Every few weeks, I gather up some fresh and dried herbs to make my own nesting box herbs for chickens. Some of these herbs I buy in bulk, but most I grow right here on our homestead.
Making a custom nesting box herbal blend can provide so many benefits to your flock. And, it’s really easy to do!
Why Use Dried Herbs in Nesting Boxes?
There are several benefits to adding dried herbs to nesting boxes.
Calm and Relax Hens
First, certain herbs can help your chickens feel more relaxed and calm when they sit down to lay. Herbs can make the nesting boxes more enticing, and reduce the chances that your chickens won’t lay where they’re supposed to.
Recover from Trauma and Promote Laying
Herbs can also help reduce stress in your chickens, especially after a trauma that causes them to stop laying.
For example, our head roo Christopher was recently killed by coyotes. This is all I found of our beautiful guy.
The attack sent the entire flock into an uproar. The pecking order changed, as our little rooster Tito was promoted to flock leader. The hens were majorly stressed and upset by the attack and upheaval. Their routine also changed because I started penning them up in their outdoor run until the coyotes moved on instead of letting them free range.
As a result of all this, they completely stopped laying. I went from getting over a dozen eggs a day to only getting one or two. 🫤
So, I doubled up on the nesting box herbs, adding extra lavender and lemon balm to help them feel more relaxed and secure in the coop. I sprinkled herbs on the floor bedding and in the nesting boxes, and even hung up bunches of calming herbs in their run.
It worked. The hens began to calm down, and laying began to creep back up to pre-attack levels. It didn’t happen overnight, but the herbs definitely helped.
Repel Pests
Some herbs are excellent at repelling rodents and pests like mites, mice, ticks, and flies. Although this is important any time of year, it’s especially crucial in summer when the bugs are at their worst.
The Benefits of Making Your Own Nesting Box Herbs
I don’t know if ya’ll have priced out herbal nesting box blends, but they’re expensive. I mean, really expensive. And with the cost of everything going up (including feed!) it’s now a necessity to buckle up and start making things on our own.
That said, I love doing things myself whenever I can. A lot of people do. There’s so much joy and satisfaction in making something yourself that you normally would have had to buy. It just feels good! And when you learn a new skill, you take one more step towards greater self-reliance. And, that’s what we’re all about here at The Greenest Acre.
So. Taking the DIY approach can save you a lot of money, especially if you start growing these herbs yourself.
How much can you save? Well, TSC sells the Pampered Chicken Mama Best Eggs Ever Herbal Nesting Box Herbs for $20.99 for 10 ounces. No, that’s not a typo. It’s really $2 per ounce for that herbal blend. I almost fell over when I looked it up.
You can make your own for a fraction of this price. Promise. And it’s really easy.
Which Herbs Should I Use?
There are so many options when it comes to making your own nesting box herbal blend. And if you signed up for my free guide, Top 10 Herbs for Chickens, many of these will already be familiar.
Here are some of the herbs you could include in your mix:
- Lemon balm – Calms and relaxes
- Yarrow – Antibacterial; repels pests
- Chamomile – Calms and relaxes
- Feverfew – Repels pests
- Mint – Antiseptic; repels pests and promotes egg laying
- Chickweed – Nutritious snack
- Oregano – Antibacterial; antimicrobial; anti-inflammatory
- Lavender – Calms and relaxes; repels pests
- Lemongrass – Repels pests
- Calendula – Nutritious snack, turns yolks deep orange color; antibacterial
- Basil – Antimicrobial; anti-inflammatory; reduce stress
- Dandelion – Antioxidant; anti-inflammatory
- Catnip – Calms and relaxes
- Thyme – Antioxidant; antibacterial; antifungal
- Rosemary – Antiseptic; antibacterial
- Dill – Reduce stress; antibacterial
- Fennel – Repels pests; nutritious snack; anti-inflammatory
- Nettle – Nutritious snack; anti-inflammatory
- Sage – Improves digestion; repels pests
Should I Use Fresh or Dried Nesting Box Herbs?
It really doesn’t matter whether you use fresh or dried herbs. I generally use a blend of both, depending on the season and what’s growing or blooming in the garden.
For example, below is a close-up picture of the nesting box herbal blend I’m making right now for my own chickens. The blend changes depending on the season. In this blend I included dried calendula, rosemary, lavender, lemon balm, and rosemary, as well as fresh feverfew, yarrow, oregano, and spearmint.
How to Source Nesting Box Herbs
The Greenest Acre is reader-supported. When you purchase anything through our site, we may earn a small commission at no cost to you.
Grow Your Own Nesting Box Herbs
The very best way to source nesting box herbs is to grow your own medicinal herb garden. Starting a medicinal herb garden is so rewarding and relaxing! Even if you don’t have a lot of land, you can still grow your own herbs, since many medicinals are very happy in a pot on the patio.
You can grow many medicinal herbs indoors or outdoors. And if you want to learn how, pick up a copy of my digital guide, Growing Your Own Medicinal Herbs Indoors.
I grow most of the herbs I use in my nesting box blend. However, I do purchase some herbs I just can’t get to grow well here.
Medicinal herb seeds can be hard to come by. I’ve purchased most of my medicinal herb seeds through the following retailers:
Purchase Herbs in Bulk
If you don’t have the time or inclination to grow your own medicinal herbs, your next option is to purchase dried herbs in bulk. Although this is more expensive than growing your own, it’s definitely less expensive than buying prepackaged herbal nesting box blends.
There are many different retailers on Amazon, and not all of them are reputable. Two brands I know for sure provide quality dried herbs are Starwest Botanicals and Frontier Co-Op. I’ve used herbs from both of these companies before and they’ve always been excellent.
Below are a few links to some bulk dried herbs on Amazon to get you started:
- Starwest Botanicals Dried Calendula
- Frontier Co-Op Dried Chamomile
- Starwest Botanicals Dried Yarrow
- Frontier Co-Op Dried Organic Lemon Balm
- Starwest Botanicals Dried Lavender
- Starwest Botanicals Dried Catnip
You can also get excellent dried herbs through Mountain Rose Herbs.
Herbal Nesting Box Recipe
Here’s the fun part…there’s no recipe! Really, all you have to do is mix up whatever herbs you have. Again, my own nesting box herbal blend changes every time I make it. I usually do equal parts of all herbs, unless I really need to focus on calming the hens (then I add more calming herbs) or repelling pests (then I add more bug-repelling herbs.)
It’s really that simple.
If you grow fresh herbs, you can even just add sprigs and leaves of whatever’s growing to your nesting boxes.
Last Word
I love making homemade nesting box herbs for my chickens. Adding herbs to your chicken’s nesting boxes can help repel pests, promote laying, and calm and relax your hens. And as you can see, it’s super easy to do!
I’d love to hear back from you. Do you want to try making your own nesting box herbs? What questions do you have?