Several quality
permaculturalists have used the term “grass farmer” to refer to people
who focus on the health of the pasture first and foremost.
Although I do care very much about improving our soil, I have to admit
that I’m not a grass farmer. If I was, I probably would have
waited another week before moving our chickens in from the
woods and back onto
their rotational pastures.
But while Mark was
working the kinks out of our DIY
dog doors,
the hens were showing up in the garden every morning. Meanwhile,
my vegetable
seedlings were getting to the point that the flock was able to make
quite a mess between dawn and 7:30 AM (when I poke my head out the door
to
make sure no disaster has befallen the garden overnight).
So I stuffed the
chickens back behind fences, then breathed a big sigh of
relief. And the weather was kind enough to turn beautiful and
spring-like at long last, so they ended up having plenty to eat.
It
turns out that about a week before the lawnmower comes out probably is
the best time to turn the flock onto pasture after all.
(If you want a more
scientific take on rotational chicken pastures, you’ll find much more
than you probably want to know in my ebook Permaculture
Chicken: Pasture Basics. And don’t forget to
add a POOP-free chicken waterer to your happy chicken
system.)
