More Than Egg-Layers, Poultry Keeps Insects At Bay

If your gardens are over-run by pests, but you do not want to use pesticides, what can you do?  Well, if you live in a rural area, whether on a farm or just somewhere with a lot of land, and no nearby neighbors, why not give free-range poultry a try?

Chickens, ducks and guinea fowl can supply fresh eggs on a daily basis.  If you allow them the free run of your land, they can also devour the bugs and slugs that would otherwise be devouring your garden produce.

Guinea fowl consume ticks (which can carry Lyme disease, besides just being generally gross), fleas, June bugs and Japanese beetles – but they don’t bother with your fruits or vegetables.  Guinea fowl also make good watch animals.

The reason guinea fowl are better than chickens for pest patrol is that they do not scratch up the ground.  The guinea fowl is a hardy bird, with few diseases.  One drawback is their droppings will litter the ground.  While it makes for excellent fertilizer, you won’t want you, or your kids, to step in it.

However, used properly, chickens can do their part to eliminate unwanted pests as well.  Just be careful not to let them near small seedlings.

Do you have water on your land, and thus, a mosquito problem?  Consider acquiring a few Muscovy ducks.  Its very name comes from its most popular trait – it loves to eat mosquitoes.  Indeed, these ducks were imported into the United States with that as one of their main functions.  The ducks eat mosquito larvae in the water, and their little beaks can snatch the buzzing beasts in mid-flight.  They also find flies a tasty treat.  Put them in a pen with cows, for example, and the fly problem will be reduced by 90%.

Muscovy ducks have distinctive faces, with either a nude black-and-red or all-red face.  Their natural feather coloring is black and white.  Most Muscovy duck are raised for their meat or for pate-de-fois gras, but try them out as flying pest catchers, and you’ll be glad you did.