Here in zone 6, we’re able to
leave our chickens out in their tractors all year. We have a
water- and wind-proof section where they can roost at night (or during
drippy days), and we never see any sign of our chickens being too
cold. In fact, tractor life seems to suit them — their yolks
are still as orange as summer eggs even though it’s the middle of
December.
We do make a couple of
changes to prepare our chickens for winter, though. As the days
get chilly, we flip our tractors 180 degrees around so that the sun can
shine directly in. (During the summer, we put the solid side to
the sun so that our birds have some shade.) We are also more
careful to move the tractors every day, since cold, wet soil can
quickly be churned into a morass of mud.
And, of course, we have
to be a bit more vigilant to
prevent our chickens’ waterers from freezing. Still, care of our
nine hens probably takes no more than ten minutes a day, thanks to our automatic chicken waterers and Mark’s handy
tractor-building skills. I always recommend that folks make the
switch from coop to tractor as soon as possible!
Winter chicken tractor care
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About The Author
Anna & Mark
Anna Hess and Mark Hamilton are a pair of back-to-the-landers who have been homesteading for over a decade.
In our northern climate here in Vermont we find that the foil-bubble-bubble-foil over the hoop house and then burying it in the snow bank makes for warm birds and helps to prevent water freezing. Over winter we let the bedding build up which adds decomposition heat as the hay and droppings compost. In the spring this becomes a compost pile and we move the birds to a new area. Later that winter area makes a great garden.
Glad to hear from folks much further north who also make chicken tractors work! My dad uses the silver bubble insulation on his tractors too, with great luck. We may have to add that to our next tractor!