The Chicken and the Bee

The Chicken and the Bee Needs For Chickens Like many other living animals chickens need a home. Chicken coops can be extremely basic or quite fancy, purchased or bought. Additionally, chickens need water and feed. Some advocate household scraps while other insist on feed. According to the Farmers Almanac chicken require 2 square feet of coop floor per bird and about 10 lbs of feed for the first 10 weeks. So roughly 1 pound per week. Of course, chickens need water and room to move around. Lastly, give your hens oyster shell to help maintain their calcium levels

The Chicken and the Bee

Needs for Bees A home. (Bee Hive) Pollen, according to the Friends of the honey bee.com Pollen is made up of 6-28% protein, 1-20% fats together with vitamins, starches, sugars and mineralsNectar, which is a sweet liquid that includes minerals , proteins, organic acids, vitamins which provides energy for the bees. Also, according to honeybee.com

The Chicken and the Bee Yields For ChickenThe first and least obvious is that chicken waste is high in nitrogen and is good for fertilizing soil. Eggs are obvious and most breeds lay almost 1 egg per day. (once they reach laying age) According to backyard chicken farmer, chickens can reach 4-5 lbs in five weeks. Lastly, even the feathers are useful. They can be use for tying flies for catching trout.

The Chicken and the Bee

Yields for Bees About 30 lbs of Honey per hive, but that’s not all, you also get bees wax. According to Food For Farmers The normal yield is 1-2 pounds of beeswax per 100 pounds of honey harvested. Not only can the wax be made into candles but into lip balm, skin care products and crayons

The Chicken and the Bee

Niche Seems to me that chickens do the best in an open free range setting. Where they can eat the natural feed such as bugs, and seeds. Get some exercise and fertilize the soil with nitrogen filled waste. As I researched the origins of chickens I was surprised that they originated in Southeast Asia, in the jungle no less. It’s a testament to the chicken that pretty much all cultures consume poultry.

The Chicken and The BeeNiche According to .omlet.us/guide/bees/about+bees/ bees have been found in 100 million years old amber. Just like the chicken, bees originated in Asia. Greeks and Egyptians along with others, developed early beehives. Natural bee hives can be made in caves, rocks cavities, and trees. Bees do well in tropical and well forested areas. With the invention of the modern bee hive, production increased because of the symmetry and designed of the hive itself.

The Chicken and the Bee Behaviors Of course, everyone knows that bees work together for the protection of the hive and work together to make honey. What I didn’t know was that chicken do as well. I always thought they were pretty much out for themselves. Pecking at bugs, worms and anything else that might come by but according to City Boy Hens they are quite the opposite. That they do in fact work together and alert everyone when danger approaches. One aspect they are different is that when danger approaches chickens normally choose flight, (good thing they can fly short distances) whereas, bees are more aggressive. Instead of flight, they will attack to protect the hive.

The Chicken and the Bee Which animal is better fit for your particular site based on it’s needs, yield, habitat needs and behaviors

To be honest I’m not sure between the two. Obviously, the chicken is a lot more work but the yields are so much higher. Whereas, the bee is pretty easy. Make sure they don’t die when setting up the hive and let nature run its course. I love eating chickens, it might be my favorite protein, you can broil, roast, stew, fry, and so much more. Also, the bones are great for stock! But if I have to choose, I feel that bees would be better for my plot. They are essential for pollination and the honey isn’t too bad either.