Charente-Maritime, France, August 2023
During the 2021-2022 planting season, 3,585 trees were planted on seven farms. The aim of the ‘chicken run’ agroforestry project is to combine poultry farming and tree planting on the same plot of land. Different types of trees – varying densities and several different species, including fruit species – are planted in the chicken runs in the form of hedges, small copses, or rows on the plot.
In this article, we will take you to Fabienne and Arnaud’s poultry farm, two beneficiaries of the project supported by A Tree for You.
Chestnut trees and chickens – diversifying Fabienne’s farming activity
Fabienne runs an organic farm with her husband Thierry. As well as lime, cherry, maple, and other trees, they have planted chestnut trees in her chicken runs to provide shade for the hens and diversify their business, which has been badly hit by bird flu. This is not the farmers’ first attempt. They had already planted a few trees to provide shade and protect the poultry from the wind, which can be strong in the region.
For this second attempt, technicians from AFAF, A Tree for You‘s partner, provided technical solutions to ensure the flocks can’t access the trees during the first few years of their development. Fabienne continued to plant and completed her third phase at the end of 2022. The trees have grown very well (20 to 26 centimetres) and only three out of the 388 planted have died.
Fabienne and Thierry, along with the other farmers who planted chestnut trees, attended a chestnut pruning course in the summer of 2022, and another in July 2023. These helped them better understand the arboricultural profession and learn how to prune the trees on their own. Properly pruned, the trees will produce chestnuts in a few years’ time and provide shade for the poultry.
Arnaud’s poultry sheltered by trees
Arnaud runs a farm with 4,800 broiler chickens in buildings, as well as 83 hectares of farmland growing cereals and field crops (rapeseed, sunflower, lentils, triticale, peas). He received support from A Tree for You to plant 1,068 country and fruit trees of 27 different species between 2021 and 2022. These trees will increase biodiversity on the site, feed the hens, and protect water resources around the plots.
In July 2023, the A Tree for You team visited the site to meet Arnaud and see the plantations. During the visit, they saw how the trees are growing fast (they gain 28 to 47 centimetres a year), simply because the soil is rich due to the accumulated poultry droppings, which fertilise the trees. The closer the trees are to the poultry buildings, the faster they grow. The survey made during the visit revealed 17 hedgerow trees had died and 3 walnut trees frozen, representing less than 2% mortality. The wood mulch applied to the trees by the farmer, together with the damp conditions, encouraged the growth and survival of the trees.
Arnaud will be doing maintenance on his plots to manage the grass cover, and more detailed monitoring will be carried out in autumn 2023. The dead trees will be replaced over the winter of 2023/2024.
The farmer also has other plans. He wants to plant poplars or paulownia for timber on his plots. This would improve the resilience of his farm, which is heavily dependent on the poultry markets and vulnerable due to health issues currently affecting the area: because of the bird flu alert, his hens have had to be confined since the trees were planted. Yet the good news is these trees should finally see their first chickens in a few weeks’ time!
