will decorative fencing keep them out of the flower beds?

[cobrien]

The only luck I've had is planting deer resistant plants and placing large rocks (5" diameter minimum) around them to keep them from digging at the roots. They leave most deer resistant plants alone, but not all of them. but be careful, some are poisonous. however many poisonous plants are only a problem if a ton of it is eaten. also, chickens tend to leave poisonous plants alone because most taste bad. i have some many poisonous plants in my yard and the chickens leave them alone i've also found that younger chickens <8 months are more destructive than older ones because the younger ones experiment more - they youngsters ate my deer resistant plants...but not when they were older.

My veggies and small fruit trees are behind 4' fencing - nothing else will stop them. However I plan to build a tractor to contain them instead of fencing off the plants because I now have way too many plants/fences around the yard.

Depending on the breed/temperament, a fence can keep them out but it will need to be taller. 4' is good enough for my large BA's but I've had others that could fly 10'.

 

[mulewagon]

I'd suggest fencing off the house and garden area with 6 foot dogwire - 2" x 4". Just put it all the way around, and come in and out through a gate.

No, it doesn't look like decorative fencing, but start some climbing roses on it and it'll be fine!

 

[Carols Clucks]

If you came and looked at my moms house you would wonder why all the fences and gates, well they are not there to keep the chickens in, but to keep them out!


Moms favorite hen, guessing pushing 8 years old, Blackie has mastered every fence we put up. We were only gone a couple of hours today and she had cleared the 5 foot chain link gate and was busy enjoying our new landscaping. She also clears the picket fencing that is on top of a retaining wall, the 4 foot garden fencing and all the garden gates. My mom enjoys her the most because she is always getting in to stuff. She is kind of a "lone wolf" kind of hen. When we bought the new girls and fenced them off a safe place from the old group, Blackie would join the new girls daily.