How to Feed Chickens for FREE (6 Proven Ways to Cut Feed Costs!)

Comments · 1.6K

• MA

  @mayshomesteadchronicles · 1 year ago (edited) · pinned

  💬 What’s YOUR #1 tip for cutting chicken feed costs?<br>Have you tried fermenting feed, using scraps, or growing your own?<br>👇 Drop your best method in the comments and help the whole flock out! 🐔<br><br>Here’s a link to my fermented chicken feed video: <a href="https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=f1OfeCc3Zak">https://youtu.be/f1OfeCc3Zak?si=YzE77UEvVNtR-3Z5</a><br><br>If you found this video helpful, don’t forget to like, subscribe, and share it with a fellow chicken keeper!

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• RI

  @rickandmariaolson2597 · 1 year ago

  Create a chicken garden. Build a small raised bed out of 2x4. Fill it with herbs and plants they like, and put a wire lid on it. Chickens can&apos;t destroy the root base, but eat the greens as they grow through the wire. If their run is enclosed, plant vining plants near the edge( sweet potatoes, &nbsp;Malabar Spinach, &nbsp;squash etc). They eat the vines that grow through the fence and you get a harvest.

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• JI

  @jimbeerstecher4676 · 1 year ago

  I set up a mosquito light/zapper in the chicken yard. In the evening, it drew the skeeters aware from the house and us and the chickens revelled in fresh, fire-roasted skeeters every night.

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• JP

  @jp7205 · 5 months ago

  Nothing beats the wet log method! it&apos;s the easiest method thus far. Lay down some logs. in a row, wet them with old dirty chicken water or whatever you have, flip them over the next day. AND BAM! &nbsp;now you have a free protein rich snack for the chickens. Do not be afraid of laying down a couple feet of them either, the more logs the more bugs.

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• RO

  @RoseMiller-l4f · 1 year ago

  I love to hear happy hens &quot; &nbsp;talking&quot;, singing

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• JA

  @jamesw.3491 · 1 year ago

  My chickens eat tomatoes and the seeds that pass through them, sprout forth tomatoes outside their yard every year. I water them and give them to the chickens as free feed. All I do is water them with the water I dump daily out of their waterers when I give them fresh water. &nbsp;I also scoop up grass clippings when I mow and feed them while still fresh. My neighbor has a crab apple tree that drops apples in my lawn in the fall, and yup, I give them to the chickens for more free feed/treats. I can&apos;t free range the birds here because of predators and people living too close to me.

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• MA

  @MadeBySam2011 · 1 year ago

  Having a compost area that chickens can get access to helps feed them and &nbsp;stirs the compost, win win.

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• MA

  @MargaretHale-p8e · 1 year ago

  When I weed my garden I give it to the chickens and the rabbits and they love it. Even the 5 week old bunnies love it.

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• AD

  @adigmon · 1 year ago (edited)

  I planted a mulberry tree in my chicken yard. They love it! I feed them garden cuttings, kitchen scraps, and leftovers. Definitely need to watch the video on fermenting feed. We always bring home anything that’s not going to be eaten to give them too. My favorite thing to watch them eat is spaghetti noodles! Talk about entertainment! 😂

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• SU

  @surgicaltechcrafter2169 · 1 year ago

  Everything we do. &nbsp;Spaghetti squash, acorn squash, pumpkin, watermelon, swiss chard, kale, Zucchini, &nbsp;cabbage, brussel sprouts, corn on the cobb, cucumbers, summer squash, blueberries, raspberries, &nbsp;strawberries. &nbsp;We have a fruit market that stays open all year so through the winter we have access to purchase also. &nbsp;At the end of fall season we go to a local farm and ask for all their leftover pumpkins we spend days cooking and freezing so we can give them pumpkin through the entire year. &nbsp;We Ferment kalmbach feather plume pellets in the fall for molting. &nbsp;Our Co-op receipe is mixed with Kalmbach hen house reserve we have a trough with Kalmbach crumble. &nbsp;We do not ferment in the summer we found it attracts all the flies. &nbsp; My flock of 50 are extremely spoiled and i wouldn&apos;t change a thing.

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• ZE

  @zephal · 1 year ago

  Instead of just throwing food scraps to your chickens, you can actually just make a compost heap where they have access to it. Then the chickens will eat the scraps and the bugs that are breaking down the compost. The chickens leave their own waste on the compost as they feed and help you turn it over as they peck through it. Then you also get some rich compost for the garden. I’ve seen a few farms even collect food scraps from nearby, restaurants for their compost piles and they never buy feed for the chickens.

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• MA

  @mayshomesteadchronicles · 1 year ago

  Timestamps for easy navigation:<br><br><a href="https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=WhGVixvR2ls">0:00</a> – Intro: How to Feed Chickens for Free<br><a href="https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=WhGVixvR2ls&amp;t=39">00:39</a> – Fermenting Chicken Feed: Boost Nutrition &amp; Save Money<br><a href="https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=WhGVixvR2ls&amp;t=116">1:56</a> – Using Kitchen Scraps for Chickens: A Free Feeding Solution<br><a href="https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=WhGVixvR2ls&amp;t=173">2:53</a> – The Best Leafy Greens for Chickens<br><a href="https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=WhGVixvR2ls&amp;t=255">4:15</a> – Grow Comfrey for Your Chickens: A Sustainable Feed Source<br><a href="https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=WhGVixvR2ls&amp;t=317">5:17</a> – Mulberry Trees for Chicken Feed: A Hidden Gem<br><a href="https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=WhGVixvR2ls&amp;t=397">6:37</a> – How to Use Sunflowers for Chicken Feed &amp; Fodder<br><a href="https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=WhGVixvR2ls&amp;t=444">7:24</a> – Pasture Grazing: The Natural Way to Feed Your Chickens<br><a href="https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=WhGVixvR2ls&amp;t=553">9:13</a> – Final Thoughts: Easy Ways to Cut Chicken Feed Costs

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