blueandwhite Posted June 16, 2014 Share Posted June 16, 2014 This is one bit of garden not sacrificed to the chooks. I've got plants on old mini greenhouse shelving, used a cake stand to grow herbs and have my fern on a pair of steps I got from the auction. I didn't even have to paint them. I've also found that in the 5 years I've had my girls they haven't eaten the following: bamboo, olive and bay tree and only sometimes had a go at the hydrangea. Here they are eating the grass through the netting, I haven't mown it once this year ... marvellous! Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Luvachicken Posted June 16, 2014 Share Posted June 16, 2014 Looking good Blueandwhite My Dad has a set of stepladders like that, now I know what to do with them if he ever tells me he doesn't need them anymore. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
blueandwhite Posted June 16, 2014 Author Share Posted June 16, 2014 Thanks I really miss 'proper' gardening and not just disaster recovery! Am growing veggies out front now; it's like the Good Life! Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
UKMARCH Posted June 16, 2014 Share Posted June 16, 2014 That's a good idea I wonder if they are plotting on how to master getting to the top of the ladder they look like they're having a good chat! Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Plum Posted June 16, 2014 Share Posted June 16, 2014 Good thing they're nice plump girls to keep them grounded Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
redsunset Posted June 16, 2014 Share Posted June 16, 2014 Good luck! I have left a tray of violas on top of a wheelie bin......next morning violas on the ground and not a trace of the white polystyrene tray they were in! They kid you on they are not noticing anything diff with the the 'we are only dumb pea brained chickens' look........do not be fooled! Lol. Soon as I turn my back......things get chinenated! Or chicken-ate-it!!! Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
mullethunter Posted June 19, 2014 Share Posted June 19, 2014 Hi Blueandwhite Do you have mesh on that whole piece of grass? What type of mesh is it? Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Pottage Posted June 19, 2014 Share Posted June 19, 2014 My poor husband landscaped our garden two years ago. I mean really landscaped it, with diggers, building walls and different levels, returfing and goodness knows what else. Anyway, it looks quite nice now, but I can see husband flinching every time one of the girls starts scratching at his perfect lawn lol. We had a problem with chaffer grubs last year (should've got the girls then!) and there are a couple of bald patches that are just starting to recover that the girls are particularly interested in My hens are ex batts, so I don’t know if it’s just because they are inquisitive about everything because they’ve not seen it before, but I’ve seen them having a go at the bamboo we’ve got around two sides of the garden (It’s quite long and bushy now and they also like disappearing under it when it’s bedtime :-/ ). I’ve not seen them attack the bay trees yet, but Nugget particularly seems to be attracted to the Virginia creeper. I couldn’t get her away from it last night! One of them has also trashed my lovely, healthy looking melon plant that I grew from seed from plonking her fat backside straight down on it and snapping the stem. Um, anyone want any chickens lol? They are really well behaved, honest! Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
patsylabrador Posted June 19, 2014 Share Posted June 19, 2014 I think I'm very, very lucky with my chickens. They show absolutely no interest in eating any plants, even if I put kale in their run they only eat a bit. I would have expected them to eat more, especially the failed seedlings. They pop their heads over the rim of the pot and then toddle off. They're passionate for anything seedy and pull all the flowers/seeds off of grass. I have trained them a bit with my neon rockpool net but I don't think they are really that bright. If they go anywhere naughty I say " come on, you know the rules", and apparently they do. I've got tiny tomatoes and courgettes that they just ignore. They are little bantams but I don't have enough experience to know if size matters. That was some major landscaping. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Luvachicken Posted June 19, 2014 Share Posted June 19, 2014 Loving the garden and the grass What is that lovely octagonal structure you have, is it some sort of mini greenhouse ? Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
blueandwhite Posted June 22, 2014 Author Share Posted June 22, 2014 Hi mullethunter. Yes I have netting over all my grass; pegged down and I don't lift it off now. The girls just trim the grass but can't dig it up. I got it from a garden centre I think it is pond netting. It's black and the squares are about 1cm. It doesn't look great but when I didn't have it I had no grass left! My girls loved the virginia creeper in my last house too and destroyed the veggie patch whatever structures I built to keep them out! Happy gardening. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
redsunset Posted June 22, 2014 Share Posted June 22, 2014 Never thought of netting on the grass! Good idea. I have horrible clumps of chicken wire here and there in the hope that the grass will grow back here and there? And that pic with the digger.....I have digger arriving tomorrow to rip up the driveway and wondering how the girls will cope..... Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
mullethunter Posted June 22, 2014 Share Posted June 22, 2014 Thanks blueandwhite. We only have about 3m x 4m of grass and I'm happy for them to eat it but don't really want it dug up! Just put down some grass protection mesh on most of it - looks pretty awful at the moment but hopefully the grass'll grow up through it to hide it. As you say, even if it doesn't it's better than no grass! Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
igobarefoot Posted June 24, 2014 Share Posted June 24, 2014 We put netting down over our whole lawn last year in a last ditch attempt to save it. its worked an absolute treat! This year, the grass has grown through the netting and we've even been able to mow the lawn as the netting has slowly been pushed further down towards the roots. When the girls do scratch now, they can't do any real damage as they can't get to the roots, so the grass quickly recovers. We can't see the netting at all now and have a lovely green lush lawn that looks better than our neighbours Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
mullethunter Posted July 6, 2014 Share Posted July 6, 2014 I put mesh on half my grass 3 weeks ago and finished off today. The photo is the whole garden (!). When I'm home the girls have everything that isn't patio with the pekin pullets in a converted plant cage that you can just see on the right. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...