The Homesteader's Way of Feeding Chickens

[lwheelr]

Correct on the sprouting. Soak, then just rinse or wet down 1-2 times daily.

Correct on the fermenting - leave covered in liquid. The first day it will look normal. The second day it will start expanding and bubbling a little. The third day or so it will stop bubbling. You can feed it to animals at any point though, best if it has fermented for at least 8 hours.

BB, there are lots of ways to sprout things. The method is much less important than understanding the concept. Just pick a method that works for you, and run with it. Don't be too scared of it.

If you understand the concept, you can do it even under less than ideal circumstances or even devise a method of your own.

 

[BarredBuff]

So just as long as I get a sprout...it be good right?

Could I do it in buckets with soil in it?

 

[lwheelr]

If you do buckets with soil, then you limit yourself to the surface area of the top of the soil. Not efficient, unless you just don't have trays, AND you need sprouts that grow to the second leaf stage.

Without soil, you can sprout large volumes.

We have more than 100 chickens now - most still chicks. But when they grow, they'll be eating us out of house and home!

Ducks are still looking warily at anything new we give them, pretty funny.

 

[Kassaundra]

Im confused.

What are you confused about?

 

[BarredBuff]

Im confused.

What are you confused about?

Just the general process.

So basically I get a jar full of water and put lots of seeds in it. Then drain that water off of them and fill it back up. And repeat until they are the right size??

 

[lwheelr]

Fill the jar about half full of seeds, grain, whatever.

Let it sit overnight.

Drain off the water. Rinse, and drain again.

Let sit till evening. Rinse, drain.

Rinse and drain in the morning.

Repeat until it looks like a spider has been busy building a web in there! Lots of roots and shoots. Takes 3 days with wheat, takes 4-5 days with some other grains.

Feed to whatever can eat that kind of sprouts. Sprinkle on top of their food, put in separate container, or scatter on the ground instead of scratch.

 

[BarredBuff]

Okay it makes much more sense now!! Thanks!!

 

[kcsunshine]

BarredBuff, the whole thing is - if you leave them covered with water they will ferment, not sprout.

 

[BarredBuff]

And thats why you rinse and drain so much.

 

[Kassaundra]

Okay now that we have the sprouts down, what about fermenting grains?

How/why is it better for the chickens?

Do I understand this correctly:

place grains in bucket, cover w/ water, put in yogourt (or some bacteria source) let sit at least 12 hrs. Then like sourdough starter each day take our what you are feeding (but not all) then add back in fresh grain and water what you removed.......and repeat? If you keep doing that will it ever get "bad" and how will you know if it is bad? Will it become alchohol?