Chickens & Crops - Feeding ourselves AND our chickens For LESS!

www.edibleacres.org
After more than 5 years of experimenting and trailing different ways to incorporate plantings into our chicken yard, we're excited to share all the various methods that have worked for us. Both annual and perennial, for our consumption as well as the chickens (and wild beings) are tested and shared here. We hope you find it useful. Please let us know what you do to help add life and quality for your chickens!
We still have to buy food for our hens in the form of whole grain periodically, but the incorporation of
perennial systems reduces feed costs in real ways.
www.paypal.me/edibleacres - A simple and direct way to ‘tip’ to help support the time and energy we put into making our videos. Thanks so much!
Edible Acres is a full service permaculture nursery located in the Finger Lakes area of NY state. We grow all layers of perennial food forest systems and provide super hardy, edible, useful, medicinal, easy to propagate, perennial plants for sale locally or for shipping around the country…
www.edibleacres.org/purchase - Your order supports the research and learning we share here on youtube.
We also offer consultation and support in our region or remotely. www.edibleacres.org/services
Happy growing!

[@dirtpatcheaven]

I am on such a binge watch with you guys right now. Feel like I am learning so much

[@lindajohnson6163]

Me too!

[@smartaussiehomestead5813]

I've just found these guys...think I'm about to start binging!

[@travisdavis1042]

Hahaha two years later and same story. 😅😂

[@smovakpro]

If Dirtpatcheaven is watching, it must be good!

[@GranadillaFilms]

14 minutes packed full of incredibly useful information. Thank you so much for sharing your knowledge and experiences with us.

[@edibleacres]

If folks find this video useful, please help us out by sharing with your community, on other forums and platforms. We'd love to get this content out to many more people! Thanks!

[@edibleacres]

We hope to have goats or maybe sheep someday, but that is a ways off!

[@josephpizzo4373]

do you know of an easy way to share this on instagram? My 501c3 non profit "White Lion Farms Foundation" would love to share this via our IG account!

[@rochrich1223]

I like how letting lettuce and broccoli seed out also provides nectar for native pollinators and predators as well as allowing the predators of the pests of lettuce and broccoli to build up.

[@edibleacres]

Nice thinking here, makes for an even deeper relationship with it all!

[@wderyckx]

"It's not who we are " __ Sasha - - that's such a great statement ! ! Andn I can almost hear the tomato plants echoeing the sentiment. Thank you. I shall carry that around and recall it whenever I need to liberate myself from assumed expectations. Great show.

[@rnupnorthbrrrsm6123]

Well said !!! I can have all the best intentions for a perfect beautiful garden but then reality happens 😏 But the amazing thing is, God created plants to grow and reproduce so even when we don’t prune and manage the way they tell us too, we still get produce 😍 Happy Gardening ! Blessings

[@ohanaorganic5189]

Your demeanor and approach is absolutely what I'm trying to achieve...in addition to composting with chickens lol. Keep up the content brother!

[@hugshoney3409]

Just love the symbiotic relationship and how you cared for not just your chickens but the wildlife as well. ❤️

[@Seabee644]

This is becoming one of my favorite channels. Great information! Thanks so much!

[@VickyHafler]

Mark Anderson I know! It’s addicting. 😊

[@N1ghtR1der666]

I love your mobile cages system to protect the vulnerable stages of growth of your plants and to moderate what the chickens are aloud to eat. It seems like you have come up with a very diverse system for incorporating chickens in a beneficial way into a small space

[@collaboratingbackstage1156]

I have watched this video a dozen times over the last two years and I am still impressed every single time by your creativity and passion.

[@dorianmclean6755]

I love the 'growing tractor' idea ...!!! Awesome

[@bobandkaren2011]

"Not who we are"! I love it! That's why I love this channel SO much. Simple practical functional permaculture practices that we can afford to implement. Thanks!

[@alabanzai]

The chickens were just waiting for you to turn the log over. They love those bugs!

[@lindamineer7798]

The chicken yard is so wonderful. The workers look so healthy. Thanks for another great video.

[@michaelfoort2592]

I really like your relaxed, low key but informative videos.

[@edibleacres]

That is great, thanks so much!

[@dreamqueen9909]

The best chicken fodder video ever!

[@benjamin.burton]

I like seeing the chickens scratch the ground and then excitedly scanning for worms.

[@edibleacres]

I do too! We love watching our hens.

[@suzannefronzaglio2427]

Earlier this year (2022), I viewed a video on the topic of grain/feed price increases and even shortages, and how this is affecting those who have livestock (Homesteaders, Preppers, etc.). And someone posted a very interesting comment, on how during the Great Depression people planted Siberian pea bushes, or Siberian Peashrub ("Caranga arborescens") for livestock fodder because they couldn't afford to buy feed. I looked it up and found a lot of info on the Siberian Peashrub. All livestock like it for fodder, especially the chickens. It is a legume so it fixes the nitrogen in soil. It contains up to 36% protein, and 12.4% of a fatty oil. It even has been recommended as an emergency food for humans (times of famine kept people from starving). Eurasian Immigrants brought it with them as they traveled west. In Canada years ago, it was planted en masse in prairie areas to prevent soil erosion. It's a long lived plant (40-130 years). And I read that during WWII (or WWI?), Russian peasants used it for bedding in the chicken coop/enclosure during winter months (chickens could feed when nothing else was available). I found a blog where the lady said that they plant it along side their chicken enclosure/coops, as a windbreak, a shade provider but mostly because the pods when ripe will fall into the chicken coop, and the chickens love it so much, that they'll even jump up to get the pods off the branches before they're ready to fall to the ground! In the times we're at right now, with supply chain breaking down, and prices increasing, and places that make chicken fodder/grains/feed possibly going out of business.... this Siberian pea bush/Peashrub sounds like a wise choice, not only for the chickens and other livestock... but for humans too. It also said that it's considered "invasive" in some States. So you'd have to check. But for those who raise livestock, chickens.... invasive in times of lack might be a "good thing" to have plenty! Enjoyed this video, very clever methods/techniques you employ there for your chicken run/enclosure. Innovative and first time I've seen anything like this (loved the little cages, planting greens and moving the boxed cage to expose only what you want the chickens to consume that that day. Very simple, very clever!! 👍☺️ 🐥 🐣

[@edibleacres]

Incredible notes here. Very good reminder to get the cache of seeds I saved last year up and running !

[@TheRustySpigot]

I love your videos. I don’t get to comment often, but I do. I love that y’all use what’s on hand and are frugal. Love love love

[@yolylacy5416]

Thank you. You are fantastic! You surely prove that we don't need to spend that much money to grow a lot. I'm always amazed at how much you can grow and multiply just by observation and experimenting.

[@RebelStacker]

Accidentally stumbled onto this video, and have to say this is a brilliant and very well thought-out system! Thank you very much for the detailed walkthrough and for sharing these tips. We live in an area where aerial predators are a significant risk for our free-ranging flock, but the "living wall" strategy should significantly help to minimize incidents. So many helpful things were gleaned from this video. Thank you!

[@lisakukla459]

This whole thing is fascinating. I can't wait to implement these ideas myself. I couldn't help but notice how diligent you are with proper body mechanics. I suppose if one intends to do this type of thing long term that's as important to perfect as anything else. I learn so much from this channel! 😁

[@edibleacres]

I imagine I look strange to folks watching sometimes, but having had my back go out in the past I've had to learn how to move to not have it happen again!

[@gitrdoug]

You sir, are legit. Thanks for all the guidance 🙏

[@cindyritchie5521]

I love this! We are buying 5 acres of land this week and I was searching for info on raising my chickens. I had been disappointed until now, you have built exactly what I was wanting, a Garden of Eden for my feathered friends! Thank you for sharing! 💖

[@edibleacres]

Best of luck with your new land!

[@amh9494]

Those have to be the happiest chickens ever!

[@courtneyheron1561]

Such great information being shared! You are doing a beautiful service to your greater community. Bless you 🙏❤️😊

[@edibleacres]

So glad you find it valuable

[@gardenboots7464]

This is an outstanding video. Thank you so much - for the consistently excellent content and your ongoing generosity in sharing your wisdom and skill. It has been such a delight to watch your videos. You and Sasha are making a real difference in people's lives :)

[@staceyfloyd4009]

These chickens ❤️. They have such a great life!!!

[@yukonjack8103]

You've accomplished much in 3 years. Great work!

[@davidschmidt270]

Just discovered your channel...love the idea of feeding my chickens from the garden....that just makes sense...thanks a ton👍👏

[@hawkspiritweaver6664]

As with the Idaho Family Farm comment, I found you yesterday and am getting so many ideas. Thanks for the videos.. Once I get through some of this earlier chicken ones that I'm interested in I will attempt to get up to date with what ever you are doing now. Cheers

[@joankirby1944]

Happy chickens happy wild birds wot not to like. Thats fantastic.

[@pamelagarnica4415]

Just found you guys through my nephew. I've raised chickens and other birds for 20 years and have continually sought ways to incorporate chickens and guineas into my gardening efforts. I love all that you've shown here! ❤️ I can't wait to watch more of your videos and get into my own chicken yard to implement some of your ideas! Subscribed!

[@edibleacres]

So glad to have you with us!

[@constantinaolstedt]

Brilliant ideas! Thankyou so much from Stockholm Sweden 🤗❤️

[@GrimbolTheDruid]

Thanks for this video Sean and Sasha! We just got our first chicks a few weeks ago so I’m going back through and watching a lot of these chicken videos to reabsorb the information. Can’t wait for spring in the frozen north! 🙏🙏🙏

[@bluesalamander8351]

brilliant !! so inspiring ! My coop is expanding . Kudos for your info! Thanks for sharing !!!!! I'm in Mississippi !

[@lunaflamed]

#ChickenMathForTheWin

[@elainaricci1501]

This is brilliant! I just bought a chicken tractor and I feel my chickens would be much happier in your chicken yard! I am motivated to build a chicken yard like this! Great job!

[@nileswright8915]

you make it look so guru-like and yet so simple! thanks for posting this ;)

[@jessicalandi6750]

This is so cool. The plants, bushes & trees in the various protective mesh in the chicken area...brilliant.

[@yukey2587]

Your videos are so full of bit a of wisdom. Thanks!

[@jimwilleford6140]

Love your place and the synchronicity of stuff working together for good. Best Wishes.

[@PiwaiGee]

Man, a big thank you for your videos! There is so much to pick from them. You have a great system, thank you for sharing it with us

[@MrMjgtad]

I'm hopefully going to move into my own house with a fair amount of property around it soon. Watching your videos have inspired me to try my hand at some of these permaculture techniques and projects. Nothing makes me happier than the idea of being able to produce my own food while simultaneously giving back to the local environment. Thanks for all you do!

[@edibleacres]

Really our pleasure to share. We just experiment like crazy and keep trying new things with hopefully some information to refine and deepen ideas over time, and it works after a while. I hope for some wonderful land for you soon!

[@lindaellin559]

Thank you - I always get some fantastic ideas from watching your videos - my chickens thank you also !!

[@castleofcostamesa8291]

Astounding, inspiring, brilliant! I love all you do!

[@edifying]

Another great video. Will be using your chicken composting ideas as a template for our endeavor.

[@ZombiesCometh]

Top. Notch. Video!

[@marshacowan1252]

I am so excited to find your site and hear that our chickens can be incorporated into our garden plans! They are already free range and eat healthy veggie scraps from the kitchen, but this is a way to get them more veggies on a more regular basis while still being able to grow and use the veggies outselves. I am so excited! This will be our first garden (as it has been our first venture with chickens on our nine acre farm), and I want to do a no-till garden as we have an endless supply of natural mulch eveyrwhere. Again, your ideas are incredible. Thank you so much!

[@edibleacres]

So glad you found us, welcome to the community.

[@myhillsidegarden3998]

Thank you for sharing. Very enjoyable to see the different ways you are protecting the younger plants from the chickens while still allowing them to help you with the weeding, and the feeding of the garden. Enjoy the day! Catherine

[@markmahoney14]

For the conventional gardener that likes a more aesthetic look to their garden. This guy still has some fantastic ideas. I really didn't like the "mess" but I really like the compost ring idea. I have several of them now. I really like rings around plants idea! It really frees up my chickens to wander around more. That and I've been trying to figure out a way to make the chicken run look better. Fencing and rings have made it look ok but planting things directly in their run is a brilliant idea. Just put a heavy cage over some veggies in their run and they can stick their head through the cage nibble on them a bit. Then when their ready to harvest just pull them out and feed them to the chickens. Definitely trying this in the spring.

[@LolitasGarden]

Great details and simple mechanisms to enhance the production, use and interchange within a simple but very beneficial element to any small homestead.

[@prgarlick]

just what I've been looking for thanks. Your system makes so much sense.

[@Mark-wh3tc]

Whoa...Really admire and harmonize with the systems you’ve put together. Truely inspirational! Hope I can do something similar in future days. Thank you for sharing everything with us, much love

[@edibleacres]

Truly our pleasure, thanks for the kind words

[@amykinnell2837]

Love your chicken videos. Always inspiring! Keep ‘em coming!

[@RollerCoasterOnFire]

This is so cool! I'm hoping to be able to buy a small farm in the next year or so and start working on something like this. Love that you guys are able to feed the chickens this way as well.

[@viviankrishnan2498]

Incredible content! Thank you for all the fantastic ideas.

[@Vicflash]

A very thoughtful presentation of proven ideas. Thanks!

[@GrumblingGrognard]

Good stuff. Thank you for taking the time to film and post these.

[@anne-margaretmcelroy1141]

Just starting chickens this year, so you were the go to channel. Thank you so much for sharing your growing knowledge...blessings

[@theducklinghomesteadandgar6639]

What an amazing chicken yard/garden!!! I have been wondering how to grow with my babies running around! I have lots of seed of many plants that are good for them and us! You have thoroughly inspired me!!! I subbed and will share!!!

[@misspandesal]

You are soooooo at peace! I love your videos!

[@aaronbaron3155]

I'm very impressed by all the stuff you guys do both outside and in the kitchen. I imagine planning everything must be intense. I used to work at Agway and on a couple farms and in lawncare so I know quite a bit about the green industries.. but I've learned a TON just from watching channels like yours. It's also relaxing almost ASMR quality. Don't know if you meant to be like that but hey it's a compliment!!!

[@justseekingtruth3998]

Love your channel, so informative. Thanks for your work .

[@grannysgarden8225]

Fantastic ideas! I can do this chicken yard with the plants and trees, it would be really good in my climate . Why didn’t I think of this. So beautifully simple. Thank you.

[@captainanthony1399]

🐤🌱👍👍👍💚thank you for your time. Excellent information here. I appreciate you sharing your knowledge and experience.

[@edibleacres]

My pleasure for sure!

[@camw3447]

This is such a great system and your ideas are fantastic. I wish more people invested their time and energy into keeping chickens as happy as possible. They deserve to lead good lives and healthy feed regimes

[@christybaum]

Awesome info! I’m new to your channel. You have given me great ideas for my chickens.

[@cchurch5037]

Fantastic to see your system refinements and development over time - tons of great ideas 👍

[@edibleacres]

Each year things feel a bit more organized and thoughtful with how material moves and how we can bring in more plant life to live with them. In 20 years I hope to be good at it!

[@judthemagicdragon]

I just came across your channel, and i love your ideas ... thanks

[@paultan1995]

Thank you for sharing your knowledge.

[@Steve-ps6qw]

of course this is useful. Everything you post is useful and I thank you!

[@PetalsonthePavingSlabs]

great idea with the stones around the base, thank you!

[@edibleacres]

Pretty simple idea, and could be just as easily be flat boards, sticks, logs, etc.

[@TravelKaka]

It's a good exchange...loved your idea of composting too.

[@wolffortenberry8729]

This is a great video!! So much information, so many ideas, very unique!! It’s not the same ole video I find on so many channels about feeding chickens. Thank you for sharing!! I’ve already sent this video to a friend!!

[@maxandlobo]

'Just found this posted in our local Gardner's page on FB. Awesome video, great ideas and hope to order something next season. Thank-you.

[@sarahsherman4514]

I love the log idea, the chickens obviously did too 😄

[@jsullivan1082]

Love your videos. That region of New York you're in is a paradise for little farm operations like yours. If you haven't set up at the Ithaca farmers market yet I would encourage it. One of my absolute favorite pastimes is going there. Be well.

[@Monami7th]

What a BEAUTIFUL system and video a out alternative ways to keep your chickens fed. THANK YOU so much for this information❤🤗🎉

[@dawnpatton-valentine3234]

It was a very well thought out presentation! Thank you very much!

[@timconnell4570]

I love the ' balance ' you have in your garden. Its a full circle . Well done.

[@edibleacres]

Thanks!

[@jessicalandi6750]

I watching this video with a perma-smile...what amazing info. Love love love this.

[@richchristasante3843]

This is the first time here, appreciate the rich content and insightful ideas. Just the kind of solution was dreaming of for the family's backyard space.

[@RaMckenna]

Amazingly informative video!

[@sheamaloney5527]

That was wonderful!!!! Thank you 🙏 I’m really inspired. I also enjoyed your delivery. Your calm pace and lovely articulation.

[@chrisleyton38]

I've been contemplating doing this and I believe this will be the year I try after watching your video. I love it.

[@gabiglaezer8685]

Great video, I will try the grain soaking and green pasture mesh in our chook yard, thank you so much! Very inspiring!

[@morninglight7544]

Geat info, going to watch it again and take notes...thank-you!

[@DREAMPLANEXECUTEREPEAT]

Really very helpful to rework my fall garden 😊 thanks

[@chrism3845]

I have just found your channel, starting with this story. Amazing and so logically thought through with unique ideas that I have not seen anywhere else. Thank you.

[@edibleacres]

Glad to have you with us!

[@justing6614]

Awesome vidz love how healthy your plants are

[@laurievierheller6055]

Great ideas! I have been looking for ideas to make more use of my chicken and compost area.

[@MarkandDeniseWetzel]

Love it!!! Can't wait to incorporate some of these ideas in our chicken yard!

[@betterstill100]

Great ideas. Your soil is amazing.

[@davidbass7593]

Great ideas you have there this Is my second year using straw for mulch big improvement over my soil from 2 years ago next year more straw mulch

[@nubiansoaps]

Just found your site. WOW! Thanks bazillions for this information. I've been wanting to use my chickens more in gardening. You've given me several outstanding ideas. Thank you for doing what you do.

[@edibleacres]

So glad you found us, welcome to the channel!

[@chelseysmith6805]

You are doing an amazing job! Love it!!!

[@VirginiaReyes1983]

I just stumbled upon your channel! You're a wealth of information from a different perspective than I have seen! I took two pages of notes on this video to incorporate into my static chicken run area! Thank you for sharing!

[@robharvey5060]

Fascinating. Learned so much. Thank you.

[@guseva1]

Excellent video mate gave me so many new ideas for my ongoing back garden. Have a great Christmas all the best from Perth Western Australia

[@debbiewood7718]

I have always though there should be a way for chickens to live in the garden. I am very glad to have come across this video and channel.