Herbs In The Nesting Boxes

Herbs In The Nesting Boxes

July 3, 2022


(Herbs sprinkled in the nesting box!)


For the most part, herbs are really easy to grow, not picky about the soil conditions or even whether you water them regularly...and they add a delicious flavor to your cooking :)

Well, there's another way to put the herbs and edible flowers you grow to good use - in your chicken nesting boxes and coop. Fresh or dried, most herbs have wonderful benefits for your flock!


What Herbs Can I Use?

My coop and nesting boxes have never smelled so good until I started adding a mix of fresh-grown herbs and edible flowers that at different times of the year might include:

  • basil
  • bay leaves
  • bee balm
  • calendula
  • catmint
  • chamomile
  • coneflower
  • lavender
  • lemon balm
  • marigold
  • mint
  • oregano
  • rose petals
  • rosemary
  • sage
  • thyme
  • violets
  • yarrow

Herbs For Broody Hens

Broody hens particularly have a tendency to get mites and other bugs since they don't get out to dust bathe often, if at all, and the warm, dark space underneath them is a breeding ground for parasites.

Certain types of herbs safely and naturally avoid that  and help keep not only the broody hen but her baby chicks healthy and mite-free.


The History Of Herbs For Nesting Boxes

Research has shown that wild birds will line their nests with fresh herbs and flowers, especially those that contain aromatic essential oils. The newly hatched baby birds benefit by rubbing against these herbs in the first few days of life.

The same applies to baby chicks. The herbs will benefit your newly hatched chicks by imparting lots of protection from parasites, as well as when they eat them garner the chicks even more health benefits.

Another school of thought believes that birds will choose aromatic beds of herbs to lay their eggs in to mask their scent and that of their newly hatched chicks.

Most predators use their sense of smell in part to locate prey, so if a hen can hatch her chicks in a bed of fragrant lavender or rosemary or thyme, there's a better chance she will go undetected to wandering predators.

Regardless if that's true or not, tossing some pretty, delicious-smelling (and tasting) herbs into your coop and nesting boxes can't hurt!


Toss a few handfuls of mixed cut herbs into your nesting boxes and on the coop floor and refresh them as needed. Your chickens will benefit from them and you will enjoy how nice your coop smells!

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