Save money by mixing your own herbs and edible flowers for your nesting boxes and chicken coop.
Everybody loves sprinkling aromatic herbs in their chicken coop. Am I right?
Fresh or dried, so many different types of herbs and edible flowers look pretty, smell nice and are even thought to keep rodents and other pests out of your coop.
Dried Nesting Box Herbs for Chickens
I started selling my own custom mix of nesting herbs years ago.
Initially I was harvesting and drying the herbs right from my own herb garden, and then once business really started to pick up, I started buying bulk dried herbs and packaging them up.
I eventually came up with the name Coop Confetti which I think described the gorgeous medley of colors and scents perfectly!
And shortly after that ended up hiring a company to package and distribute for me (which sounded like a better idea than it ultimately ended up being), but I was excited when my Coop Confetti won the Blue Ribbon for Best in Show for the 2018 Country Living Pet Awards!
Anyway, long story short. I don't sell Coop Confetti any longer.
All of a sudden, it seems that dried nesting box herbs are everywhere - and there's little to distinguish one product from another. I mean let's be serious, they're all just bags of mixed dried herbs.
I am just not sure there's a place in the market for yet another dried nesting box herb mix that is pretty much like every other one available.
Maybe I will relaunch Coop Confetti again one day, but for now, I've been concentrating on other things like my line of all natural poultry feed supplements.
But almost weekly, I get requests from people asking me to let them know when I might start selling dried herbs for the nesting boxes again.
Mix your Own Nesting Box Herbs for Chickens
So I wanted to share with you all just how easy (and inexpensive!) it is to mix your own herbs and give your chickens some aromatherapy in their coop!
Honest.
There are loads of different products on the market now in the dried herb niche. And they're all just about the same - likely most even source their herbs from the same place!
But instead of paying an average of $14-17 for just 5 ounces of dried herbs, you can easily mix your own for around $20 a pound!
That's a huge savings!
Sure, your initial outlay will be around $125 or so, but buying the herbs listed below you'll have 7 pounds of dried herbs that will last you a very long time...and would have ultimately set you back well over $200 at retail prices!
$200!
I'm sure you can think of better ways to spend your money...
There's no need to pay for fancy packaging or a popular brand name.....
Dried Nesting Box Herbs
Most of the commercial products you'll find for sale all contain the same, or a similar, selection of herbs.
These are the most common ones you'll find in the bags. They all offer specific benefits in the coop and are pretty colors with a strong aroma.
You don't have to start with them all, and you absolutely can mix and match and experiment to find the mix that you prefer! That's the beauty of making your own.
These are the herbs I like to use in my chicken nesting boxes |
Calendula - helps to repel pestsChamomile - helps to calm laying hensCornflower - pretty color, expensive, but a little goes a long wayLavender - helps to calm laying hens, repels pestsPeppermint - helps to repel rodentsRose petals - smells niceRosemary - helps to repel pestsSpearmint - helps to repel rodents
You'll also need:
Plastic tote for storageWooden spoon for mixingAspen nesting pads (not necessary, but my choice for nesting box bedding)
Then it's as easy as opening the bags, pouring all the contents into the plastic tote, and mixing them up with the spoon.
Oh, and a little feed scoop or measuring cup will also come in handy as well to scoop the herbs out when you're ready to refresh the nesting boxes.
Store your tote in a cool, dry spot and the aroma of the herbs should last for months. I also like to keep a small container right in the storage area of my coop for quick refreshing.
Because I love to sprinkle the dried herbs liberally in my nesting boxes and on the coop floor any time I clean - or in between any time my coop needs a bit of refreshing.
So do yourself a favor and start mixing your own nesting herbs.
Your chickens will love them - and with all the money you'll save, you can buy more chickens! How's that for a win-win.
Buying Sources for one-pound bulk bags:CalendulaChamomileCornflowerLavenderPeppermintRose petalsRosemarySpearmint
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