Market Farming

[Lucy Goodman-Owsley <goodows AT excite.com>]

On Sat, 5 Feb 2000 20:21:02 EST, market farming wrote:

>  Hi Andy-
>  One of the practices we like best is to move a modified chicken tractor
into 
>  one of our rotational zones when the crop is ready to come out---peas for

>  example---then put a portable 3' wire fence held up by a t-post every 15'
or 
>  so around that zone.  The chicken tractor was "modified" by cutting a
hinged 
>  door into the side.  Thus it serves as a moveable dormitory where the 
>  chickens sleep, drink and lay eggs, but they spend their days outside 
>  cleaning up the crop residue, vines, etc., and scratching around
everywhere 
>  for a week or two, then move on to another similar zone.  It works nicely

>  because we lock them in at night, thus can easily drag the tractor with
them 
>  inside to their next work location, move the fence, and then let them out
to 
>  go at it.

Bob, Andy,
We do the same thing-have tractors with pop doors on them and a 4' fence
around the tractors so the birds can play outside all day. There is a
picture of the two kinds of tractors we have built at my website. The tall
tractor was the first type-it is made out of 2x2 and corrugated metal
roofing that we can get a lot of for free. These tractors are big enough for
nesting boxes but we have found less than satisfactory conditions using them
for layers so they are no longer for that purpose. they are also heavy and
take two people to move them easily even with an axel and wheels under one
end.
The smaller and much perferred tractors (the quonset hut style) by the
chickens were made from 45bu pig feeders we got at an auction for $7 for 7
of them./ These are very light yet stable in high winds. They have pop doors
at each end so the tractors can be put together end to end. The birds also
liked standing on top and using the curved sides as a slide. When we got the
first quonset style tractor together the birds immediately abandonned the
larger tractors for the new one (and many were hatched and brooded in the
big tractors too).
The fencing is held up with iron stock-my husband blacksmiths (decorative
stuff like candlstick holders and hooks) and usually has a lot of iron stock
around and at under a dollar makes a cheap fence post that can be yanked out
of the ground and moved. ewe think of the fence as an amoeba.
The URL is http://www.angelfire.com/oh2/boulderbeltcsa/Chickens.html (the
picture takes a bit to load-be patient).

Andy I would like to thank you for writing about the chicken tractor-it is a
wonderful concept and so adaptable to many situations.
>  


Lucy Goodman-Owsley
Boulder Belt CSA
New Paris, OH
Website: http://www.angelfire.com/oh2/boulderbeltcsa
Organic Farming and Gardening Forum:
http://www.InsideTheWeb.com/mbs.cgi/mb135705
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