in different spots so everyone can get some.
I also give my hens scratch several times a week during the winter. This gets them moving and they really like it. I know that some people are very concerned about giving treats as 10 percent or less of their feed. I don't honestly worry that much about it. The hens have access to a compost bin, greens, and bugs in summer and a few handfuls of scratch and fodder every few days in winter and so far they seem to be thriving.
I also get straw bales in the winter both for inside the coop and in the run. The hens love scratching and working over the bales and it keeps them occupied.
I live in northern Canada, so we have long, dark and cold winters. This summer we built an addition on to our run with a roofed area in an attempt to provide a snow free area for the hens.
Last winter I shovelled pathways and would eventually try to shovel out sections down to the hard packed snow, but there were some parts under the trees that I just left with the snow several feet deep.
I also give my hens eggs when I have extras like right now as a few are molting and I feel that they can use the extra protein.
I have no idea what your temperatures will be like, but where I live a system for keeping water unfrozen is necessary. I started with a heated pet bowl for water in the coop last winter, but the girls scratched their bedding in it constantly even with it raised up. I ended up getting a heated nipple waterer and it was so much better. After the first snowfall when I had to shovel to even find my outside waterer (heated pet bowl), I threw in the towel and just let the girls eat snow for liquid outside!
I am no expert, but I do have harsh winters and we survived our first one!
Good luck!

I enjoyed reading.