The Benefits of Chickens in Permaculture

Off grid in Portugal

Chickens can provide a multitude of benefits to your permaculture system.

By having chickens in your garden, you can have an all-in-one solution for a natural weed killer, organic fertilizer, natural insecticide and lawn aerator. And with the right nutrition, chickens can make the best companions for your garden.

Chickens will eat nearly any greens — including weeds — and also enjoy common garden insects. Leave the garden open to the chickens immediately after harvest (and before planting the next set of crops) with prove ultimately beneficial.  The chickens will turn the soil, making it healthier for the next batch of plants while cleaning themselves, eat up most of the pesky weeds, and take out the insects that are harmful to the plants.

In a food forest with no wood chips as mulch, the chickens can also be allowed to forage and graze in the garden while the plants are growing, because they typically will not eat live plants if they are bigger than seedlings.

When chickens are introduced to a new environment, it is best to build a coop for them, giving each chicken their own space for sleeping and/or privacy, as well as a nest box to lay eggs in.  The coop will also give protection against animals that would eat the chickens — cats, dogs, foxes, coyotes, etc. — and much-needed shade on sunnier days.  The chickens should be kept in their coop at night and in the morning until around midday or until all of the hens have laid their eggs, then let out to graze and forage for food and water.