Fodder For Feed

I sprout grains regularly for our chickens and goats. (See “Sprouting Grain for Goats” for why.)

But until recently, I’d never tried fodder. And what is fodder? In this context, the term is popularly used to describe sprouted grains that are allowed to grow leaves to several inches in length. Since they are grown without soil, it is a clean feed for poultry, rabbits, and ruminants alike. Here’s my first attempt at growing it. 

Mine took a little longer than most people said because of our cooler house temperature. It took off better when I put the tray outside on a sunny mild day. That being said, I probably wouldn’t do this if the weather was too warm. One problem people face is the grain souring or getting moldy. Because of that, many use diluted bleach water for their soaking and daily rinsing. I’d rather not use bleach if I can help it, because I prefer to minimize inputs to make the process as simple, and as economical, as possible. Plus, it would restrict what I could do with the rinse water.

This was just a first-time experiment, but for an ongoing fodder supply, most folks set up a series of trays stacked on shelves. The trays are tilted slightly, so that when the top tray is watered, the water drains onto the tray below, which drains onto the tray below, etc. The best set-up I saw was in a greenhouse, where the bottom tray emptied out into a greenhouse bed. Otherwise the drainage water has to be caught and removed to wherever one wishes. 

I see two huge benefits from a fodder growing system.

1. It richly increases nutrient value of the grain as a feed.
2. It cuts the feed bill by (an estimated) 50-75%.