Dandelions for chickens: benefits in every part of the plant

Flowers will give a golden yolk, leaves - rejuvenating eggs, and dandelion MILK - immunity and delicious MEAT

The pantry of nature has prepared a valuable and completely free delicacy for our feathered pets - dandelions! They are everywhere, there are a lot of them and chickens will peck top dressing with pleasure. Learn more about the benefits of these vitamin greens for quality eggs.

Dandelions are completely edible for both humans and chickens. They are probably the most recognizable "yard grass" with their jagged green leaves and bright yellow flowers. And there is every reason to add this spring green to your chicken diet, but try to get the plant from the root, as it extracts valuable minerals from the soil as it grows. Therefore, dandelion is an excellent source of calcium, which is very useful for laying hens, especially for young or old birds, often laying eggs with soft shells.

The rich color of the flowers will naturally tint egg yolks, and the dandelions also act as a detoxifier and diuretic without depleting potassium.

Regular feeding of dandelion is believed to help control internal parasites in the bird and stimulate the digestive system, improving gut HEALTH.

You can give this top dressing in any quantity practically from the beginning of spring to autumn: roots, stems, flowers and leaves. Just make sure the plants are not treated with any chemicals.

All parts of dandelions are bitter - the bitterness comes from the flavonoids that give it its diuretic properties.

However, raw leaves in spring will be “sweeter” than autumn ones, but autumn leaves are healthier and it is their poultry farmers who dry them for the winter.

The roots are an excellent tonic for chickens. And it is better to give them fresh. Break open the root at the base of the stem and you will find "dandelion milk" rich in proteins, alkaloids, starch, SUGAR, oils and tannins. In dressings, fresh dandelion root improves the taste of chicken meat and especially the liver. Chicks fed this diet grow faster, are more active and consume the main feed better.

To enrich eggs with unsaturated omega-3 fatty acids (which scientists believe slow down aging), it is good to give laying hens a mash of chopped green dandelion and clover leaves.

Here it should be explained why clover is listed as a poisonous plant for poultry, and allay fears. The blacklisted reason for clover's blacklisting is coumarin, a chemical found in the plant that has been linked to reduced blood clotting in animals that consume it.

In fact, the decrease in blood clotting is caused by the chemical dicumarol, derived from coumarin during the heating of silage.

Thus, feeding fresh raw clover does not pose a health problem to poultry. Feel free to use a natural first-aid kit - they won’t take a penny from you.