How to Use Herbs for Chickens on the Homestead
by Alexa Lehr | The Pioneer Chicks | May 23, 2023
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There are right ways and wrong ways to use herbs for chickens on the homestead, but don’t let that scare you off! Herbs are natural medicine, so they naturally work with a chicken’s body to achieve optimum health. However, herbs can be used in-effectively or even harmfully when given without the proper knowledge. Figuring out how to safely use herbs to benefit the health of your flock is simple when you keep a few basic herbal principles in mind. From knowing what herbs to use when, to how much of an herb to use, or how best to add herbs to your homestead flock’s diet… this guide has got you covered!

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Disclaimer

There is not a lot of science-based information available that directly pertains to how to use herbs for chickens. However, there is anecdotal evidence that the same benefits that certain herbs provide for us can also help our homestead flocks. I believe that by providing you with a basic understanding of how herbs work will help you determine how to best use them for your chickens.

I am not an herbalist or veterinarian. All the information provided in this guide is based off of my personal experience with using herbs on my homestead as well as the in-depth research that I have done on the topic of using herbs as natural remedies.

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What Herbs are Safe for Chickens?

A basic understanding of how to use herbs for the homestead flock starts with knowing what herbs are good for chickens. Some homesteaders mistakenly think that since a plant is an herb, it must be good for chickens. That is not always true.

In general, any culinary herb is safe for chickens to consume. Eucalyptus, tansy, pennyroyal, wormwood, black walnut, and comfrey are herbs that some natural chicken keepers recommend you stay away from or use with caution. If you are unsure if an herb is safe, it is best to just not use it.

Here are some common culinary herbs, edible flowers, and culinary spices that are safe for chickens:

• culinary herbs- mint, rosemary, parsley, basil (holy, lemon, thai, sweet), oregano, thyme, cilantro, black pepper, garlic, borage, chervil, chives, sage, dill, fennel, lavender, lemon balm, lovage, marjoram, savory, tarragon, yarrow
• edible flowers- rose, lavender, marigold, yarrow, echinacea
• culinary spices– cardamom, cayenne pepper, chili pepper, cinnamon, clove, cumin, ginger, mustard, nutmeg, paprika, turmeric

Keep in mind that just because these herbs are listed as safe for chickens to consume does not mean they can be consumed in endless quantities. Some herbs are very mild and won’t be a cause of concern if they are eaten in larger quantities. However, some herbs are very strong and can have a negative effect on the body if consumed in too large of quantities.

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The Energetics of Herbs

You may be wondering, what are energetics? Is this going to get nerdy? Hear me out. Some of this is going to sound a little weird, but really, in the world of herbalism, it’s just an easy way to describe the way an herb works with the body. The energetics of herbs refers to what they do when they are consumed or applied to the skin.

There are four basic energetics that are paired in sets of two.

• warm or cool
• dry or damp

Each herb has one energetic from each set, so it technically has two energetics. A herb that has a warm energetic will have a warming effect on the body. Likewise, a herb that has a cool energetic will have a cooling effect on the body. Herbs that have a dry energetic will have a drying effect on the body and herbs that have a damp energetic will have a moistening effect on the body.

There are four different combinations of energetics that a herb can have.

• warm and dry
• warm and damp
• cool and dry
• cool and damp

Sometimes a herb can have such a strong energetic that it can be felt as soon as the herb is consumed or applied to the skin. Cayenne pepper is a great example of an herb that has a very strong warm energetic. A lot of the culinary herbs that we use in cooking or baking have warm and dry energetics.

How Herb Energetics Relates to Chickens

So, you may wondering how all this relates to using herbs for the homestead flock?

It’s simple. Just take into consideration the energetics of the herbs that you want to use for your chickens. So far, there isn’t any science-based way of knowing which herbs are best for certain poultry ailments and how much of a certain herb should be administered. A lot of this knowledge will have to come from personal experience and the use of common sense. And knowing the energetics of certain herbs can help.

If a chicken appears cold or has poor circulation, use a warm energetic herb. If a chicken has nasal discharge or is congested (sneezing, gurgling, etc..) use a herb that has a dry energetic. An ailment that is caused by or causes inflammation (heat) would be treated with a cool energetic herb. When treating an ailing chicken, try to diagnose the ailment first. Once you have come to a possible diagnosis, try to determine what energetic(s) would be the most beneficial for treating the symptoms and select herbs with that energetic(s).

Here are the energetics of a few herbs that I use for my homestead flock:

• rosemary– warm, dry
• basil– warm, damp
• thyme– warm, dry
• parsley– warm, dry
• dandelion- cool, dry
• garlic- warm, dry
• peppermint– cool, dry
• yarrow– cool, dry

Determining Herb Energetics

A quick Google search using keywords like ‘herbal’, ‘energetics’, and the name of your target herb should help you find out the energetics of any herbs in question. However, you can also take a pretty good guess at an herb’s energetic by sampling the herb yourself. The taste or fragrance of an herb can help you determine its energetics:

Warm Herbs: aromatic, spicy, stimulating

• cayenne
• turmeric
• ginger
• oregano
• wormwood
• black walnut
• calendula
• elderflower

Cool Herbs: sour, relaxing

• rosehips & petals
• lemon balm
• elderberry
• hibiscus
• mints

Dry Herbs: bitter

• raspberry leaf
• geranium
• black walnut
• sage
• dandelion root
• alfalfa

Damp Herbs: sweet, salty, oily

• slippery elm
• comfrey
• borage
• licorice
• astragalus

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How much of an herb should I give my chickens?

Unfortunately, there is no set-in-stone answer. I have not found a source that tells me exactly how much of a certain herb to give a chicken. Some information that I did find which may be helpful in determining a safe amount is the recommended daily dosages of certain herbs for humans.

Now, a lot could go wrong if those recommended dosages are used in the wrong way. A chicken is way smaller then a human, so it only makes sense that they would require a smaller dosage. Just how much smaller is the question. Always keep in mind, dosage size and body size are directly related.

Dosage size should also be determined based on need. Health maintenance dosages will be different than dosages given to treat an ailment or condition. Here is a guide to natural supplement dosages for chickens.

Based on the daily dosages recommended for certain culinary herbs I would say that you should give a chicken no more than 1 tsp. to 1 T. of any given herb per day. Potent herbs should be given in smaller dosages. Here are a few examples of potent and less potent herbs:

• potent herbs– cayenne pepper, ginger, garlic, black pepper, oregano
• less potent herbs– chamomile, dandelion, parsley

Usually you can tell how potent an herb is by tasting it and seeing how flavorful it tastes. Potent herbs will have an immediately strong flavor.

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How to Use Supplemental Herbs for Chickens

How you feed herbs to your homestead flock will play a role in how effective they are and what benefits your flock can receive from consuming the herbs. There are three common ways you can offer herbs to your chickens: free-choice, mixed into feed, and added to water.

Mixed into Feed-

Mixing herbs into your flock’s feed is easy, but not always the most effective supplement method. By mixing the herbs into your flock’s feed you have no way of knowing how much each bird is actually eating of a certain herb. Too much of certain herbs can be dangerous and too little of an herb will not provide any substantial health benefits. It will be hard to treat any specific ailments by adding herbs to your flock’s feed.

With that being said, you can still mix some herbs into your flock’s feed without having to worry too much about overdosing. Herbs added to your flock’s feed are basically supplementing the nutrition in the feed. You should keep in mind that too many herbs can affect the nutritional balance of the feed. You don’t want the herbs to cause a dietary deficiency or excess. Stick to the mild herbs like parsley and dandelion when adding herbs directly to your flock’s feed.

Free Choice Herbs-

Feeding herbs free-choice is my favorite way to give herbs to my chickens. By providing the herbs by themselves, it allows each individual chicken to eat what they need at the time. Free-choice herbs can be hung in bundles around the coop, planted near the chicken coop enclosure or yard, picked and served free-choice in your flock’s snack bowl, or tossed in with a pile of table scraps for your flock to sort through.

Many times, animals know what foods will be beneficial for them and will seek out those foods during times of need. However, industry breeding and domestication can dull some of those instincts in our homestead flocks. Chickens can over-eat foods that they really enjoy and will ignore foods that are actually beneficial for them, which is why we have to get creative when trying to treat ailing birds and be careful when dolling out table scraps.

Added to Water-

Putting fresh herbs, herbal teas, or herbal tonics in your flock’s water is the most efficient way of giving your flock herbs. I highly recommend this method if you are looking to treat a specific issue using specific herbs. This method is especially helpful if you are treating a sick chicken. Even though the herbs may not be directly consumed, they can be administered in more specific amounts. Fresh herbs should be chopped or torn before putting them in your flock’s water so that the beneficial oils are released from the plant.

Non-Consumable Methods-

There are many other ways that you can use herbs for your homestead flock that does not encourage direct consumption but still supply herbs free-choice to the benefit of your flock. Placing peppermint and lavender in the nesting boxes can create a relaxing atmosphere. Make a salve or ointment with herbs and beeswax to put on wounds to promote healing.

Tonics and tinctures can also be used on poultry, but only use tonics and tinctures that have been formulated by a herbalist specifically for poultry. Lisa Steele at fresheggsdaily.com has some good recipes for herbal ointments and Moonlight Mile Herb Farm sells tonics and tinctures specifically formulated for poultry.

When to Supplement with Herbs

Now let’s discuss when you should supplement herbs into your flock’s diet. An obvious time to supplement herbs is when you have an injured chicken or notice symptoms of sickness. You may also choose to supplement when your flock is healthy. If your flock is healthy but you want to give them herbs that boost their immune systems and promote overall health, there are a few guidelines you should follow.

First of all, don’t give healthy chickens herbs every day. When a chicken’s body is given a break from a beneficial supplement, it will be more receptive to it when it receives the supplement again. Secondly, make sure you still follow proper dosage guidelines or supply the herbs free-choice instead of adding them to your flock’s feed or water.

I like to compare how we should use herbs with our chickens to how we, as humans, use herbs. Generally, if we are wanting to heal a disease, illness, or injury in a natural way, we take herbs in the form of supplement pills, syrups, or tablets. This method ensures that we are getting the appropriate amount of each herb in order for it to be beneficial. When we use herbs in baking, cooking, or for seasoning foods, we generally do not use enough of an herb to get all the health benefits at full strength.

Most mild, culinary herbs are herbs that you can give your chickens on a fairly regular basis without having to worry about adverse effects. Here are a few herbs that I feed my chickens regularly:

Daily/Weekly Herbs for Chickens:

• parsley- add to feed, treats, and water; helps with digestion
• cinnamon– add to feed and treats
• thyme, rosemary, and/or sage– use as fermented feed topper
• dandelion- add to feed and treats; aids digestion, helps prevent dehydration, promotes a healthy gut
• nasturtium– use as fermented feed topper
• basil– chop and add to water
• black pepper– just a pinch of ground black pepper in the feed/treats once a week should be good; helps with nutrient availability of feed contents, improves circulation, aids digestion
• garlic- crush 1-4 medium size cloves in your flock’s water once a week; supports immune system, is a prebiotic

When your homestead flock is in good health and is productive, use mild culinary herbs added to their feed, treats, and water to support their good health. Add herbs into your flock’s diet once a week to help their immune systems fight disease, encourage good gut flora for improved digestion, and help them handle minor daily stressors well.

Treating Chickens with Herbs

When you are trying to treat a sick or injured chicken, choose herbs that will specifically help the condition. You will want to try and determine the energetic constitution of the ailment to choose the herbs with the best energetic for treating the ailment.

As with herbs, ailments can be assigned an energetic pattern based on how the ailment affects the body. Here are some ailment energetic guidelines to use as a reference:

• hot patterns: excitation, overstimulation, inflammation, pain, fever, increased sensitivity to stimuli
• cool patterns: pale & dark skin, restricted blood flow, anemia, chronic conditions
• damp patterns: fluid discharge, sweating, panting, diarrhea
• dry patterns: dry skin, atrophy, flushing, thinness

Use herbs of the opposite energetic to treat an ailment pattern. For example, inflammation, which has a hot pattern, should be treated using cooling herbs. Diarrhea or nasal discharge, which have damp patterns, should be treated with drying herbs.

Use the herb(s) in the appropriate dosages for no more than 7-10 days. Take a break from the herb for 1 week. If the condition still persists, try another round of treatment for 7-10 days or consider an alternative herb or remedy.

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Herbalism, Constitution, & Homesteading

A discussion on how to use herbs would not be complete if we didn’t touch on the topic of constitution. This may sound like another nerdy concept to you, but again, it’s just another term coined by herbalists to describe how a person might react to different herbs.

I won’t go too in-depth into the concept of constitution since it is still unknown whether it applies to chickens are not. Every person has a constitution. A constitution is basically your energetics. Do you tend to be warm, cold, damp, or dry? As it relates to chickens… we have to guess.

How Constitution Relates to Chickens

Since you can’t just out right ask a chicken if it feels warm, cold, damp, or dry, we have no way of knowing if chickens (or any animal for that matter) has a constitution. Now, the whole purpose of knowing what constitution someone has would be to determine what herbs would work best for them. If a person tends to be dry and cold, you would want to give them herbs that are damp and warm.

But, none of this directly applies to chickens since we do not know if they have a constitution. The best way to apply this concept to your homestead flock is to view it from a disease/illness point of view. Does a chicken show symptoms of being damp (nasal discharge, sneezing) or cold (discolored appendages, fluffed feathers)? Using an herb that is drying would help with nasal discharge. Using an herb that is warming would help improve circulation for a chicken that is cold or suffering from frostbite.

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I hope this guide to using herbs for chickens on the homestead has helped you gain a better understanding of how to use herbs properly and safely for the health and productivity of your flock. Herbs can help us raise our homestead flocks naturally and sustainably. They can be used to help the homestead flock maintain good health, but they can also be used to treat an ailment or injury naturally. Knowing what herbs to use, when to use them, and the best practices for using them can help you get the most out of your homestead herb garden for your homestead flock!

To learn more about raising a sustainable flock naturally, make sure you join our modern pioneer community!

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