We’re moving forward in our planning for part of our backyard. Last week I wrote about how we’re going to update our patio area since it’s pretty much nothing but dirt and birds. I am using the book Free-Range Chicken Gardens to help plan our new garden. Here’s the plan view exhibit of what it currently looks like.
We’ve got big plans for this area. Of course we can’t do all of it at once but it’s something that eventually will look great. Free-Range Chicken Gardens has a great section specifically on planning your garden design even if you don’t have any experience doing any type of design. She starts with drawing out your property lines, house footprint, out buildings and other existing elements that will remain. She then directs you to make a wish list of what you want to include in your new plan. She even gets into details such as sun exposure, microclimates and areas of concern. Then you want to show other elements including the chicken coop, run and paddocks, trees, planting beds, lawn area, pathways and patios. This is our plan:
The patio is keeping it’s current configuration but we’re going to be building and adding elements on the patio to break up the large expanse of paving. Against the tower we’ll be adding an outdoor kitchen which will include a sink, barbecue, refrigerator, kegerator, and bar seating. We’ll also be building an arbor over a large portion of the patio to keep this area dry along with the dining table. In addition we’ll be building a cob oven. Flanking each side of the path out to the vegetable garden will be two 4′ diameter galvanized tanks with fruit trees planted in them. These will help add more shade and block the evening sun on those hot days. Offset 2′ from the patio and path will be a 4′ fence to keep the chickens corralled off the patio. The fence will be planted with edible vines such as Maypop passion fruit. There will also be vines such as grape and kiwi planted on the coop run fencing to produce a shady oasis inside the coop. The light green area will be seeded with chicken pasture seed in the early spring and then we’ll also include some chicken/turkey hardy shrubs between our vegetable garden fence and Turkey Town. The gate to the right of the chicken coop is access to the orchard pasture for the chickens and turkeys which will also be seeded with the chicken pasture seed but I’m not showing it here to save space. It’s an additional 20′x50′ area. The end of the path to the vegetable garden will have an arbor for more edible vines such as Scarlet Runners which are perennial here. In the darker green area on the left will be our chicken and medicinal garden. The chickens will have occasional access to this area for foraging. Additionally, the plants chosen for the chicken/medicinal garden are also bee friendly.
This plan will not be implemented all at once, of course. Just like every other project around here, it will be a work in progress so I’ll definitely continue to post on it. The next phase will be the planting plan. Next week I will post about the plants I’ve chosen and why and what the planting layout will look like. If I’m feeling extra saucy I may even include a perspective drawing.
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Thank you so much for sharing your ‘plans in progress’, Rachel. I ‘devoured’ the Chicken Garden book a couple of weekends ago and can’t wait to get planting. We live in the Santa Cruz mtns (regular visits from coyotes, mtn. lion and bobcats) so our chickens NEED and have a Ft. Knox enclosure. But I got lots of good info to plant within their space, which will not only benefit their environment, but enhance our view from our deck above them! I LOVE your blogs!
Can you give us some idea of the dimensions of your yard? Also, how much of your chickens’ feed to you plan to get from forage?
Thanks!
This area is about 50′x50′. I don’t have a specific percentage of how much I expect my chickens and turkeys to forage. Maybe 30%? Not sure until I do it.
Love the plan!! I just got the book from the library. I am currently rehabilitating our chicken area. We dispatched our old chickens–none were laying anymore–and want to get new ones next month. The tank idea is a good one. I’ve thought about using one to put an herb garden near my deck instead of a spiral. Also a great place to put some bamboo which I would like. I need to price the tanks at Tractor Supply. Good luck with your chicken/deck project. It looks terrific. What is the water tower? Are you harvesting rain water from your roof? What’s your holding capacity?
Oh, the water tower is, well a tower in my backyard. It used to have a water tank in it that was hooked up to our well but the previous owners turned it into a janky apartment that is pretty much only useful as a storage area.
Looks awesome. I’ve been thinking about stock tank planters for the front yard porch. It is just a concrete slab and could use some dressing up. Have you ever used them before? If so how well did they work?
I can’t wait to see the progress!
I haven’t personally used the tank planters but we specify them pretty regularly for model homes. I haven’t heard any complaints. I love the way they look.
Thanks for sharing your plans. BTW – what you have is a tankhouse, not a water tower. There are very few of them left in California.
Water tower is another name for a tank house. A tank house is just a water tower enclosed by siding.
Either way, it doesn’t store water anymore.
Rachel – How do you plan on removing the bottom of the stock tank for drainage or, are you just going to drill holes in it?
Holes will be sufficient just like with any planter. The main reason for using a stock tank is because we don’t want to have to pull out pavers.