Chicken Tiller

I found a great website/blog called ModernStead which is a guide for small-scale homesteaders who want to live a simple, more self-sufficient life that nourishes both the body and the soul. On April 3, 2013 Julie wrote a story about chicken tillers which goes well with the work the team did in Rwanda.

The article:
"My chickens worked overtime this spring clearing weeds and grass for my new vegetable garden bed. Every few days, I moved their 5'X10 run and they went to work scratching, digging and tilling.

My five little hens cleared a 15'X20 area in approximately one month. The only thing I did was rake the dried grass and weeds out of the area after they did their thing. The chickens did the rest. I kid you not!

As a bonus the girls left behind a little fertilizer. Chicken manure is super rich in nitrogen and the best organic fertilizer available. I plan on adding a little more of this valuable commodity from a pile of "coop cleanings" that is now composting. It is important to let the manure break down in a compost pile a few months before using it. The amount they produce where they till isn't enough to do any damage. From what I can tell, chickens do most of their pooping while roosting at night.

Don't worry about my chickens having to work for their room and board. They enjoy being outside eating bugs and grass. It's what chickens do!"

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The team built this chicken tiller for the gardens. It turned out to be so very heavy but once in the garden it had wheels so it could be rolled. Everyone worked on it including one of the boys from the Children's Home, John Paul. This was also a new project that the farmers from the community will follow to see if it can be used elsewhere.