[Chookster]

I say go for it! Might be wise to talk to your neighbours just in case they have a problem with it. I think that's a nice size for them. They'll love your veg patch of course!

[raeburg]

They really flourish with a bit of TLC.  Mine are a joy to watch, they live in the allotment and I have silkies in the garden.

[tonethebone]

My ex Batts love the garden especially the grass - saves me cutting it at this time of year!
I don't grow any veg but do have several shrubs and a few specimen plants which I've netted off incase they like the look of them!

Their favourite area is under the kids 14' trampoline (obviously no one is on it at the time) Most of the grass has all but died off and its mostly soil. They love scratching around under there and it keeps them out of the heat and the rain although they have got their run if they need it.

[dizzylizzie]

hi, im getting 6 girlies soon
i would imagine your garden is bigger than what ex-bats are used to , so with feeling the grass under their feet, the air on their beaks and geting good luvin and the occasional slug they would be in heaven compared to what they have now!my advice , obviously is go for it

[janeheritage]

HI Dawnte, like everyone else I think you can do it. My 4 (and 3 babies) roam all day every day. They destroy seedlings and veggies so the veg beds are protected. I've attached a picture. The chicken wire does the trick for the birds, the netting is against the accursed Cabbage Whites  .

As long as you don't try to grow baby plants I think you'll be fine. A bit of netting over your pots will stop them using them to dust bathe! And they would be so happy...  :happy:

[Flowerpower136]

We gettings some ex batts in a few weeks, and would like them to have some access to garden.  all depends on how the dog takes to them.

My garden and plants are really important to me, I'm a garden designer, so garden needs to look reasonable just in case potential clients check me out.  Hence at best, hens will only have 'supervised' ranging.  But I have compensated for that with the size of the pen.

I was at a 'beginners hen party' course the other weekend, so was having a good look at what they had pecked/destroyed in that garden.  Didn't seem too bad.  I'm guessing they'd trash bedding plants and young tasty veg - but woody shrubs etc would just get a bit of light pruning to hen height.  Most shrubs would survive that.  The grass there was fine, apart from where the pen was. 

Need to watch out for poisonous plants though.  I've got Aconitum, which wouldn't do them much good.    How good are hens at recognising dangerous plants? Don't know.

[Dawnte]

A beginners hen party??  Do tell!

[Flowerpower136]

A beginners hen party??  Do tell!

Omlete run them them, have a look on their website, and put in your post code.

It was great fun, though I'd no intention of buying an eglu or cube.  There wasn't any hard sell, just a really nice time chatting about chickens. 

The lady and young son hosting that particular course were very knowledgeable, fed us egg rolls, and cake, showed us all their chicken stuff, let us hold their hens, showed us how to handle them, how to clip wings, what to look for in a healthy hen, even showed us where the vent was (you might laugh, but I've never seen one before )  And sent us home with lots of info and an egg each. I scrambled mine, it was delicious.

All good basic stuff, and just what I needed before the girls arrive.  Only cost £13, but fees and content vary depending on who is hosting.  Glad I went, I feel a lot more confident about the whole thing now. 

Afterall, it's such a responsibility.

[joyfull]

I went on one of those, found it very good for beginners like me - I had never held a chicken before then and was amazed how soft they was  . The wing clipping bit was most usefull. Didn't get a free egg but did have cake