flowers for my garden that my hens won't eat??

[mabel1973]

I have got plenty of shrubs, things like ferns, euphorbia, lavender, but apart from geraniums I bought,and some sweet peas (which I was very surprised at) the hens have eaten all my flowers, i grew some cosmos from seed, they ate them all.
Do I just resign myself to the fact that I am no longer going to have any colour in my garden, or does anyone know of anything they won't eat?
Thanks

[ajm200]

What they don't eat, they'll scratch up.
I've definately seen listed of plants that they mustn't eat on club.omlet.co.uk/forum but not too sure about lists of chicken proof plants though.

We've still got established shrubs, a hollyhock, a lupin, some day lilies, a geranuim and some bulbs but most of the flowerbeds are bare

[mabel1973]

maybe i'll buy some plastic ones

[Donk]

Henbane?

[OldGregg]

What about flowering shrubs? We have buddleia, viburnums, cammelias, hydrangeas, winter jasmine, philadelphus, wisteria etc. And roses are pretty safe. They're all well established and the hens haven't touched them. Perhaps you could fit some sort of protective collar/screen around them until they'd grown big enough?

[mabel1973]

what's henbane?

I do have some flowering shrubs, i was thinking more of cottage garden type plants...they just don't seem to stand a chance. Although I might try some hollyhocks next year!
I planted loads of seeds and i guess they must have just been scratched up / eaten.

[ajm200]

Henbane is the highly poisonous weed that Antony Worrall Thompson recently told people to try in salads, He meant something else entirely.

You could try starting the cottage garden plants in pots if you have a greenhouse. Leave them in the pots until they are a good size, plant them out late in the summer and cover them with upside down hanging baskets until the die back and again in the spring until they are a decent size.

[Donk]

Henbane - think about the name!

[twoGsinBuggerOff]

i did that ajm, sowed several trays of plus of wildflower and cottage garden seeds in the greenhouse... then was too lazy to plant them out, so theyve all dies in the trays. potbound i guess. doh!

[hermionegrangerat34]

The only thing mine don't seem to eat are lilies and penstemon. Will replant the borders exclusively with these next year!