To Fodder or Not to Fodder

Good morning, Chics! We've had some great weather lately. The gardens are growing quickly and the chickens have started laying again. Maybe it's the rain or maybe it's because we went back to feeding them dry food. Whatever the case, we're happy. 

I thought I would share about fodder today. Late last summer my husband decided he was going to grow fodder for the chickens over the winter. Maybe you are asking the same question I did, "What in the world is fodder??" I received a lengthy answer. 

Here's the definition given by www.attainable-sustainable.net: "Fodder is a mat of sprouted seeds that can be used to feed a variety of livestock and small animals, including chickens." 

Sounds simple enough. Water some seeds and give the chickens the sprouts, right? Well, yes, but there was a lot more to consider. First, we needed some trays to grow the sprouts. Second, we needed a shelf of some sort to hold said trays. Third, we needed to install grow lights. Lastly, we needed seeds. 

I bought the seeds from Azure Standard. If you haven't heard of them, I encourage you to check out their website. We decided to start with barley because it grows well in our area. Okay...simple part was done and I was on my way to do other stuff.

My husband researched and bought the rest of the items. Within a few weeks, we were set up and ready to grow food for our chickens through the winter. We grew a LOT of fodder last winter and the chickens loved to see us coming out with it. It's a very simple process. If anyone is interested I'll write about it in another blog. 

About three weeks ago, we were out taking care of the chickens and my husband decided we should use our chicken tractor to grow fodder. We seeded and watered it. The chickens have been a bit annoyed with us because we closed the tractor off and they couldn't reach the seeds. But yesterday they were quite happy when the tractor was moved and they had a big area of fresh greens and worms galore to snack on. My husband reseeded and we'll repeat this until it's too cold out and then we'll move the operation back inside. 

A quick note here for those that have never raised chickens: they eat EVERYTHING they can get to if it is green. Well, mostly everything. They are pretty good at avoiding things that make them feel bad. The point is, that you cannot keep green anywhere they can access it. They will stick their necks through a fence to eat your garden. That is why the chicken tractor fodder method is such a big deal to us. We can feed them high-quality, fresh food for pennies on the dollar. 

How do you make sure you have high-quality, fresh food for your chickens? Leave a comment and tell us your tricks. See you next time, Chics!