Aspiring to become a successful urban farmer and more self sufficient? I would like to suggest the keeping of backyard hens. Why would anyone want to have chickens in their backyard? I don’t have one specific reason for having chickens in the city but there are many things about them that please my husband and me. It’s a real calming and relaxing experience to watch their movements and personalities. The cooing sounds, the way they like to fly up and sit on your shoulders, funny struts to say hello, proud cackling over fresh-laid eggs, and their gardening skills provide us hours of entertainment.
Hens in the city or suburbs are a lot easier than you might think. There are many reasons but I would like to list a few of the benefits of keeping a small backyard flock. Chickens Lay Eggs. Not just any eggs, but the most flavorful eggs you will ever eat. Yard eggs taste nothing like commercial eggs. The deep orange color and rich taste will be detected immediately. You can only get this flavor from your backyard ladies. The recent health benefits from the U.S Department of Agriculture (USDA) nutrient date suggests that eggs from hens on a pasture may contain: 1⁄3 less cholesterol, 1⁄4 less saturated fat, 2⁄3 more vitamin A, 2 times more omega-3 fatty acids, 3 times more vitamin E and 7 times more beta carotene. Amazing!
Hens start to lay eggs when they are about 4 or 5 months old. Chickens that have been bred for decades might lay an egg every 24-46 hours and continue for years. Hens don’t need a rooster around at all to encourage or enable egg production. Hens will lay more eggs when daylight is longer. We have hen’s lay around six eggs per week in the spring and summer months.
Chickens have simple feeding requirements. Chickens are omnivores. Chicks should be fed a chick starter and then switched to layer pellets once you get your first egg. They also enjoy food leftovers such as fruit and vegetables, stale bread, weeds and bugs. My husband and I have just started to experiment with bio-pods and growing our own maggots. They are high in protein, high in fat and a total hit.
Chickens require little space. When my husband builds chicken coops he always uses a common rule of thumb. He allows for 4 square feet of space per hen in their house and 10 square feet of space in an outdoor run. We like to recommend a moveable coop for your backyard. This way the coop can be moved across the yard to different areas to eat insects and grass. We also like to pasture them and let them run and forage-just watch out for your tomatoes.
Chickens are easy to care for. Chickens need food and water and safe exercise space. It takes a few minutes to feed them, collect eggs and clean up bedding.
Chickens produce manure. Chicken fertilizer is ideal for flower and vegetable gardens. Chicken manure is too strong to be used raw on your flowers or vegetables, but it can be composted and converted to “black gold”. As a good fertilizer; chicken manure provides Nitrogen, Phosphorus and Potassium to you plants. More than horse cow or steer manure.
Chickens are all in one yard service. Chickens help care of most of your insect and weed problems. If you have a section of yard with problems-forget the pesticide and let them scratch it up. Within a couple of days it’s tilled up and ready for planting. To help with insect problems I have seen them devour up cutworms, grubs and slugs.
After all these benefits people are still wondering whether hens are allowed where they live. Local ordinances in Colorado vary considerably. You will need to investigate in your city or town to determine local ordinances. Even more important is talk to your neighbors and make sure they are ok with your backyard flock. Many people like the idea and some just need to be better informed on keeping backyard hens.
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Author: Tanna Lyon
