Grass clippings in the run??

[Paul Richardson]

No chemicals or doggie poo, short blades only, and only just enough for them to enjoy but not overindulge...their crop can handle some but too much will bring big problems...

Chooks graze all day if they have plenty of grass so there crops have lots of grass in them all the time i have fed clippings for 50 years and have never had problems the only animal i know that grass clippings will kill is a horse as it will cause severe colic and cows can bloat on clippings if it contains a lot of clover

 

[gtaus]

Because of overhead predatory concerns (hawks and eagles), I cannot let my chickens free range. After my chickens ate all the grass in the chicken run and dug up everything down to the bare dirt, I first covered the bare dirt with wood chips and then I started dumping grass clippings from my mowing in the chicken run. Basically, it was the start of creating a deep litter compost system in the chicken run. In the fall, I dumped in all the leaves I collected and added it to the mix. This spring, I am again dumping grass clippings in the run and I also dumped in all the year old wood chip deep litter bedding from inside the coop. Everything is all mixed up together in the run and it seems to be composting well.

I have seen no ill effects from dumping grass clippings in my chicken run. I have never had a chicken get sour crop from the grass clippings (my grass clipping are typically about 2 inches long, or shorter). The grass clippings have never turned moldy because the chickens will scratch the clippings all over looking for bugs, and when the grass clippings are all spread out, they typically dry out rather fast. I will also throw up kitchen scraps and chicken scratch into the run and that encourages the chickens to scratch the clippings up even more.

I used to re-pile the grass clippings into large mounds which I thought was maybe a good idea to turn the clippings. However, I would spend 15 minutes piling the grass clippings and it would take my chickens less than 5 minutes to level it out. My goal was to reduce my input and let the chickens do more of the work, so I stopped piling the grass clippings and will now just throw some chicken scratch wherever I think the grass clippings might need to be turned over more.

If you had a large mound of wet grass clippings, then maybe you will get an unpleasant "moldy" type smell. As in making any compost, follow your nose and if you have too much greens, then add more carbon to the mix. In my case, I use bags of leaves or wood chips to balance the system. My goal is to create and maintain a forest earth type of smell.

I dump bags and bags of grass clippings into the chicken run every week during mowing season and currently my chicken run litter is about 16 inches deep. That also includes leaves and wood chips in the mix. In the fall, I plan to harvest the chicken run litter and dump it on the garden and let it winter over.

I have commercial layer feed, calcium, and grit available to my chickens 24/7, so they are never forced only to eat grass clippings. But, they seem to prefer eating fresh greens over eating commercial feed. They also enjoy digging into the grass clippings and looking for bugs, or digging holes to take a dust bath. Although I would prefer to let my chickens free range in the yard, I think I have created a decent eco system for them to explore and enjoy using deep litter in the chicken run. It seems to work for me and my flock.

 

[brendaanddaveriley]

I go by the fact that in the wild they would be eating grass, weeds, of all lengths and bugs. Not only do I give them clippings but when I weed the flower beds and garden they get the weeds. They love them and I rake the out the next morning so as not to make their coop messy with rotting vegetation. They consistently reduce the volume by half or more. They are very happy and very healthy. I also free range them under supervision very day, we have a lot of neighborhood cats, predatory birds, and ground predators, so I keep a close eye on them. I mean think about it, in years past the old timers didn't worry about long grass and feed content ratios. I go back 50 + years and remember my Mom's chickens where very healthy and happy. I think as far a backyard chickens sometimes we over-think every little thing. If you give them plenty of good feed, free-range them, clean water, clean coop and gentle attention, keep them safe from predators then they're gonna be very happy and healthy little creatures. Maybe dig 'em up a worm now and again. LOL

 

[brendaanddaveriley]

I go by the fact that in wild they would be eating grass, weeds, of all lengths and bugs. Not only do I give them clippings but when I weed the flower beds and garden they get the weeds. They love them and I rake the out the next morning so as not to make their coop messy with rotting vegetation. They consistently reduce the volume by half or more. They are very happy and very healthy. I also free range them under supervision very day, we have a lot of neighborhood cats, predatory birds, and ground predators, so I keep a close eye on them. I mean think about it, in years past the old timers didn't worry about long grass and feed content ratios. I go back 50 + years and remember my Mom's chickens where very healthy and happy. I think as far a backyard chickens sometimes we over-think every little thing. If you give them plenty of good feed, free-range them, clean water, clean coop and gentle attention, keep them safe from predators then they're gonna be very happy and healthy little creatures. Maybe dig 'em up a worm now and again. LOL

Side note: Everything we grow even the weed are grown with chemicals all organically.

 

[Paul Richardson]

Because of overhead predatory concerns (hawks and eagles), I cannot let my chickens free range. After my chickens ate all the grass in the chicken run and dug up everything down to the bare dirt, I first covered the bare dirt with wood chips and then I started dumping grass clippings from my mowing in the chicken run. Basically, it was the start of creating a deep litter compost system in the chicken run. In the fall, I dumped in all the leaves I collected and added it to the mix. This spring, I am again dumping grass clippings in the run and I also dumped in all the year old wood chip deep litter bedding from inside the coop. Everything is all mixed up together in the run and it seems to be composting well.

I have seen no ill effects from dumping grass clippings in my chicken run. I have never had a chicken get sour crop from the grass clippings (my grass clipping are typically about 2 inches long, or shorter). The grass clippings have never turned moldy because the chickens will scratch the clippings all over looking for bugs, and when the grass clippings are all spread out, they typically dry out rather fast. I will also throw up kitchen scraps and chicken scratch into the run and that encourages the chickens to scratch the clippings up even more.

I used to re-pile the grass clippings into large mounds which I thought was maybe a good idea to turn the clippings. However, I would spend 15 minutes piling the grass clippings and it would take my chickens less than 5 minutes to level it out. My goal was to reduce my input and let the chickens do more of the work, so I stopped piling the grass clippings and will now just throw some chicken scratch wherever I think the grass clippings might need to be turned over more.

If you had a large mound of wet grass clippings, then maybe you will get an unpleasant "moldy" type smell. As in making any compost, follow your nose and if you have too much greens, then add more carbon to the mix. In my case, I use bags of leaves or wood chips to balance the system. My goal is to create and maintain a forest earth type of smell.

I dump bags and bags of grass clippings into the chicken run every week during mowing season and currently my chicken run litter is about 16 inches deep. That also includes leaves and wood chips in the mix. In the fall, I plan to harvest the chicken run litter and dump it on the garden and let it winter over.

I have commercial layer feed, calcium, and grit available to my chickens 24/7, so they are never forced only to eat grass clippings. But, they seem to prefer eating fresh greens over eating commercial feed. They also enjoy digging into the grass clippings and looking for bugs, or digging holes to take a dust bath. Although I would prefer to let my chickens free range in the yard, I think I have created a decent eco system for them to explore and enjoy using deep litter in the chicken run. It seems to work for me and my flock.

Best i have seen so far top marks for a great answer i have told people for years chooks are the best compost makers going and yes grass clippings are an absolute delight for the girls

 

[gtaus]

Best i have seen so far top marks for a great answer i have told people for years chooks are the best compost makers going and yes grass clippings are an absolute delight for the girls

Thanks for the kind words. I kind of fell into turning my chicken run into a composting system, but now I'm really convinced of the benefits to both the chickens and myself.

 

[colleenspe]

What kitchen scraps can you feed the chickens? cabbage, carrots, celery- what else?

 

[gtaus]

What kitchen scraps can you feed the chickens? cabbage, carrots, celery- what else?

Chickens are omnivores and therefore will eat almost everything. Here is What NOT to Feed Chickens: 9 Food Your Chickens Shouldn’t Eat.


I'll sum up the list for you, but the article goes more into depth why....

1. Raw green potatoes
2. Onions
3. Asparagus
4. Nightshade plants
5. Avocados
6. Dried or raw beans
7. Anything moldy
8. Dairy
9. Chocolate

If you think about it, that's a very small list. Almost everything in our kitchen as leftovers is fed to our chickens. I have gone to a deep litter composting chicken run and any scraps that do not get eaten by the chickens gets mixed into the litter and composts in place. The worms eat the decaying matter and the chickens will dig down and eat the worms.

Some people don't realize that chickens also eat meat. They do, and love it. I feed them all our leftover steak bones, chicken bones, etc... They will pick the bones clean and then the bones get mixed into the deep litter and compost in place.

When I go fishing, I will dump the fish remains after cleaning the fish into the chicken run. The chickens will peck the flesh and eat what they want. The rest gets turned into the deep litter and becomes worm food. Depending on how much fish remains I have, I use some common sense not to let smelly decaying fish remains stay in the chicken run attracting predators. If you don't use a deep litter composting system in your run, I would not leave such remains overnight.

Bringing the subject back to the original post, if I have more fish remains than my chickens can eat during the day, I will just dig down into my grass clippings in the chicken run and bury the fish remains. But as I said, my deep litter is about 16 inches deep now and is a mix of grass clippings, wood chips, and leaves.

 

[brendaanddaveriley]

Chickens are omnivores and therefore will eat almost everything. Here is What NOT to Feed Chickens: 9 Food Your Chickens Shouldn’t Eat.


I'll sum up the list for you, but the article goes more into depth why....

1. Raw green potatoes
2. Onions
3. Asparagus
4. Nightshade plants
5. Avocados
6. Dried or raw beans
7. Anything moldy
8. Dairy
9. Chocolate

If you think about it, that's a very small list. Almost everything in our kitchen as leftovers is fed to our chickens. I have gone to a deep litter composting chicken run and any scraps that do not get eaten by the chickens gets mixed into the litter and composts in place. The worms eat the decaying matter and the chickens will dig down and eat the worms.

Some people don't realize that chickens also eat meat. They do, and love it. I feed them all our leftover steak bones, chicken bones, etc... They will pick the bones clean and then the bones get mixed into the deep litter and compost in place.

When I go fishing, I will dump the fish remains after cleaning the fish into the chicken run. The chickens will peck the flesh and eat what they want. The rest gets turned into the deep litter and becomes worm food. Depending on how much fish remains I have, I use some common sense not to let smelly decaying fish remains stay in the chicken run attracting predators. If you don't use a deep litter composting system in your run, I would not leave such remains overnight.

Bringing the subject back to the original post, if I have more fish remains than my chickens can eat during the day, I will just dig down into my grass clippings in the chicken run and bury the fish remains. But as I said, my deep litter is about 16 inches deep now and is a mix of grass clippings, wood chips, and leaves.

 

[brendaanddaveriley]

Sorry but I disagree with part of that 9 point list and I'd like to elaborate on a couple of the points. Old timer chicken raisers like my Mom who as far as I can remember kept chickens and never had a sick one always feed the potato peelings to the chickens. Now I'll grant you our potatoes never stuck around long enough to turn green and my own chickens much prefer that I fry those peelings up and then let them cool before they devour them, so just to clarify, I think potato is fine as long it's not green (you shouldn't eat the green either) but if you peel the green off, wash and cook the potato it's fine for you or your chickens. They will like them better and eat, if not all, the most of the potato if you cook and cool it first. TIP: try frying up even the peelings for them, especially in your left over bacon grease, they love 'em. As with anything, in moderation.
Secondly, beans, peas, or any legume is fine for them as long as it is cooked so as not to expand in their craw.
Dairy, totally disagree! We made buttermilk, butter, farmer's cheese, and yogurt and always gave any we couldn't get to, to the chickens and pigs. In moderation. Try mixing it with left over breads or "COOKED" RICE. Again in moderation.
It's been my experience that their instincts pretty much tell them what they shouldn't eat and even then their different personalities "and believe they all have their own" will also govern what they will eat and what they won't. Good Luck and don't worry too much as chickens are not that fragile.