Snoxy Posted April 11, 2011 Share Posted April 11, 2011 We have just spent 1.5 days digging out our uncovered chicken run...70 rubble sacks full of rotted chopped, sterilised straw and hen doo-doo...used bales of the stuff over the very wet winter DH thinks we should...cover the area with a heavy duty plant membrane...put up a gazebo for shelter from the sun and rain in the largest part and he has found this rubber stuff that is used in carparks...gravel sits in the holes apparently...and then cover the whole area with gravel...not the teeny-weeny stuff though...and maybe wood chips too...I bought some extra Omlet shades in the sale at Christmas so we intend to put these up too...the one I have attached between the shed and a tree has worked brilliantly during the wet winter keeping the girls' food dry I will sprinkle garden lime and Stalosan F over the bare earth first. Your thoughts on whether or not this is a good plan please p.s. I have heard negative things about using gravel so I am nervous...I know whatever we use it will get wet to a certain degree but we will be putting more shelter in place than we have had before...I can't dig out that much 'stuff' again next year although I know it is an ongoing maintence jobby Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Jools Posted April 11, 2011 Share Posted April 11, 2011 I think gravel is the same "love it or loathe it" as rubber chippings. I guess that if you can get the drainage right, then it should be easy enough to hose it down to wash the muck off every now and again, in the same way people hose down their rubber chippings. It won't absorb any droppings in the same way that woodchip and the like do, so if you can hose it, it should stay cleaner for longer. Unless you can be sure of containing the gravel in the whatsits you've described, it will end up getting mixed with woodchip if you go that route. Not that it would be a problem, until you wanted to recycle it when it might not be as popular with gardeners and allotmenteers. I wouldn't go the heavy duty membrane route unless you use the whatsits on top as you can be sure that chickens digging for their country would get down to it and either shred it or get stuck in it! This chickeneering stuff is complicated sometimes innit! Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Olly Posted April 11, 2011 Share Posted April 11, 2011 I'm afraid I agree - the membrane is likely to be shredded, and although that containing stuff works really well on driveways and so on, I reckon chickens will just kick the gravel out of it in no time. You've obviously got quite a lot of chooks, and I presume a correspondingly large run, but that's a lot of chicken poop! I think I would just cut down on the amount of aubiose/similar that you put in. I don't have a thick layer, every so often I get the fork out and dig out about two inches of compacted stuff off the top, and put it in the compost heap, and then I sprinkle a bit more woodchip/sawdust/aubiose over the new earth. My run is only 3m x 2m though, and I'm guessing yours is a lot lot bigger. Sorry, that's probably not what you wanted to hear - and you'll probably get better advice from someone who has a large number of hens like you, rather than a small-scale one like my set-up. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Snoxy Posted April 11, 2011 Author Share Posted April 11, 2011 Thank you for your replies I am sure the girls will kick the gravel out of the containing stuff as quick as a flash but DH says he wants to put it down for drainage :-S and thats his thought behind the membrane too. Do you think woodchips straight onto the now bare earth will be the best route? I have 20 hens and I want the girls to be as comfortable as poss and not upto their waists in mud next winter :'( Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Jools Posted April 11, 2011 Share Posted April 11, 2011 How big is the run Snoxy? I think with woodchip onto bare earth, you'll just have the same issues all over again. Not that you shouldn't do it, just that you know how much work is involved when you need to change it. Maybe a few bales of aubiose/easibed/etc which you rake out and recycle more often might be an easier route? It's certainly lighter than woodchip and composts much more easily. Or go hubby's route and report back! Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Snoxy Posted April 11, 2011 Author Share Posted April 11, 2011 I havent used aubiouse or easibed before but willing to give it a try. I believe it is more absorbant than chopped, sterilised straw and a darn sight easier to rake out maybe when wet? I am up against it whatever I do really but just trying to do the right thing now I am back to square one and have the opportunity Thanks for the advice Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Jools Posted April 11, 2011 Share Posted April 11, 2011 Give it a go - if it doesn't work, hubby can say "told you so" !! Easibed (there are other brands) is much cheaper than aubiose - it's more woody too. I prefer aubiose inside the house but tend to switch to easibed for larger outside areas to save a few £s. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Lavenders_Blue Posted April 11, 2011 Share Posted April 11, 2011 My 4 girls have a small, covered run and a large, uncovered outdoor pen. The pen gets filthy boggy in winter. I just throw down a fairly thick layer of woodchips, topping them up as necessary. The hens love it as it actually gives them something to scratch about in too. By the spring, most of the woodchips have been stamped down into the ground already, but I dig the remainder in. We have heavy clay soil, so anything that can help improve it is a bonus! I don't bag it up and remove it, that sounds like awfully hard work (unless you put down a very thick layer that can't be dug in?). Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Snoxy Posted April 11, 2011 Author Share Posted April 11, 2011 Love your blog Jools...very interesting...and I have been over your beautiful surroundings...gorgeous Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Henslaved Posted April 11, 2011 Share Posted April 11, 2011 Now I know why you asked if I had woodchip or gravel . Perhaps I should also mention my run has a roof covering over all of it so I don't get the soggy mess problem. Good luck with whatever you decide. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Snoxy Posted April 11, 2011 Author Share Posted April 11, 2011 We can't put a roof over our run because we have a beautiful tree right in the middle of it Putting up more shades and the gazebo should help whatever I put on the floor...I wont be in the same situ as last Autumn/Winter that's for sure Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Chicken shack Posted April 11, 2011 Share Posted April 11, 2011 I have a with 4 mtre run. I put wood chip down last August and dug 1 1/2 rubble sacks out yesterday my poor back . Today I put down 2 large sacks of wood chip. The run was coverered all winter on top and 2 sides and is now only covered on the top and the wall side. I put down stalason F, garden lime and total mite powder. I am hoping this will be ok till this time next year and will rake it about and put down Stalason etc from time to time. They do FR when we are about but only have a small area. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Snoxy Posted April 11, 2011 Author Share Posted April 11, 2011 Where did you get your woodchip from? So wish it was only 1.5 rubble sacks DH had to dig out...70 for us Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Jools Posted April 11, 2011 Share Posted April 11, 2011 Love your blog Jools...very interesting...and I have been over your beautiful surroundings...gorgeous Thank you! I know I'm incredibly lucky to live up here but I spent the first 35yrs of my life near you - I'm Northants born and bred. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Snoxy Posted April 11, 2011 Author Share Posted April 11, 2011 I spent the first 34 and 3/4 years living in Colchester, Essex then came to live here There is hope for me yet...you started off in this part of the World and look where you are now Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
beach chick Posted April 11, 2011 Share Posted April 11, 2011 hi snoxy - dont know if this would be an idea? I use horse bedding or whatever I can buy cheaply in the WIR which is 12' sq. the floor is marine ply, onduline roof, but it got pretty wet over winter as my tarps were rubbish. cleaning that out (after 6 mths use) took only a few hours. BUT, for the outdoor area - 12sq m with electric fencing, we have now decided to move it to a permanent area, allow them to trash any vegetation and then chuck down chippings from our tree surgeon friend. its obviously too big to cover, so I'm just going to let them get on with it, use chippings on the bare ground when mud too much, and chuck around garden lime and/or stalosan on dry days. I have NO plans to dig this area out!!! could that work for you? Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Jools Posted April 11, 2011 Share Posted April 11, 2011 An Essex Gal then That's not an insult btw, my very good friend is an Essex Gal Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
stripeybunny Posted April 11, 2011 Share Posted April 11, 2011 we have a WIR with roof. We cover the bare ground with fallen leaves once in a while and these just break down over time. I think you are better off going for something that you can dig/rake in rather than something that you have to remove if possible. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Snoxy Posted April 12, 2011 Author Share Posted April 12, 2011 Thank you and Yes beach chick I think that is what I will do...I don't intend digging the area out again!!! Bare earth it will be with some wood chips...Stalosan F and garden lime. I may be an Essex gal Jools but I would like to add I have NEVER worn white stilletos or danced around my handbag Stripeybunny you are so right digging summat in rather that out is definitely the better option Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
