Feed prices are going up every single day. If you keep hens, you know how fast they can eat through a bag of commercial feed. It gets expensive quickly. Fortunately, you don't have to spend a fortune to keep your flock happy. There are many ways to find free food for your backyard chickens right in your neighborhood. You can check out our main site at E-Tube Guide for more homesteading tips. Let's look at how you can cut your feed bill down using simple, everyday sources.
Turn Your Lawn into a Chicken Buffet
Your yard is full of things your chickens love to eat. Weeds like dandelions, chickweed, and clover are packed with vitamins. Instead of throwing them in the trash, toss them into the coop. Your birds will shred them in minutes.
When you mow your grass, don't bag the clippings. Fresh grass clippings are great for your flock. Just make sure the grass has not been treated with chemicals. Spraying pesticides makes the grass unsafe for your birds.
Chickens also love bugs. Rake up old leaves in your yard and pile them in the chicken run. Your hens will spend hours scratching through the pile to find worms and grubs. It keeps them busy and gives them free protein.
Safe Kitchen Scraps They Will Love
Your kitchen is another goldmine. Many families throw away leftovers that chickens would love to eat. Vegetable peelings, stale bread, and soft berries are excellent treats. However, you must know what is safe for them to eat.
Avoid giving them salty foods, moldy bread, or raw potato skins. These can make your birds very sick. If you want a complete list of safe options, you should read our guide on How to Feed Backyard Chickens for Beginners to get started. It will help you avoid common mistakes.
Keep a small bucket on your kitchen counter. Toss in eggshells, melon rinds, and apple cores during the day. At night, empty the bucket into the coop. Your hens will get a diverse diet without you spending extra money.
Ask Local Businesses for Leftovers
Do you live near a small grocery store or a local bakery? These places throw away food every day. Often, they are happy to give it away if you ask nicely. You just need to build a good relationship with them.
Go to your local grocery store and talk to the produce manager. Ask if they have any damaged vegetables or outer leaves of cabbage. Most of the time, they discard these items. They will gladly hand them over to you instead of throwing them in the trash.
Local bakeries often have older bread they cannot sell. Breweries are another great source. They have mounds of spent grains left over from making beer. Chickens love spent grains, and they are highly nutritious. Just make sure to feed them fresh before they spoil.
Grow a Free Food Garden
You can also grow food specifically for your flock. You do not need a massive farm to do this. A small corner of your yard is more than enough to get started.
Plant quick growing crops like spinach, kale, and swiss chard. These greens grow back quickly after you cut them. You can harvest them multiple times throughout the summer. It is a continuous supply of fresh greens.
Sunflowers are another brilliant choice. They are easy to grow and produce hundreds of seeds. Once the flower heads dry out, hang them in the coop. Your chickens will love picking the seeds out themselves. It provides both food and entertainment during the cold months.
Use Your Compost Pile
If you don't have a compost pile yet, you should start one. A compost pile is like an open buffet for chickens. It attracts all kinds of bugs, worms, and insects. Your chickens will do the hard work of turning the compost for you.
Toss your leaves, yard waste, and kitchen scraps into one big pile. Let your chickens access it during the day. They will scratch through it, break down the organic matter, and find high protein snacks. This makes your compost break down faster too.
Set Up a Mealworm Farm
Mealworms are one of the best treats for chickens. Buying them at the store is very expensive. Fortunately, you can raise them at home for almost nothing.
You only need a few plastic bins, some oatmeal, and a starter culture of mealworms. They breed quickly and don't take up much space. You can keep the bins in a garage or utility closet. Soon, you will have a constant supply of free, high protein treats for your flock.
Saving money on chicken feed doesn't have to be hard. You just need to look around your home and community with fresh eyes. Start by collecting kitchen scraps today. You will see your feed bill drop almost immediately, and your hens will thank you for the delicious variety.