Anyone use vines for shading on the run?

[Nicole01]

Im wondering if anyone uses vines as natural shading for their run? I have a side panel, but it still is very hot.

Im not sure if the vines would restrict the air flow and act like a furnace? We planted trees, but they will take forever to grow. Natural shade is so much better then the man made. I'd like to keep the coop cooler, so they are not so hot at night. I put roosts in the run, but they won't sleep in there. The run has both welded wire and 1/2 inch hardware cloth for extra protection.

 

[appps]

I'm planting blueberries along mine for shade and also growing loganberries and banana passionfruit a but my run has no roof like yours does.

I'd be planting something in front of that metal panel. The sun hitting that would heat it up. If you had a hedge or vines growing over it it would stop it getting hot and radiating heat inside. Think I'd leave the rest as is for air flow.

 

[Nicole01]

We have trees we planted in front of the panel and along the entire coop length. Right now we have 4 pine trees, 2 red maple and a weeping willow. We add new trees every year. I'd like that entire side yard to be wooded.

I just wish i planted them 11 years ago when we built our house. I don't know what I was thinking.:/

 

[Nicole01]

We tried for years to plant blueberries near our vegetable garden. We can grow the plant, but we never ever have gotten any fruit.

Oh, I also have 2 honey crisp apple trees, a crab apple, plum and oak tree next to the coop.

 

[appps]

I've never tried blueberries before but crossing fingers we get something off them. We live in a warm area so I think I have to grow a particular type that doesn't need cold to set fruit. Maybe you were to warm for the type you grew?

It will be great if they do fruit, at about $25 a kilo its not fruit I buy often otherwise!!

 

[Nicole01]

Good luck! We live in a hot and cold environment. It will get as high in the 100'sF and as cold as -30F.

Maybe we couldn't get any fruit due to the ph balance in our soil.

Everything we plant now flourishes since we plant with chicken compost. Chicken compost is like gold to us!

 

[appps]

Oh please don't mention the ph thing. Hubby decided to 'help' the other day and dug lime into the spot I want to plant them. I'm still trying to work out how to undo that - sigh lol

 

[Nicole01]

LOL...

If you have chicken compost, its the best! We have 4 very nice and big piles going.

I can't imagine planting with lime. O never heard of that. We tried using lime once to kill all the sand bur bushes that look like crab grass. It never worked.

 

[appps]

Your supposed to dig it in once a year in the vege patch. Especially for things like peas. Unfortunately its also the opposite of what blueberries like.

Do you have to leave the chicken manure long before using it? I've been worried it might burn the plants so so far its just one big pile of poop and shavings I don't know what to do with

 

[Nicole01]

I wait about a year before using the compost. It's nice having 4 big piles and they are near our garden in the woods.

I eat a ton of vegetables and some fruit everyday and I often juice them. All the pulp and peelings gets thrown in the compost as well as our broken eggs and egg shells. I have no idea how often they are turned. I fill the empty feed bags with their poo and sometimes the chips will be thrown in there. It takes about a week to fill the bag from cleaning the coop and the run. I do free range, but they still hang out in the run everyday anyways.

All the chips are decomposed and the soil is pitch black. We never had any burning issues. I'll take the dirt out of the run and use that with 1/2 potting soil to plant my culinary herbs in pots. My herbs grow very well too. I maybe clean the chips out 3 times a year. They really don't get dirty since i use poop boards. I clean the poop boards and run daily.