Is it possible to give chickens apples and use the leaves for bedding

In the APPLE season, when tree branches are bursting with fruits, a novice poultry farmer has questions - is it possible to give apples to chickens, will they overeat, and are the leaves suitable for bedding? Let's go through the points

Chickens really love apples, and the skin and flesh are a nutritious and healthy treat. Apples contain vitamins and minerals, as well as pectin and amino acids.

If the chickens have the opportunity to get to the apple trees, then they will try to get to the fruits. Chickens will not overeat apples unless they are hungry. Therefore, if you provide the bird with a balanced diet, the chickens will not peck too much and will not suffer in any way, no matter how afraid they are on the Internet about poisoning the bird with cyanide contained in the seeds.

Yes, the seeds contain a tiny amount of poison inside, but your chickens will never get sick from 6 to 10 seeds inside an apple. Therefore, it is safe for birds to eat apples, including the peel and seeds. The greatest amount of nutrients in apples comes from the peel, which means that you don’t need to peel the fruits, just cut them into slices.

If each chicken gets half a good (not rotten or moldy) apple three times a week, it will only benefit. Of course, the number of apples in the chicken's diet should never exceed the amount of feed received.

An apple treat is easy to turn into a real circus show and amuse children or guests. For example, sunflower-stuffed apples will make a splash in the chicken community. For four apples, you need to take half a glass of natural unsalted peanut butter and half a glass of seeds. The seeds must be crushed in a coffee grinder, mixed with peanut butter and stuffed with an apple, removing the core. On top of each apple, also grease with oil and offer to the chickens. It's best to do this on the paddock, as you'll see major league play in "chicken football."

The second option is to make vitamin garlands from slices of apples, beets, carrots, stringing the slices on strong twine and hanging them in the chicken coop. Most importantly, do not forget to remove the rope later so that it does not accidentally fall under the feet of the chickens and they do not choke, mistaking the twine for a huge worm.

As for collecting autumn leaves for bedding, this is a common way to save money. Driving through the neighborhood in autumn, you can often see large black garbage bags stuffed with dry leaves. There is nothing wrong with asking the owners to donate them and get free poultry material.

And if you yourself have gardens, then wait until the leaves dry, for which you periodically stir them with a pitchfork, then collect them in bags and send them for storage. To cover the floor in the chicken coop, you can mix dry leaves with clean straw, including for the deep bedding method. After use, the leaves turned into fertilized compost are easy to shovel and send to the beds.

For nest boxes, experienced poultry farmers advise collecting birch leaves in autumn.

In any case, dried, rot-free leaves are a great natural resource to help keep birds warm in the winter and cheer them up when you spread a pouch of enchanting golden autumn scent in the chicken coop during the cold snowy months.