chicken tractors and hay making

[mattman]

I have no idea what a chicken tractor is, around here are chickens are grown in chicken houses. Most all the folks around here use the litter out of the chicken houses to fertilize their fields. Sometimes when the litter is first applied it burns the grass, give it a couple of weeks and here comes the grass.

 

[deereguy]

A chicken tractor is an enclosed outdoor wire pen (maybe 10'x10'x 3' tall or bigger/smaller) with X amount of chickens in it (maybe 10 for a smaller cage) and the cages are placed on grass and the chickens scratch at the dirt, eat bugs, grass, etc and fertilize those penned areas. The pens are moved daily/weekly by hand or machine (again by size). This is an organic practice that keeps the chickens cleaner and less labor intensive with the exception on carrying water and moving pens. I have only seen a few "tractors" in action locally and heard about them at seminars- this should give an idea of what the discussion is about. I'm sure someone here with more detail can eliberate. Hope this helps!!

 

[Lawnman TX]

Unless they are giving the chickens any supplemental feed in their diet, they will not be adding any nutrients to the field, only depleating them just as if you were haying without fertilizing, or running any other livestock.

Sure they are producing manure, but what they produce is being taken from the grass, and only part of the nutrients being returned, the rest of the nutrients are going into the growth of the chicken.

If they are being fed well then you will gain nutrients, and may come out ahead.

 

[mattman]

Is the chicken tractor thing cost effective? We grow thousands of chickens in one chicken house year round. I agree on the may not be putting alot of nutrients back into the soil. Have you seen the fields after the chickens have been moved?

 

[EquipmentJunkie]

Sounds like Joel Salatin is correct about the chicken tractors from his book, Pastured Poultry Profits. I always thought that it sounded like a good idea...especially after eating free-range chicken and eggs.

 

[Charlie175]

Free Range Chickens are becoming a big item for sure.

Chicken litter is strong stuff! Makes the weeds grow also.

Litter used to be a cheap byproduct but now is in demand for fertilizer due to cost.

 

[Niji]

The chickens and chicken tenders (the folks that tend the chickens, not the fast food restaurant variety) are lining up to start this chicken tractor venture. I've been tinkering with the haybine getting it tuned up, and with the weather looking good for the next week, I may go over and clip a couple of acres where the pens are going first and get that baled up. Apparently the pens won't seat to the earth well if the hay is too tall, and they typically bush hog in front of them. So heck with that--I'm trying to make every bale I can. They say a variety of predators is the biggest trouble they have.

I asked the county extension agent to be involved with this endeavor, and he's pretty excited about it. I've got soil samples from the end of the season last year to compare to and get an accurate before/after picture. He is suggesting I cut earlier than typical for the area anyway and try to push for an additional cutting in the year if the moisture is available.

I just acquired additional hay fields, so to get it all done before the hay is too mature, I may prefer to start a little early anyway, if the weather provides.

It seems the chicken people do provide feed to the birds, to answer the nutrient question a few posts back.

I think I mentioned in an earlier post that one of the main reasons I'm so willing to try this deal is because I cut a five acre mixed hay field last year that the chicken tractors had been on the year before, and it was unbelievable. That hay was the most robust, tallest, greenest hay in the county. It had about the normal average weed population that my other fields have, but of course the weeds were super weeds in the same percentage that the grasses were super grasses.

I'll try to get some photos if I can figure out how to upload them here. They are going to start with 600 chickens in a couple of weeks, and the number increases as the season gets underway. They cycle mature birds out for butchering and bring in replacements continually during the season.

Should be interesting. Will keep you posted.

 

[Niji]

The chickens are in the field. I've taken a few photos, and hope I've managed to get one posted to this e-mail so y'all can get the visual on this. Over the next week or two the chicken guys say they will be adding pens to the line as they march along.

We've had really decent rain this spring, and the hay is looking good.

I'm off to get a replacement shaft for a DaRoss tedder I picked up.

 

[Niji]

Here's the latest photo--I took it this morning. So far, all is going smoothly. They have 10 pens in the field, are butchering the first 60 chickens out of this arrangement today, and are steadily covering ground. I hope to see a dark green streak behind these pens at some point!

I've cut a few rounds of hay to the side of the operation, as you can see.

 

[barrybro]

I just put my first 10 into my pasture. This is my first attempt. My pasture pen is designed to hold 50 which will be the next batch.

Thanks for the posts.

Barry