HOW our CHICKENS LIVE their LIFE in a chicken COMPOSTING YARD

In this video, we're going to take a look at how our chickens live their life in a chicken composting yard. This is a great way to learn about permaculture and see the benefits of composting chickens!
Watch as we show you how our chickens compost their food and how this helps them live a healthy life in a chicken composting yard. This is a fun and informative video that will let you see how composting chickens can help your garden!
A day in the life of our hens. #homesteading #farm #composting
shoutout to @edibleacres for the inspiration and ideas.
HARRIS FARMS 10 lb. hanging chicken feeder: amzn.to/3WY3Quc
Harris Farms 1000304 Poultry Watering Cups, 2 Pack: amzn.to/3J45CXd
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Thank you for watching!!

[@kerem7546]

i have 25 novogens and 2 muscovy ducks. i am developing a composting system but do not have ample inputs from restaurants yet. I do have tons of organic wheat and corn. do you have any suggestions for about how much corn/wheat i should feed them daily while veg inputs are low and then once they get higher?

[@therealprtrhsenteal]

What we do with our flock is they have unlimited amount of feed between the hours of when we put them up at night and when they are let out in the morning. That food is withheld during the hours of the day when they are foraging fir food in the yard. This works well for us. The standard answer for how much to feed your chickens is 1/8 lb. per bird per day but we generally feed less than that. You will have to experiment to see what works best with your system. I hope this helps! 🙂

[@spoolsandbobbins]

@@therealprtrhsentealhelpful! Thanks.

[@Macasmum]

Hens are the hardest and most underrated workers on the farm.

[@therealprtrhsenteal]

They are indeed right up there amongst some of the all time greats!

[@Renee.P]

Brilliant

[@therealprtrhsenteal]

Thank you! 😉

[@dwighthires3163]

I enjoy your approach. It has several features like the chicken tractor on steroids but with your own unique ideas. Good job.

[@therealprtrhsenteal]

Thanks I am always adjusting the system and trying to make is better.

[@dwighthires3163]

@@therealprtrhsenteal Yes, indeed you are looking at ways to improve in ways I had never considered. Good ideas.

[@markmclaughlin4244]

I started a similar yard and it too was inspired by edible acres. It’s awesome that everyone is sharing their projects so openly and positively. I hope you inspire a lot more composting chicken yards!!

[@therealprtrhsenteal]

Yeah I've gained alot of inspiration from sean. He has a great channel. Thanks for watching and your feedback.

[@CBBC435]

Little ladies getting to work. So cute.

[@therealprtrhsenteal]

Yes they are and they do!

[@etruedus]

Glad you gave your source! I love Sean's channel, and some other content creators don't give credit where it is due. I am subbing to your channel for your content and honesty!

[@therealprtrhsenteal]

Yeah thanks man! 👊🏼 Sean and Sasha have a fantastic channel and I have watched all of their content. ( at least all of the compost making videos) In fact in one of sean's earliest vids he gave credit to the operation that inspired his system. Thanks for your thoughtful comment and feedback and thanks for subscribing. Welcome!

[@VIEWS-xn8dx]

As a Muslim I appreciate more your honesty and sharing your knowledge. Allah's Messenger (ﷺ) said: "When a son of Adam (i.e. any human being) dies his deeds are discontinued, with three exceptions: Sadaqah, whose benefit is continuous; or knowledge from which benefit continues to be reaped, or a righteous child who supplicates for him." [Reported by Muslim].

[@markmims1032]

​@@therealprtrhsenteal ❤, ❤

[@ladyryan902]

I have a small run with 5 hens. I tried the chicken tractor but they get feet caught in the wire. So now I use a baby pool to pile compost material n feed them..its ALOT of work for my old self but after a year I've been able to build 2 more small beds. I plant sections of gardens just for them.offset feed costs...love your stuff!!

[@therealprtrhsenteal]

Great ideas and it is so importantt to observe what is or isnt working and make the changes accordingly. Niice job!

[@Laura-wn2yy]

Living their best life!

[@potpourrioflife]

Thank you for sharing how you do this. We have a small area that they continue to dig through, but you inspired me to go through our compost and add it to their yard tomorrow before letting them out of their coop. This will save quite a big on feed, but add to what they are already digging up in their run area.

[@therealprtrhsenteal]

Yes! You can do it! And your chickens will thank you. 😉

[@seclilc]

Found your channel via shorts. Subbed 🎉

[@therealprtrhsenteal]

Thank you so much. Welcome! 🙂

[@qkcmnt1242]

So did I 😃.

[@joannc147]

My hens are good teammates when I do some heavy weeding or crop turnover. They follow me right in and scratch away for bugs and seeds. I see your inspiration from Edible Acres! Seriously, you both have designed a good exercise routines for humans while you’re concentrating on hens! Nice video, thank you.

[@therealprtrhsenteal]

Awesome! They are good teammates indeed once properly directed! It has been a learning experience on how to focus their energy while they interact within this yard. Sean has provided alot of inspiration for my system and so many others. Glad you like the video thanks for your thoughtful comment.

[@ZiaShroomer]

Doing this larger scale with 400 hens this year. So far so good. The compost pile is also massive though.

[@gortecheng]

can you explain in detail how actually big is your compost for 400. And also what are you adding to the compost.

[@spoolsandbobbins]

That’s amazing!! We’d LOVE to hear more but you’re probably too busy 😂

[@nothingnothing3211]

Keep going man one day your channel will suddenly explode with views. Best of Luck!

[@therealprtrhsenteal]

That is quite a nice compliment! Thank you for the feedback and thanks for visiting the channel.

[@karolryba121]

Salute from cold Canada. Super material. You Are write every breed of chicken is different. I think this depends from that wilde gene I have some very good expirence from my sister flock in Poland. She had one breed of chicken named Green-legged Partridge. They where comminig to coop last working all day in their own grup looking for food. They produced exceptional eggs. Happy New Year

[@therealprtrhsenteal]

Thank you my friend! 👋

[@PLJS2018]

Never thought about feeding chickens at night. 🎉

[@therealprtrhsenteal]

That's just how I do it. It encourages them to do chicken things all day! Scratching and peckin is kinda their field of expertise!

[@tiffanyclark-grove1989]

I feed mine at night too.

[@hammondjones9484]

Love this channel, learning so much, thank you

[@therealprtrhsenteal]

Thank you for the feedback. I really appreciate you taking the time. 🙂

[@3FeathersFarmstead]

I definitely get a ton of inspiration from Sean as well. By far one of my favorite channels. Those brown hens are composting machines! What is the breed?

[@therealprtrhsenteal]

Yeah sean and sasha have been doing some amazing work! Those are novagen browns. Probably one of my favorite breeds ive had. Im probably going to do a video on them soon because they are just that good in my opinion.

[@3FeathersFarmstead]

@@therealprtrhsenteal look forward to it!!

[@spoolsandbobbins]

@@therealprtrhsentealis that a commercial breed? They look and act identical to our commercial Bovan browns here in Nova Scotia. Also excellent layers.

[@thelotus4462]

I have really enjoyed watching your videos. We have a farmstead in Tennessee ( wife and five young children) …I’m still learning ….so much to learn.,.but thanks to your educational videos I have some new tools to use. Thank you !

[@therealprtrhsenteal]

Thanks for your feedback and I'm really glad you are enjoying the videos:) I was just in tenn. in oct for self reliance festival. My first time down there. Great state y'all have! 🙂

[@tannerfarmstead]

Pretty cool man! Just stumbled on your channel. Where are you located?

[@therealprtrhsenteal]

Thanks man! Norcal 🤘

[@lisastudebaker7191]

Wow ,lots of info,,thanks

[@incaseofamnesia6380]

Wow great insight I really like that youve shared where your mindset differs from edible acres thanks!

[@therealprtrhsenteal]

Glad you enjoyed it! Thanks for watching. Sean and Sasha have a great channel! 👍

[@Grammysgarden]

I found your channel this week. I’m enjoying it so much, ( I love chickens) I will be watching other videos of yours as well.

[@therealprtrhsenteal]

Thanks for watching and I am glad you like! Welcome to the channel. 🙂

[@Grammysgarden]

@@therealprtrhsenteal Thank you, chickens are selling out here in Central Missouri as fast as they come in. They’re a hot commodity.

[@etruedus]

I have a request for a future video. I don't know why, but I really like compost sifting videos. If you sift your compost, I think it would make another good video. Start the video with a nice shot of finished sifted compost, then you could reiterate your entire process, and finish with the sift. Don't cut the sift short though. Its the best part. Finish off with some chicken TV!

[@therealprtrhsenteal]

Haha chicken tv!! Yes! 🤣 That's a great idea and thanks for it. I can definately see that as a possibility in future! Great suggestion. 👌

[@jenniexfuller]

Gotta love the buff orpingtons!

[@therealprtrhsenteal]

Do you have some buffs?

[@kentuckysustainableliving3583]

That’s a great setup.

[@therealprtrhsenteal]

Thanks Jason! Its always evolving and getting better with time.

[@tiffanyclark-grove1989]

I like your style 😊some great ideas. I have a few chickens who garden with me. I love permaculture

[@therealprtrhsenteal]

Thank you so nice of you! Chickens can be helpful in the garden under STRICT supervision! And yes permaculture is awesome. 😉

[@tiffanyclark-grove1989]

@@therealprtrhsenteal best thing as watching them eat those Japanese beetles lol I just can’t believe they aren’t crawling around in their tummy after they eat them. And yes, they do like to get into my strawberries. They like the peat moss too, to do the dirt bath.

[@Nikki-me4Gd]

Thank you! I want to get chickens but nervous about starting

[@therealprtrhsenteal]

Thank you! Just curious why nervous?

[@jojozepofthejungle2655]

Happy well adjusted chooks give good eggs. I get humongous eggs with golden yellow yolks.

[@therealprtrhsenteal]

I agree with you! It feels good to see animals out doing what they are happiest doing! 🙂

[@jojozepofthejungle2655]

@@therealprtrhsenteal We will have to change it from "as happy as a pig in shit" to "as happy as chooks in the compost"

[@naegwut]

This was cool

[@therealprtrhsenteal]

Thanks!

[@katykayy]

So the Buff Orpington chickens win! My favorite!

[@tiffanyclark-grove1989]

I like their personalities

[@MrEunderwood]

Do you have a video that mentions how and why you use the milk crates? You're videos have inspired me to get our chickens working a full time job at the compost pile. I'm trying to understand all the nuances of your system.

[@therealprtrhsenteal]

The milk crates are something I have obtained for free so the price was perfect. They are used as a movable barrier for the compost that is easily adjustable. The downside is they will deteriorate from UV after a couple of years. I first got the idea for this from watching sean from @edibleacres. Good channel with some great ideas. 👌

[@haleybecker7704]

I think that’s a great idea to grow that much sunflower seed! I am going to give it my best to grow that much sunflower seed for the chickens. Do you know what kinda of sunflowers you grew ?

[@therealprtrhsenteal]

Hey Haley! I grew primarily mammoth and a few black oil. I would like to try to grow more black oil this year because they stored better than the mammoth. I would love to hear what you plant and what level of success you have. Thanks!

[@cakebliss6535]

Great video. Love the chicken cam idea. Can you tell me why all the plastic crates around the perimeter??

[@therealprtrhsenteal]

They are milk crates I got for free and I use them as a movable barrier to contain the compost. I also use them to as containers to store heavier carbon bits out of the compost when I am sifting.

[@julie22141]

Hi from over here in Luxembourg, Europe. I really enjoyed watching your video, it's inspired me to try out what you're doing in our chicken run. One question: when do you take out the compost from the run and how long do you let it rot further before putting it on your garden? I've heard it's necessary to do that with chicken manure. Thanks and good luck with your composting yard!

[@therealprtrhsenteal]

Thank you for watching and your question. I don't specifically rest the compost once it leaves the yard. It either comes out as is or gets screened for use in my annual beds. I have not found the amount of manure to significant enough to cause issue with what I am planting. Issues for me arise when I rush compost leaving the yard. That said, resting the compost after leaving the yard would eliminate any of your concern and gennerally improve the overall compost if properly maintained imo.

[@annemichellejohal3974]

❤

[@samguapo4573]

I still remember when a local government started forcing certain farmers and gardeners to NOT grow produce. It makes me seethe...

[@therealprtrhsenteal]

That sounds like a government that is not responsive to the people and in need of change.

[@momoffive1081]

Hi. You mentioned something at about 4:08/4:12 that mentions "systems" on your property. Maybe you answer this as the video proceeds, but I have a tendency to get distracted with all the notes I'm taking, what systems do you have, and what purposes do they serve?

[@therealprtrhsenteal]

The systems I was referencing was related to food production. Gardening and growing food for our livestock.

[@workshopvillage]

What breed do you like the most for your composting system? I'm trying to narrow down the best breed for this type of operation as well. I only have a small flock of 4 right now, and have found my Black Sex-link chicken to be the best forager and digger. She loves digging through any piles that I make. My easter egger hardly dig at all, so I won't get that breed again. And My lavender Orpington is a great forager/digger as well. I got 3 baby chicks (Rhode island red, barred rock, and australorp) to test even more breeds.

[@therealprtrhsenteal]

There are many breeds that I have not exposed to this system so my evaluation is solely based on the birds I currently have in it. Of the breeds I do have, I really like my novogen browns in this system as a first choice. Very active, exceptional egg prduction, docile and great foragers in the yard. I also would choose black australorps as they are a strong bird moving lots of material and remain moderately active. Let me knowcif you have any luck with any of your breeds in you system. 😉

[@amjadiqbal7993]

I have watched your amazing video. I have inspired very much that how you feed your chicken scientifically approved method as far as health issue and poultry breeding and its nutrient poultry products. Yours remarkable performance regarding best usage of poultry wastage for feeding.

[@therealprtrhsenteal]

Thank you! We try to keep it simple but like to provide as much diversity to their diet. It definately helps to contribute to healthy happy birds! 🙂

[@kristenremington153]

I have chickens for the first time and am new to homesteading. I was thinking about doing a composting system within their run. Thoughts?

[@therealprtrhsenteal]

I depends alot on your situation but generally speaking any composting you can do is a good thing and you can always start small and scale up as you learn your system. I have a bunch more videos in my chicken composting playlist. There may be some ideas you can grab from there as well. Good luck in your composting efforts 👏👏👏

[@thebarefoothomestead]

how many sunflowers did you grow to get that amount of seeds? and what variety?

[@therealprtrhsenteal]

I grew 3 different. Mostly I grew mammoth but I also grew Black oil and another I dont know what it was that I got from a family member. I did not count how many I had but there was over 100 plus alot of dent corn.

[@thebarefoothomestead]

@@therealprtrhsenteal thank you!

[@MrMilk69]

Greetings from Brazil, South America. Its clear theres a good reason for you to offer a compost pile. But by the video I really don't understand these reasons. Could you explain please? Maybe more people are wondering about that and that way we can learn more from you. Thank you for sharing your beautiful work. I also have chickens and love them.

[@therealprtrhsenteal]

Hey from the US! 👋 I intend on doing a more specific video to hopefully address your questions. I have had similar questions from others that would warrant a more detailed follow-up video. I know this does not specifically provide you answers but stay tuned I will be doing a follow-up video. Thanks for your question. 🤘

[@dahjr01hamlin59]

The reason for building compost through chickens is for a growing a garden or orchard. It’s reportedly the best you can get. Back to Eden, Paul, explains that the chickens are his soil manufacturing factories and the eggs are a side benefit. Place all of your plants and left over foods in there and watch the fence shrink. In the fall empty it out and shift it, then add to your garden areas and let the winter rain and snow saturate it and brings its nutrients deeper into the soil.

[@ThePeternoom]

when you cut banana peels in half inch sections, the chickens will eat them readily

[@therealprtrhsenteal]

Chickens will eat about anything!

[@nildameers3772]

How do you keep Ariel predators away while they are out?

[@therealprtrhsenteal]

Thats a great question. I make sure to provide them areas of refuge. Currently there is a developing tree canopy in thier area and in addition I keep thier coops open for them to retreat to. Having a rooster is extemely effective although currently we do not have one.

[@mrjp2149]

I need chickens

[@therealprtrhsenteal]

Everybody who wants a chicken should have a chicken seems like a good idea to me!

[@aphillips5376]

I live in an suburban setting. .quarter acre home with 3 chickens. How do you preventva rat infestation doing this. My town has had a rat problem since 2020. My run has sand so I can keep it extremely clean. I would love to do this but I'm worried about attracting rats with feed and food left in piles on the ground. Any advice?

[@therealprtrhsenteal]

You can try to isolate your compostables from rodents and potential Predators by keeping them in a bin. Here is a video I did offering a partial solution: kzbin.info/www/bejne/i5vTkpSOgNWphKs It may require you to upside the bin if you are looking to potentially run a hot compost setup but this may give some food for your creative juices to flow. Good luck:)

[@aphillips5376]

@@therealprtrhsenteal Thank you, I currently have 2 Hotbin composters running my chickens can't get in there to turn them such as your system. I was really looking on how to give my girls a job to do with an open pile without attracting rats. Thanks for the reply.

[@qkcmnt1242]

Have you had problems with avian flu? It's horrendous the price of eggs in the store, they say due to the Avian flu that started in spring, 2022.

[@therealprtrhsenteal]

No health issues with my birds. I have heard people mentioning egg prices being pretty high. We haven't bought eggs for years. 🤷🏽‍♂️

[@MistressOP]

edible arces is good.

[@therealprtrhsenteal]

Sean has a great channel:)

[@shaikyasersameer837]

Which chicken is this

[@therealprtrhsenteal]

Mostly they are Novogen Brown.

[@fl3082]

Have you ever tried any breeds that were just horrible composters?

[@therealprtrhsenteal]

I have not. Some breeds are more active than others but it can vary from bird to bird also. Chickens generally like to scratch and hunt for food.

[@qkcmnt1242]

Are your red hens Rhode Island Reds, or another breed? They appear to me as your best workers.

[@londonpickering8675]

Very interesting! Keep fighting youtube and get monetized. There is nothing wrong with sharing real life experience with others.

[@therealprtrhsenteal]

Thank you London!

[@melisand8295]

Chickens travel in gangs and are bullies, actively preventing the non in-crowd chickens from getting food. I notice on the time lapse that the smaller breeds are basically prevented from accessing the best pile of compost. Something to watch out for.

[@therealprtrhsenteal]

Lol. Chickens behave like most every other species. There is always an established hierarchy imposed by fear and intimidation. Long live the chicken! 🥊

[@melisand8295]

@@therealprtrhsenteal absolutely!