The Eggporeum

Every Micro Farm Needs a Funky Hen House

Since I was eleven years old, I've pretty well always had chickens. My first ones were Bantams, and I've had many other breeds, mostly mixed, in the years since. However, Bantams were always my favorite, and I always hoped that one day, I'd be lucky enough to have them again. This is the year! As a proponent of organic and sustainable gardening, it's only right that I have chickens to help with garden preparation, bug patrol, fertilizer production and waste management...and that's all before I get a single egg from them.

Bantams are very small, about half the size of a regular chicken, so not very good for meat production, but that wasn't my focus at this point anyway. If I want to later, I can use my Bantam hens for hatching out the eggs of other breeds as they excel at mothering.

I hatched out some eggs in a borrowed incubator and got eight chicks, all from Bantam eggs that a kind friend gave me. What fun! I loved having them in the house, hearing the quiet peeping of happy chicks. Raising chicks is fun and rewarding, but a lot of hard work.

Luckily, I had already prepared their new home in my garden. The most important things for chickens in general, and baby chicks in particular is a draft free building, with no access for vermin, or worse; predators such as weasels.

It should be sealed from birds and squirrels who will try and move in, and even though you don't want drafts, good air flow and ventilation when needed is important.

I wanted to have a dirt floor, which is important for using the deep litter system of chicken hygiene.

An earthen floor is very beneficial for all kinds of creatures, and especially birds. The deep litter method of raising them means that I add layers of wood chips, chopped leaves and maybe some straw or hay, which the birds scratch in for the dropped seeds and grain.

The earthen floor helps to inoculate the litter with beneficial microbes, starting the process of breaking down the litter into compost.

After a time, I can clean out the house, and the litter is broken down into perfect compost very quickly.

I used a system which I call the two on, ten off shift, meaning that I could only dig for two minutes, then had to rest for ten!

Some of it was also used to flatten out the area where the wire run was to go.

Most of the materials used were salvaged or recycled, saving them from the landfill. The rustic painted door was retrieved from the recycle center and refurbished with some whimsical embellishment.

Besides, they're fun to watch and train to eat grain from your hand. Next - hatching Bantam eggs by mama hen!

See more fun sheds here:

go to Drought Smart Plants home page

Sustainable Gardening

Backyard Chickens

Blue Fox Farm