We are constantly amazed at the capacity for human beings to ignore the obvious.
What's the number one complaint about chicken coops? Yup. The smell. What's the best possible solution? Daily cleaning? Bah! You'd go crazy inside of a week. Little air freshener thingies like you hang on your rearview mirror? Puhlease.
No, the best solution is proper bedding. And by proper bedding, we mean *DEEP* bedding. There are numerous suggestions out there, including shavings, shredded paper, etc. However, it astounds us (especially at this time of year) that people don't think of the obvious.
What do you have a lot of (maybe even too much of) every autumn? That's right - leaves!
We happen to be fortunate in that regard, as we have a mixture of deciduous trees which defoliate at different times of year. Elm, red oak, shumard oak, chinquapin oak, water oak, post oak, lots of lantana and hibiscus, and various shrublike undergrowth we haven't chopped out yet and don't know what it is, in addition to all our mustang grapes and garden veggies (which also qualify as leaves, doncha know!)
Every winter, we put in a good 2-3 feet of leaves, stomped down, and by spring the ladies have turned it over, pooped it clear through, and generally made of it the best possible compost you could imagine.
And best of all, there's NO SMELL. NONE. Let me repeat -- that chicken coop stench you remember from visiting a factory farm as a kid, and being so repulsed you became a vegetarian for a while (or maybe even forever)? It's NOT THERE.
So, if you have chickens, and you have trees, you're in business!
Happy farming!
Subscribe to:
Post Comments (Atom)
Posts
No comments:
Post a Comment