Hello from Central Texas

[tacCab]

Our family lives in Central TX and currently has 14 chickens/hens. We owned chickens for approx. five years. We own barred rocks, lacy wyndottes, americaunas, long island reds and leghorns. They free range the back fenced in yard by day and are cooped up at night.

Husband mounted a coop he found on craigs list, for free, onto a jet ski trailer (also free). We moved it around the yard at first but the last two years it has remained stationary with a run attached to it. They remain in the run should we need to keep them from being underfoot.

Today, I am interested in finding shrubs, vines and plants to grow around the outside of the run which they can feed off, use for shade/protection when the free range and most importantly act as a northern wind break during the winter. we have a hay field on that side of the property and the winds can be bone biting for our area!

 

[Shadrach]

Hello tacCab.
Welcome to BYC.
Great idea with the shrubs. The chickens here free range but spend an awful lot of time under the larger shrubs and plants. I think they're a must have item even in a run.

 

[Brahmachicken240]

Hello and welcome to BYC

 

[alexa009]

Welcome to Backyard Chickens! We are glad you joined the flock! BYC is a helpful site providing all of the information you need to know about poultry. There is always space for members on the BYC roost!


Good luck on finding the right plants and shrubs you need. I had various vines and plants that had overgrown all through the chicken pen when I first moved them in and now there isn't one left.

Hope you enjoy it here as much as we all do!

 

[DobieLover]

Hello and welcome to BYC! Glad you joined.
I too planted my chickens pen with trees and shrubs. But I'm zone 5 so my plantings would be very different from yours.
My goals were only for shelter and beauty. I don't want the chickens destroying them. I used weeping conifers, knock out roses, perennial grasses, hydrangeas, dappled willow, sedum, ninebark, and this was in the area I penned in.

Don't know what it is but the chickens spend a lot of time under and in it.

 

[BlueBaby]

Hello, and welcome! I'm glad that you joined!

 

[sourland]

Welcome to BYC.

@DobieLover - is it possible that is a weigelia bush ?

 

[DobieLover]

Nope! I forgot to mention I have lots of weigelia planted too. This shrub is about 8' tall and around 16' or so in diameter.

Welcome to BYC.

@DobieLover - is it possible that is a weigelia bush ?

 

[N F C]

Hi, it's nice to have you here!

 

[Cynthia12]

Know the chill of a hard wind. We live down from a Canyon. Nice in the summer, not so nice in the winter! Like today, we are experiencing high wind. WELCOME!