What to grow that chickens won't eat? Any chicken proof plants?

[vfem]

Well, here's the thing... even if chickens DON'T munch down on some plants, nothing is going to stop them from scratching and dust bathing in your planting beds and easily killing the plants roots!

My chickens tore up and killed a few of my blueberries last year. I had to start over with new bushes this year!

 

[seedcorn]

horseradish will outsurvive chickens.

Once established, so would asparagus.

 

[Ladyhawke1]

When the chickens had the run of the whole yard, there is one plant they did not touch. That is the Mexican Sage.

Here are some internet pictures of it.

http://images.google.com/images?hl=...esult_group&ct=title&resnum=4&ved=0CCEQsAQwAw

 

[GardeNerd]

Well, here's the thing... even if chickens DON'T munch down on some plants, nothing is going to stop them from scratching and dust bathing in your planting beds and easily killing the plants roots!

My chickens tore up and killed a few of my blueberries last year. I had to start over with new bushes this year!

To stop the chickens from scratching plants out, I have had good luck with chicken wire, but not as fencing.

My method:
I cut a one to two square foot sized piece of chicken wire (I like the vinyl coated green kind because it blends in easy.)
Cut the middle out no bigger than is absolutely necessary fit around the stems.
Put a plant through that middle hole like an Elizabethan collar.
Plant the plant as you normally would.
Bend all the sharp parts down into the soil.
Then I secure it with landscape fabric staples or bent coat hanger pieces.
The chickens don't seem to do enough damage to affect the plants.
*This method has worked good for me with any plants that the chickens don't eat.

I also intentionally leave gaps around other areas of the yard for the chickens to dust bathe in. I will see if I have any pictures of before and after to share. Some of my plants are gone do to chicken nibbling, but I also managed to redo a whole 5 x 15 foot area successfully in the area the chickens roam last fall. It is very attractive now and the chickens are all over the area everyday. The largest plants I put in last fall was 1 gallon. It can be done with a little extra effort.

Ladyhawke1-I have had good luck with the Mexican Sage too, and it is starting to bloom finally. I haven't updated my list recently, but I think I have a few more to add, including some of the recommendations here.

Thanks.

 

[mlmoore]

We let ours roam around for most of the day and we have also found they don't care much for mint. They LOVE Cala Lillies, and edamame.

 

[jojo54]

In the area of the yard where the chickens have free run nothing is safe because if they don't eat it, they scratch or dustbath it to death. One good thing about it all, though is no weeds either. Plus they eat all the weeds I pull out in the rest of the yard and throw in their area. I have one lame chicken, Lulu who has the run of the rest of the yard because the other girls pick on her. She is the "offical supervisor" when we are weeding and digging - she confiscates the worms and bugs. She also helps out by eating chickweed that I haven't gotten around to weeding out yet. She is only allowed in the garden when we are will her because she loves to dig in the rows and eat seeds and to eat the tender plants that are just emerging. She helped my son plant peas - she walked in the row behind him eating the seeds he had planted.

Lulu helping out.

 

[tifsgarden]

I've been pretty lucky so far this year with the young ladies staying out of my garden, but I know they will figure it out soon.And thats when the fence goes up.I dont usually let them out of their coop til late afternoon so by the time they've made the rounds in my backyard its bedtime and they run to their little coop.Also I'm outside with them at this time too.It makes me sad not to give them full range of the garden but they'll get the goodies leftover in the fall.

 

[hoodat]

i wish i knew the answer :/
last year the chickens ate my mom and I's garden <.>
i wanted to watch the corn grow
maybe this year will be different
and our chickens LOVE honeysuckle

I got as far into your post as,"The chickens ate my mom" and cracked up.

 

[HunkieDorie23]

Chickens have the brain capacity of a button. But I do love mine. They do not eat onions but will pull them up. They do not eat oregano but keep tearing mine up. It didn't do well last year and I dug it up and place it in a container. They have dump the container and ripped it out of the container 4 X's. I now have it on the top shelf on my green house.

If you want to have a nice garden you either have to fence the plants or the chickens. I fence my garden, but they do come in when I weed and help red up any extra bugs that may be hanging around. Then I run them out when I leave.

 

[ducks4you]

I they do, then rabbit's brains are worth 1/2 a button. Honestly, when I had 5 roosters and one hen (in 2007), I tried free-ranging THEM and the ate everything in sight. I JUST turned my 7 hens out yesterday in their old 10 x 10 (NOW 10 x 20) chain linked kennel enclosure, knee full of grass, and this group doesn't know what to do with it. Aren't they supposed to clean up the grass?!?!? Go figure!!