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Bungala Ridge Permaculture Gardens REDUCE ... REUSE ... RECYCLE ... REPAIR ... RETURN ... REVEGETATE ... REPLENISH |
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New Plan for Chook Yard In a few weeks we'll be moving the geese from their old home with the chooks to their new home down the hill, in what used to be the bike shed. It's actually a general storage area but once upon a time our lads kept their motorbikes in the shed and the label stuck... At present the geese and chooks are kept separate as we divided the chook yard in two with chook wire - this allows us to let the geese out but not the chooks. We used to let the chooks roam but they don't scratch, they plough! They eat everything except the weeds... It's sad seeing them restricted to their yard, but it's big, with plenty of space for a short flutter of the wings and has one or two trees to scratch beneath. Shade is provided by a passionfruit and kennedia rubicans on the chook wire overhead (which, theoretically keeps out birds of prey and foxes). The plan was to pull down the divider once we shift the geese to their new home, but upon reading an entry in the permaculture forum on groundcovers to use in the chook yard, we've decided to leave it in place. This way we can rotate the chooks from one section to the other, allowing the first section to have a rest and - better still - try to grow some food for us in the well-manured, wonderful compost they leave behind. At the same time we can establish some chook food species for them to enjoy when it's time to switch back. This bold new plan will only require a small door to be cut into their chook house to facilitate entry into the northern yard. We will retain the temporary bath in the lower section for the ducks to continue to use (our muscovys live with the chooks as they find the geese a little intimidating, plus their survival rate when free ranging is bleak). I liked Susan's idea of using mesh fence (the kind found in old school fences - any one else miss school fences? It worries me to see school's unboundered, especially junior primary schools on busy roads...). She suggested pegging it about 100mm above the ground and sowing the protected area with bird seed from the supermarket. The chooks can eat the greens but not scratch up the soil and seeds. It's one idea I'm definitely going to try. We'll use ordinary builder's mesh until we can source the mesh fencing material. It's not as good, but it will do. It's going to be good to finally plant the wormwood, yarrow and rue that have been sitting in pots patiently waiting for the chook yard makeover. With luck I'll remember to post a photo or two when all the changes have been made!
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