The Poultry Keeper

beausmammy · Joined: 18 Feb 2008 Posts: 23 Location: County Durham

Hi, I have posted this in general also, but maybe this is the best place.
can I put privet bushes in my hen enclosure. I know they are toxic to my aviary birds....does this apply to hens. My girls are ex bats and eat everything in their path!
speak soon
Jayne x

Kristal · Joined: 01 Apr 2007 Posts: 115 Location: Shrewsbury

I would probably be cautious as your girls are ex-batts (so not used to foraging) and they will be enclosed (so won't have a choice of greenery to nibble on). My girls are free-range and I was worried about all the poisonous plants in my garden, including yew trees that are smothered in berries in the autumn; luckily they seem to have a lot of common sense, or at least they haven't managed to poison themselves yet. In an enclosed space though, it might be better to deliberately put plants in there that are OK for the girls to eat, as they probably will Laughing

Sparklepeeps · Joined: 17 Jan 2007 Posts: 1960 Location: Cheshire

Im not sure if this will help, they are plants that chickens seem to leave alone.

Try this thread.

Scoop · Joined: 25 Feb 2008 Posts: 46 Location: Somerset

I've spent hours trawling the net in search of answers to the very same question! If you Google "plants toxic to birds" it comes up with some good suggestions, however, what's safe for a parrot isn't necessarily safe for a chicken!
I think camelia, lilac, buddleia, pine and spruce are a pretty safe bet. Begonia and roses are okay, too. Some laurels are very toxic to birds, so not being the world's best gardener, I've decided to steer well clear of them!
Hope this helps.

123 · Joined: 02 Mar 2008 Posts: 2

Very new and very first post so apolgies if I have added to the wrong thread or in the wrong section etc....

I like the idea of having a couple of chickens, fresh supply of eggs etc.. The piece of garden I would need to use is covered in gravel but has two dwarf pear trees growing on it. Ideally I would put a hen house at one side and then fence it all in so they had plenty of space to roam. The question before I go any further is would they be ok with the pear trees, would they eat them and would they harm them, be poisonous maybe? They are well established trees and I dont want to lose them, any idvice would be grately appreciated.
Thanks, Adrian.

kated · Joined: 01 Nov 2006 Posts: 2015 Location: norfolk

Hi Adrian and welcome

Pear trees are not poisonous to chickens but you will probably not be able to keep chickens and have a pear crop! Also the chickens may well get up into the trees to roost or use them as a jumping off point to get over a fence!

123 · Joined: 02 Mar 2008 Posts: 2

Thanks kated thats what I was worried about, I only just bought this place and when I first viewed it the pear trees were laiden with pears so I have been looking forward to the seasons harvest. Will have to have a rethink,thanks, Adrian.

Scoop · Joined: 25 Feb 2008 Posts: 46 Location: Somerset

Depending which breed of chicken you get and their tendency to fly, you could always use some chicken wire around the base of the tree - lean it outwards at an angle - to deter them from pinching your pears and making a bid for freedom all in one go!
Also make sure the tree isn't too near the pen boundary otherwise it'll make it as easy for a fox to get in as it is for a chicken to get out.

Parrot · Joined: 24 Oct 2007 Posts: 89 Location: Norwich

I have my ex-bats roaming free in the orchard, they do like the windfall fruit but so far have left the main crop alone.
True they do sometimes roost in the trees, but on most occasions they put themselves to bed in the chicken house.
It could be that, I do have a low light(nitelite on a timeswitch) that comes on when it's getting dark, and goes off a couple of hours later.
As to the trees/fruit being harmful, well I have apples, pears, plumbs, apricot, cherries and nectarine.
The only problem I THINK I have had is that last Autumn we were away for a couple of weeks so the fruit did not get gathered up and a couple of the girls fed themselves on over ripe fruit, one or two were a bit wobbly when I checked on them after arriving home.
I think they had taken a liking to the cider in the apples. Very Happy