This archive brings together practical, experience-led articles from The Backyard Farmer, covering gardening, DIY, indoor growing, foraging, reviews, and sustainable living. Each post is written with real-world use in mind — focusing on working with nature, building practical skills, and making sustainable choices more accessible.
Introduction Can Chickens Eat Bananas? Yes, chickens can eat bananas, and they absolutely love them! These sweet, nutritious fruits make for a delicious treat that adds variety to your flock’s diet. Bananas are rich in essential vitamins and minerals, including Vitamin A, Vitamin B6, magnesium,
What this article covers Boosting your chickens immune system Chickens, like humans have an immune system which is responsible for defending against infections and diseases. A good way to keep your chickens healthy is by simply adding some apple cider vinegar and crushed garlic to
Why do chickens eat their egg shells? Egg shells offer a great source of calcium and other minerals that a chicken needs to create an egg in its body. A Chicken gets this from other things such as grit in the wild or oyster shells
What can you feed suburban chickens? What can you feed chickens? Chickens are well known for eating almost anything obviously this reputation is not unfounded. They will even eat a lizard or two. Things like lizards are just supplemental treats, though, and a chicken’s diet
Spring is kicking in Spring is officially starting to kick into its full swing, after a stormy start to the season with 3 storms the weather has started to warm up. Spring bulb flowers are pushing through and many have started to flower here in
Introduction: When the Shelves Emptied In March 2020, supermarket shelves emptied almost overnight. Across the UK, people watched modern convenience wobble for the first time. Everyday staples disappeared. Delivery slots vanished. Unsurprisingly, a quiet anxiety settled in. For me, though, it felt slightly different. I
Introduction Keeping chickens in the UK has quietly become one of the most practical ways to reconnect with your food, reduce household waste, and move toward small‑scale self‑sufficiency — even in an ordinary suburban garden. If you’ve been searching for how to keep chickens in
Introduction Looking for a natural way to support your chickens’ health? Apple cider vinegar for chickens has become a popular natural supplement among backyard poultry keepers—and with good reason. This simple, affordable supplement is commonly used to: In short, it’s an easy way to support
Introduction It’s been an eventful first week here at the Backyard Farm — and thankfully, it’s all been positive. From Giblets and Apollo taking their first steps outside and seeing the sky for the very first time, to Apollo laying her first egg, life with
Introduction When I started what I now think of as Phase 2 of the Backyard Farm, I made a simple decision early on: I wanted to grow food without relying on chemical shortcuts. No pesticides. No quick fixes. Instead, I wanted a healthier, more resilient
Introduction Building chicken nest boxes doesn’t need to be complicated, expensive, or perfectly finished to work well. In fact, most backyard and suburban chicken keepers in the UK adapt existing sheds, outbuildings, or small coops rather than starting from scratch. This guide shows you how
From an Early Diary Entry to a Backyard System This article started life as a simple progress update about backyard chickens and digging out a vegetable patch. At the time, I was documenting what I’d done that day in the garden, with very little thought