Using DE (Diatomaceous Earth) for mite prevention on your chickens sounds like a good thing, right? After all, it’s a natural substance and it seems innocuous to anything else. But did you know that it can seriously affect the bee population, sometimes killing them too? Really, even though the canister says so, very few insecticides can actually target just one or two insects. If it is killing one, it is probably killing many more. DE becomes airborne, floating to all corners of your garden and can affect anything that uses, well, air.
So what can we use? We raise our chickens with the greatest of care and so any substitution will have to be a good one. And boy do I have a great one for you: Wood ashes. Yep. Mites don’t like it and won’t come around. If you can, save your fireplace ash (no BBQ coals, etc) for mixing up a dust-bathing pit and let the chickens do the rest. Here’s how…
We know that chickens love and need to dust bathe, so I provide them with wood ashes and sand for bathing. We add sand because it helps to weigh down the ashes. I use it on the floor of the chicken coop, but I’m sure that dry soil would work, too.
This pile of ashes is what is left from all of the wood that we burned last winter. With only 9 chickens, we don’t need much. A couple of heaping shovels…
…and a shovel full of sand. The recipe is 2 (maybe 2 1/2) parts ashes to 1 part sand and mix well.
Since chickens poop everywhere, you must keep it raked* so they’ll continue to use it. Replace as needed.
If you don’t have a place to store wood ash, then store just a bucketful. Use it sparingly by simply dusting your chickens with a handful each month. (Sprinkle under the feathers.) Stick to your cleaning schedule for changing the bedding, cleaning the perch and raking the run, and everything should be okay.
Use it as a treatment for mites, too. First, take out all the bedding in the coop and scrub down everything with soapy water. Dust each chicken with ashes, and replace the bedding.
*Tip: We have since built a makeshift sandbox (of sorts) and that seems to help it stay poop-free longer. They go in, they bathe, they get out.
We’re well into year #2 now, and the hens still love and use it all the time… no health issues so far. What do you think about using wood ashes?
Great idea but was wondering if it could be bad for their respiratory system? I mean, for their lungs, if they breathe it in?
Yeah, I wondered that too. I have two White Leghorns that seem to catch everything the wind blows in. However, they love the stuff and don’t seem to be affected. That goes for my Americaunas, Rhode Island Reds and Wyandottes too. They all use it and are fine. The only respiratory problem I’ve had in the past is with using hay for litter in the coop. Made one bird wheeze and the Leghorns sneeze! Since then I switched to using sand for litter, wood shavings for the nest boxes and a wood ashes/sand in the run for bathing. When they bathe, they roll around and get it everywhere, then they’ll stand and shake it off causing a dust storm! So if that doesn’t do it, I don’t know what will. Hope this helps.. 🙂
We do this. Actually, I toss our wood ashes (from our wood stove) out on my big garden space, and the chickens will go to that spot on a sunny day and bathe, and fluff, and bathe, and grin, and bathe. It’s fun to watch, and so we all get all kinds of good out of this ritual! Usually a rooster stands by while the girls are bathing, as a watch-man, er, watch-rooster.
So as long as you don’t let the ash get wet, can you still use the chicken dusted ashes as compost?
Exactly right, because that could cause it to turn to lye. Although I think it happens deep into the ground as it soaks in…?…but don’t quote me! I’ve seen a tutorial where it took several soakings/filterings to create really potent lye; a process that doesn’t just happen on its own, so as long as you keep it dry you’re good to go. And chickens like to bathe in very dry dirt or wood ash anyway, so always keep an area in the run completely protected from rain and what not.
For composting info, I’d refer to this article: http://extension.oregonstate.edu/gardening/wood-ash-can-be-useful-yard-if-used-caution.
Here’s to keeping the chickies healthy and happy!
I’m not that much of a online reader to be honest
but your blogs really nice, keep it up! I’ll go ahead and
bookmark your website to come back down the road. Many thanks
Nicest thing I’ve read all week!!! Thank you so much!
i recently started putting a container of wood ashes in my coop for a winter dust bath. The girls get so excited when I refill it for them. They sit in the bath and get all fluffed up. It has been the best addition this winter!
Aren’t they fun?! And they somehow just know what to do. I’m so glad it’s working out for you. 🙂
We have a burn barrel for paper burning. Do you think paper ash would work also? Thoughts?
So sorry for the late reply. And you know, I think it has to be wood… it has something in it that mites hate. The dried sap maybe? In fact, charcoal and ash from burnt wood had many uses long ago, including deworming hogs no less! But I’ll look into it and whatever I find I promise to let you know. 🙂
I wonder if it’s the higher salt and potassium content in the wood ash. I know it’s used in the right conditions for ammending garden soil too.
Yep, I agree. The ashes contain trace amounts of potassium, calcium, sulfur, nitrogen, magnesium and other fabulous ingredients. Who knows what other benefits it has? 🙂
Ok, back again to offer what I’ve come up with. Since I’m no expert and I can’t find any specific studies on the subject, all I can say is it could be the *sulfur* content as it has a pretty good amount and has been used for pest and fungus control (in the garden) by many old-timey homesteaders. Sulfur is also a key ingredient in many commercial products and could be the thing that makes the little buggers take a hike for good. I would guess that in combination with its high potassium content it’s a force to be reckoned with. Any other thoughts?
Would the wood ash from a fire started with with firefighters be ok, I imagine it may still have a small amount of the chemical in it. Any thoughts?
Oh boy, you’ll have to enlighten me. I don’t know what they use so I really can’t say. But then again, the word “chemical” kinda freaks me out… it’s the very reason why I try to find natural alternatives. (We were as unhealthy as they get at one point in time.) If you can tell me more about how the fires are started and what they use then I can look into it. Thanks!