buddliea in the chicken run

[tlck9]

hi everyone,

Been quite quiet at the allotment, since losing souf, the hierarchy has been shifting, rosy gone through moult and is just re-feathering....and apart from a rat and 8 little babies and trying to keep them at bay...

I wanted to plant a buddliea that has sprung from nowhere on the allotment and move it into the chicken run to give the chucks a tree that will them shade and something more interesting.

Also do chickens like nasturtiums

Any opinions on this, just worried about bees in the summer?

[Two_Sheds]

I wouldn't worry about bees, myself. I have 100s of them buzzing round my head on the lotty, they aren't a problem. Most bumbles will only sting as a last resort (like if you're squishing them). Honey bees are a bit more aggressive, but we have hives & chickens up the lotty and they've never bothered either.

My guinea pigs love nasturtium, give your hens a bit to try.

Buddleja ~ do you think the chickens will just dig it up? And they get really big (house height), can you be bothered to prune it hard every year?

[Aberdeenplotter]

buddleia davidii doesn't seem to harm butterflies so it's doubtful if it would affect your chooks but I'm no expert on that. the one thing I will mention though is your family of rats which you are trying to keep at bay. These things breed at a phenomenal rate and you should be trying to get rid of them permanently otherwise you will have a plague on your hands.

[polo]

My hens like to strip buddleia leaves from low down - it doesn't appear to harm them at all. You will need to protect the plant until it is tall enough to avoid complete defoliation!

as Two Sheds says, don't worry about the bees. Chucks avoid them. Yellow/black = danger in nature.

Polo

[tlck9]

Thanks for this, the rats are a real pain at the moment, as they just won't die. I have tried traps, which haven't sprung, I've tried a concoction of crunchy peanut butter and rat bait and still I have a problem...

any ideas?

[RichmondHens]

Shoot them, or find a friend who can.

[tlck9]

being an allotment I wasn't sure you could do that? Is that the best form of riddance?

[Two_Sheds]

Rats: you need to take away their shelter/nests, that means everyone on site being vigilant and filling gaps under the shed with bunched up chicken wire; watering & turning compost heaps often; not leaving piles of rubbish around the plot and in the shed.

Difficult to get everyone on board, but it can be done. http://www.channel4.com/4homes/how-t...-rats-10-02-04

MiL recently said she's seen a rat running across her patio several times, so I went through her garden for her. No gaps under shed, no droppings inside shed (good). Behind shed there was a pile of old bags of builder's sand and other bits of rubbish, and behind that was a rat-sized hole in the fence. It was coming in from there and escaping through a similar hole in her other fence. I blocked the holes up with bricks, but you could use slates, roof tiles, chicken wire etc.

She called the rat man, who set traps but never caught any (they're bright, rats).

At least it wasn't nesting in her garden, just using it as a, well, a rat-run from her neighbour's ~ the woman who throws bread out for the birds *rolls eyes*. MiL stayed indoors with the curtains drawn for a week, until enough people told her not to be daft and just get on with life. Behind her road is a natural ditch, so there are going to be rats, she just has to make sure they don't take up residence in her garden.

[RichmondHens]

being an allotment I wasn't sure you could do that? Is that the best form of riddance?

We moved into this place 3 years ago and inherited a considerable rat problem. Evidence of infestation everywhere in the outbuildings (not the house thank goodness) with huge holes in backs of stables, sheds etc. And once they discovered we had come complete with army of chooks they were out in broad daylight raiding feeders etc. We put traps and Eradibait down but with not huge amount of success. A gun and patience got rid of most, plus absolute vigilance over feed removal as soon as chooks went to bed. Once the remaining few learned there was no available food they moved on. We have had a surprisingly rat free year this year, hope it continues.

[tlck9]

thanks for the advice. I have double skinned the run with chicken wire in and out, dug into the ground in the base about 8-10inch down lined with rocks and bent wire. on top of this I have placed slate and rocks. two days now no sign. removed all food at night

However there has been signs of them living in a old caravan on site, someone was reporting it so fingers crossed.

I have found 3 gaps in my outer allotment shed so I'm going to block them.

Someone gave me a recipe, bait mixed with crunchy peanut butter and oats, they are taking this so fingers crossed, no just got to get enough wire to go round the outside to keep the blighters out of my allotment

however we are rural and I've right by a hedge so it is pretty much a fighting to continue

[Hilary B]

Rats can be successfully shot with an air rifle (at the legal power limit) and most air-rifle enthusiasts will welcome the occasional 'go' at a live target. Get the nearest air-rifle club down there fairly regularly, and the rats will soon learn to go elsewhere.
If YOU are not providing them with hidey-holes either, the rest of the site may have a problem, but you (mostly) won't.

[tlck9]

I have started to clear any areas that the little monkeys can hide, only place left is the shed, so i've put bait under there, and have blocked up holes with slate, so fingers crossed, just found some holes in the outside netting, so thats the next job