If I wasn't in the midst of a grasshopper plague, I would have winter squashes for my girls. Squash is usually the only thing that thrives in the July and Aug heat and I had plans to plant it willy-nilly and harvest it in the fall for us, for the seeds and mostly for feeding the girls. Instead, I have sweet potatoes. (10 slips that cover over 200 sq ft.) That's it, I was disappointed in the one melon that survived. I have lost 90% of all plantings, including bushes (trees died last year) only the Calla Lilly and Licorice plants are untouched - yes they are poisonous. Even the mesquite trees are at least 50% defoliated. I think some of the perennials will come back next spring, we will see.
I have thought about planting Goumi bushes, fruit has a cherry apple taste, heard it is good, and the bushes are not invasive like autumn olive but grow quickly and thrive in out climate. Would give the girls shade and fruit in season. Same for Mulberry trees, first effort failed. I have a hard time because of the heavy clay soil.
I you garden, or even if you don't have a compost pile for your girls. I had a small pile of grasses by my compost bins, and after a few weeks, the girls found it and it provided hours of scratching for bugs, as did the left overs from the hail bail. They aren't interested in eating the hay.
Since I have no garden, I check with my grocery store when I am shopping and take home produce not suitable for sale. The girls like stone fruits, grapes and squash. Usually I can take a small box home free.
OH! I just remembered, Peaceful Valley Farm and Garden Supply has a cover crop for Chickens. If you move your girls housing like I do, it sounds great for replanting the yard. I house my girls basically in tractors that are left open inside a yard, 800sq ft which I generally leave open so they can forage on the 2 acres we cleared around the house. Chicken Forage Blend "New Improved Omega 3 Chicken Forage Blend"
"Omega-3 fatty acids are an important component of a healthy diet. One way to get this substance in our food is to eat eggs from chickens raised on a diet that promotes the formation of Omega-3's right in the egg. This blend is planted for chicken forage to achieve this high Omega-3 result. Plant annually after danger of frost has passed. Caution: Flax can form prussic acid when exposed to frost so do not graze horses on this mix.
The planting rate is now 25-30 lbs per acre, as opposed to the old rate of 50 lbs per acre
20% Bison Intermediate Ryegrass, 15% Tetraploid Perennial Rye, 10% Tetraploid Annual Rye, 10% Japanese Millet, 10% Buckwheat, 10% Flax, 10% Red Clover, 5% Strawberry Clover, 5% Alfalfa, 3% Ladino Clover, 2% Birdsfoot Trefoil."
