Chicken-Keeping Tips and Tricks: Collard Wraps

This might fall into the obvious Duhhh, you don’t say camp, but sometimes the simplest things are the smartest. And we all like pictures of cute little chickens, so hear me out for a second. Oftentimes when I feed my flock their fermented grains, I scoop them into a separate dish before I serve them….

Linda Ly

Written by Linda Ly

Chicken-keeping tips and tricks: collard wraps

This might fall into the obvious Duhhh, you don’t say camp, but sometimes the simplest things are the smartest. And we all like pictures of cute little chickens, so hear me out for a second.

Oftentimes when I feed my flock their fermented grains, I scoop them into a separate dish before I serve them. I do this because the dish is already in the kitchen, and I just want to make a single trip to the coop to release and feed the girls.

But lately, with my garden exploding in greens, I’ve been taking the tiny extra step of harvesting a leaf from my collard crop and filling it with fermented feed. In essence I’m making those same collard wraps that are so popular on paleo blogs and in health food restaurants… and chickens can’t get enough of them either.

Collard leaf filled with chicken feed

You can use any kind of green from your garden… switch it up with a lettuce cup or cabbage bowl some days, or serve a dollop of yogurt or oatmeal or freshly scrambled eggs in it.

As you can see, the ladies love going to town on the grains and they get a little palate cleanser in the end as they devour the leaf too.

Fermented grains wrapped in a collard green

Iman eating collard greens and grains

Feeding time

Finishing the collard wrap

Kimora devouring a collard green

You’re left with no messes and no dirty dishes to wash. It’s almost like the feeding never happened. Which is how my chickens usually look at me, heads cocked to one side, wondering where their next treat is.

Linda Ly

I'm a plant lover, passionate road-tripper, and cookbook author whose expert advice and bestselling books have been featured in Time, Outside, HGTV, and Food & Wine. The National Parks Cookbook is my latest book. Garden Betty is where I write about modern homesteading, farm-to-table cooking, and outdoor adventuring—all that encompass a life well-lived outdoors. After all, the secret to a good life is... Read more »

10 Comments

  1. This is a wonderful idea for a fun chicken treat- and boy the chickens seem to really love it too! I especially love the idea of using the wraps to snuggle your fermented grains- that’s a treat in a treat! The hens here are absolutely nutty about their fermented grains, so I’ll have to try this within some green leaves and see how they love it too. Maybe adding some fresh herb sprigs in there too- like parsley or thyme.

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  4. Brilliant! My husband is pretty fastidious and doesn’t love the idea of me leaving our kitchen bowls out in the chicken run and consequently, I have to remember to bring the girls’ bowl to the house with me or make an extra trip. Using growing veg bowls is perfect@!! Thanks!!!

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