do you line your run with gravel or sand or just leave the dirt?

[jeapa]

Currently my run just has dirt with a little grass and weeds, it has roof so even when it rains it does not get very wet.






Should I just leave it as is or would it be better to put some pea gravel or sand down? Any advantages or disadvantages to just leaving it as is? Thanks.

 

[PrincessChicky]

From what I understand, if you put weed cloth/gravel/sand down it will be easier to clean. I'm not sure how to clean it with grass and dirt.

I'm in the same situation right now, except I have a good bit of grass right now. I'm not sure how to clean what I've got!

 

[phelpcd1]

Mine was exactly like yours when I first put the girls in.......I quickly realized I needed something to "clean". I just got a straw bale and have filled my run with it and also mowed my lawn and emptied 2 bags of the grass clippings and leaves. It's a deep bed now and not only is it very easy for me to clean - I just go in every day and rake it over (kinda like turning your compost heap), but the girls have also loved digging in it and uncovering little bug morsels. I think it's a haven for the slugs I have because I have watched them fight over quite a few of those. Plus it helps me keep any potential smells and flies down (altho I need to get some fly traps too) since I'm in the city and don't want to be a "nuisance" to any neighbors. My actual coop is filled with hay and I turn it each morning also. Only takes me maybe 10-15 minutes tops to do my chicken chores each morning.

 

[PDXcluck]

I put about 2 inches of pea gravel and 3 inches of sand in my run (over dirt). I got advice from another byc'er that has used this method with good success. I only just finished my coop a couple days ago so I can't tell you how well it works!

The person who suggested it said that all you need to do is rake it a couple times a week and the gravel and sand sort of pulverize the poop and it sifts down. They also recommended adding new sand and gravel as needed, I assume a couple times per year...but we'll see...

good luck!

 

[GardenGal]

Our run is covered with loose dirt. I've done straw and the chickens liked it for a while and then missed their dirt baths! I don't know how many chickens you have, we had six and it only took me a couple minutes to scoop poop with a trowel.

 

[scinocco]

Ours is just like yours, the weeds didn't last long though. I rake it to clean it out and the girls seem to like digging in the dirt. The biggest problem we've had is they like to dig too much, we're going to have to put something around the edges of the run to keep animals from getting in.

 

[jeapa]

Thanks for the ideas everyone. I have 12 chicks right now, but if any of them turn out to be Roos I will have to find them somewhere else to live.

I guess I could start out with it like this and then if I can't keep it clean I can add some gravel/sand later. I expect that the weeds and grass won't be there long once the chicks are old enough to be outside.

 

[ll]

My run looks similar to yours too.

After a while we dug it out a bit, then covered the bottom with all hardware cloth ~ screwing with washers every 4" and wiring together seams so rodents cannot get in by tunneling. I fill it with pine straw / pine needles / fallen autumn leaves / bamboo leaves / and sometimes sprinkle DE or Dry Stall, which also has DE in it. Sometimes I throw seed into the bedding and they have fun scratching it up & turning it for me - I turn it "fluffing it up" often.

Good luck!

 

[Red Barn Farms]

Our run looks just like yours being dirt with weeds here and there. We just rake ours every so often. I'd hate to deprive the girls of their dirt bathes! They seem to love them so.

 

[Rock Home Isle]

That last time that I had chickens, I lined the run with scattered lawn clippings during the spring and summer and I'll throw in the refuse from last year's garden. In the fall I mow up my leaves and put the shredded leaf litter in the run as well. The chickens work this material continously as they look for worms and grubs. By spring I have a nice quality compost that is rich in nutrients to put in my garden or flower beds.

Long time ago, when we first had chickens, we put down a layer of sand or pea-gravel in the chicken yard. We had a sizeable flock of layers and broilers. After a few months the yard was compossed of a packed layer of fecal material that had a noticable smell. When it rained the chicken yard became a stinky smelly mudd hole with the birds covered in muck as they went about their business in the yard.

With this composting system; the strong oderous smells are gone and replaced with a pleasant earthy smell. I like pleasant & earthy.