Chickens + Fruit Trees?

[maddy]

It's time to start thinking about chickens (a new addition for me) and where to locate them. I was thinking about putting their coop in the same protected area in which I will be putting fruit trees, and letting them free-range during the day among the trees. Do chickens make good companions for orchards?

One more related question that only a real newbie could ask: If chickens are left to range on a grassy pasture area, will they clear the grass and weeds? Do they prefer to be on grass or dirt?

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[manfred]

When the fruit gets ripe on my plum tree one chicken flies up and knocks off fruit that all the chickens eat. Quite a frenzy for a time.

[norcalfarm]

They will make it hard to mulch or keep any kind of ground cover. I would keep them penned separately and when there is enough fruit on the ground, let them in to clean it up.

[ronbre]

they will eat some of the diseased litter to help keep your fruit trees free of disease, also they will fertilize the trees, they might roost in them as well

[theemon]

first let me say i know nothing . but i thought i read that chicken poo was very strong and would burn up/kill all plants that are with. if im wrong correct me

[SkagitBrooms]

We have 6 free ranging chickens on our place, a rooster & his hens. They do such a great job controlling insects around our place. They do spend some time in the orchard. They don't do much to clear weeds or grass, but they dig around for grubs & seeds. Once in a while they will get in our flower beds & tear up all the mulch. They don't bother the vegetable garden or the orchard. They don't poop enough to kill things, but the poo is on the sidewalk, so watch your step!

[Sour Kraut Farm]

I would /am making it so my fences are close enough that they get dropped fruits, but are able to damage the tree or ground at the very bottom.

[pinfeather]

The chickens keep the litter & bugs down in our little orchard. When the trees were newly planted, they did dig a little much around the base of the trunk, but it wasn't a problem after the trees were established. We also clip one wing of each chicken to keep them down out of the trees.

[SkagitBrooms]

Our chickens don't bother the trunks either. Ours are so fat they can't fly, so we don't have a problem with the fruit. Fresh eggs are sure nice, and we don't have to feed much grain.

[Kaitlin]

Our chickens roam the orchard. They do no damage to the trees, eat the bugs, manure the grass and enjoy the windfalls. Chickens will destroy grass if they only have a small area to roam in. The bigger the better with the house moved frequently.

[emdeengee]

I did books for several orchards. They used chickens very successfully but also ducks which don't scratch up as much.

[Copperhead]

I'm wanting to build a portable chicken coop this year. I've notice my chickens really don't get farther than 50 yds from the coop and would like to spread the "goodness" I can imagine my chickens waking up in the recently emptied pigpen for a week, the goat paddock for a week, the orchard for a week, the new forested paddock for a week . . . the cattle pasture 4 miles down the road for a week (or month!). I'm thinking it would take a week or two to bond them to the new coop. They would also need good roosts or a floor of some kind to keep them from falling off the roosts and getting trampled or out during transit.

Then again, I may just move it 20 or 30 feet a day while its empty. Maybe I'll just fill my market cages with chickens and move the empty coop the 4 miles to the cow pasture . . . Hmmm, possibilities

[luvrulz]

Originally Posted by emdeengee

I did books for several orchards. They used chickens very successfully but also ducks which don't scratch up as much.

Don't do this - ducks wipe out anything within walking distance of your orchard. They crap everywhere and we will never ever have another duck here....

[emdeengee]

Well, everyone has different experiences. The orchards that I worked for that used ducks were very pleased with the results. They sure eat their weight in bugs. The well maintained grounds ensured that the duck poop was well washed into the soil. Of course these were commercial operations.

[motdaugrnds]

Maddy, welcome to the world of chickens. If I were you, I'ld do a little research in to the different "breeds". Some fly; some don't!

We have free-ranging fowl (buff orpingtons, silver wyandotts, brown chinese geese and guinneas). Only the guinneas fly into the trees; yet have not damaged them. These geese are "weeders" so we never feed them. They keep young seedlings from coming up and dig up bad bugs in the soil. They have never damaged our trees. The only problem I've had with the fowl relative to our orchard is mulching for the winter. Chickens love to scratch and I am frequently having to take a rake and put the mulch back. I stopped this by creating a barrier out of some chicken wire that is only used during these times. I cut pieces to fit around each tree and layed it directly on top of my mulch.

[Mulegirl]

Originally Posted by theemon

first let me say i know nothing . but i thought i read that chicken poo was very strong and would burn up/kill all plants that are with. if im wrong correct me

It will if it's dumped on plants in a large quantity. Small amounts of chicken poop that aren't allowed to build up won't cause problems.

[luvrulz]

Originally Posted by emdeengee

Well, everyone has different experiences. The orchards that I worked for that used ducks were very pleased with the results. They sure eat their weight in bugs. The well maintained grounds ensured that the duck poop was well washed into the soil. Of course these were commercial operations.

I have 24 or so fruit trees, and if the ducks (40 or so) had only stayed in the orchard - that might've been ok. They didn't and thought they had to whole farm and my front porch to roam.... They don't stay where you want them to - and they find water anywhere they have to.

Maybe if there was a pond and the orchard was fenced....maybe then it'd work. As it is, I will keep my chickens and guineas and my orchard. Easier to manage...and that's one of the beauties of farming. You get to do it the way that works for you and you learn as you go -

[fireweed farm]

They can be a real pest by scratching up mulch around your trees.
I'm planting rhubarb, comfrey etc etc aa "cut and drop" living mulches around fruit trees, as soon as it has nearly covered the soil around trees the hens are going in.
I think they are a huge benefit, eating pests including insects, mice and maybe voles that will cause significant winter damage.

[theemon]

so a question, im planning on putting in some apple trees to start a mini orchard, would it be ok to plant small apple trees IN a chicken run? the run is pretty big, more of a field

[LittleRedHen]

Mine free range so they aren't locked in with my trees but they can visit the trees. Those buttheads scratch the base of the tree (probably looking for bugs) but it exposes roots too. So I dont know. I have to constantly replace the mulch :/ It is a younger orchard so I dont know if they would bother my fruit. I have an old old apple tree and they just clean up the downed fruit. they never fly into the tree to steal fruit or anything