If you have examined a chicken feed bag, you have probably wondered about a more effective feeding method. Despite rising prices, producing chicken feed at home remains practical, especially with the growing interest in self-sufficiency. A simple garden in your backyard and some small containers can serve as a great source of healthy food that your chickens truly love. Having control of the feed inputs while saving on costs allows you to manage exactly what do chickens eat and tailor their diet for better health. Home gardeners will find useful tips for sustainable, green chicken feeding strategies.
Before planting, it’s important to understand the basic food needs of your flock. Chickens are natural omnivores, meaning they eat a wide range of grains, vegetables, fruits, and insects. These nutrient-rich ingredients—often purchased in bags—can actually be grown at home with a little planning. Incorporating fresh, homegrown feed into their daily meals leads to healthier chickens, stronger eggs, and noticeable savings. It’s an ideal approach that matches their natural diet and supports a more sustainable backyard setup.
Easy Greens Your Chickens Will Love
Leaving leafy greens is the simplest method for developing chicken food. Fresh leaves appeal to chickens because the leafy plants show quick growth after harvest. The garden bed and containers support the growth of four nutritious greens, including kale, chard, collard greens and spinach.
Your chickens will gladly eat mustard and turnip greens together with lettuce findings in your garden. Cut only a few leaves before permitting the plant to continue growing. You can continuously obtain green produce all season long through the cut-and-come-again method.
If space allows, try building a low grazing box—a frame with wire mesh on top. Grow greens under the mesh so your chickens can peck the leaves through the wire without tearing up the roots.
Helpful Herbs for Happy Hens
Miniature herbs pack a punch to improve health status. Parsley, basil, oregano and mint attract chickens due to their tasty flavors while offering potential advantages for their health, immune, and digestive systems.
Herbs can be fragrant and maintained by placing around the coop or in pots. Oregano herbs benefit the respiratory system, and mint helps chickens stay protected from pests and functions as a heat reliever. You only need minimal space because windowsill planters and small garden boxes provide enough area to grow herbs.
You can allow your chickens to graze on herb plants directly or provide them with dried and crushed leaves as a tasty dietary supplement.
Grow Grains in Small Spaces
A chicken’s diet heavily depends on grains, yet many chicken owners tend to miss out on the opportunity to cultivate their own grain production at home. Having some additional space available allows you to plant wheat, barley, oats, and corn. Even a tiny section of farmed grains beside their commercial meals will convert your poultry feed costs into additional nutrition.
The grains require time to mature before you cut, dry, and store the seed heads for future use. These can be scattered in their run or mixed into homemade scratch feed. For a quicker option, try sprouting grains—known as fodder. Soaking barley or wheat seeds generates green shoots in few days that attract chickens.
Add Protein with Bugs and Seeds
The strength of eggs and the quality of feathers depend on sufficient protein intake. Homegrown snacks containing protein serve as an alternative to the commercial feed. People easily grow black soldier fly larvae, which provide numerous essential nutrients. Chickens go wild for them.
Indoor mealworm cultivation is possible through bins containing oat bran and kitchen scraps. The setup process needs attention but your supply of protein will continue after your system reaches production levels.
If insects aren’t your thing, sunflower seeds are another good source of protein and healthy fats. Just be sure to offer them in moderation, as too much fat can lead to health issues.
Fruits and Veggies Make Great Treats
Fresh fruits and vegetables attract chickens as they are simple to cultivate at home. The best backyard vegetables for gardeners include tomatoes, cucumbers, watermelons, squash, and zucchini.
Chop larger produce into chunks and offer it as an occasional snack. During the summer, chickens benefit from water intake through berries, apples without seeds, and melons, enhancing their dietary variety.
The ground crops carrots and beets make suitable plant options for laying chickens. Raw pieces of food, as well as grated and cooked vegetables, are suitable foods for your chickens. Raw potatoes and green tomatoes should not be fed to chickens because consumption in large amounts could harm.
Let Chickens Forage for Their Food
Growing your own chicken food doesn’t mean you have to harvest and serve everything yourself. Let your chickens forage! Prepare a designated garden space within your property for chickens to move freely while pecking between soil and scratching for food.
Perennial plants such as comfrey, clover, and alfalfa should be considered additions to your chicken garden. These reoccurring plants provide continuous grazing material that returns every year. To prevent overgrazing, it is important to rotate grazing areas and establish fencing to protect specific sections of land.
You should gather appropriate food waste from your kitchen to complement their natural diet. The key is understanding which foods are acceptable to feed them as you put their leftovers into their run.
Bringing It All Together
You can turn your ambition into reality by creating your chicken food supply with proper planning, which rewards sustainability. All small-scale efforts that reduce waste while saving money and promoting chicken health become effective steps toward sustainable poultry care.
Your knowledge about chicken nutrition and selection of easy-growing plants enables you to feed them an extensive and homemade diet that promotes prolonged egg production and good health. Your backyard chicken relationship results in dual benefits for yourself in addition to your birds.