Quail pens and food

[NortheastDude]

Hey, I'm a newb obviously. I have absolutely nothing as of this moment. But I plan on raising quail this summer. I would first like some suggestions as to what seeds I should buy.

I wan't to raise them in a simple pen with perhaps a roof over part of it, so they don't have to be in the rain. Anyway I want to plant a food plot for them in the pen. I figure I could save a bunch on game feed. I would clear some land and plant the seeds now, so its ready for them.

Would this be good enough? http://www.qu.org/seed/order.cfm

These are just cereal sorghums. What other seeds would I need? BTW I plan on getting northern bobs.

I'm sure I'll be having more questions as I go along  Thanks

[Reeves]

Pens: read this section and that will give you some ideas.

Feed: http://www.thatquailplace.com/smf/index.php?board=93.0

Habitat: http://www.thatquailplace.com/smf/index.php?board=6.0

[Reeves]

slider had posted this link before :  http://wildlife.purinamills.com/GameBird/Nutrition/index.aspx

You shouldn't count on a food plot to augment your feed bill too much (if at all). The time that seeds develope and are ready to eat, will be a fairly small window.

Proper nutrition is important from before eggs are layed.

[NortheastDude]

Thanks for the info. I don't see any mention of food plots though. However I will go through all them then. 

Thank you for your time. I don't believe sorghum would offer enough variety. I read one of your posts, in which you said you use grass, grains, and I think it was alfalfa too or clover.

[Reeves]

In the mix I have there are several types of grass and clover.
I use alfalfa hay in the buildings for bedding.

I also never remove any weeds where I build aviaries. They are the first plants that the birds will eat, especially dandelions .

If I remember right, it take at least a year (ie: second summer) for alfalfa to get truley established ?
Also, there are several varities. Some will grow only a year or two, some will go for many years, etc.

I tried to get alfalfa seed locally and all they had were huge bags, meant for planting whole fields.
I only wanted about gallon size bag so plant around my small acreage and where I'll be building aviaries in the future.
I'll just have to beg some from a farmer one day.....

Which reminds me. Lots of farms in my area, and seed cleaning plants. I stopped by one the other day asking what they do with the "waste" seeds (mostly weeds ?).
They told me the farmers get it all back, to mix in their feed for cattle. So if I ever want waste seeds, I'd have to beg some from the grain or cattle farmers.
Which for me would be a waste of time and money, as I only have a few species of birds.

[NortheastDude]

I will shop around. This package seems a bit expensive. http://www.buffalobrandseed.com/index.cfm?fuseaction=plants.plantDetail&plant_id=100464

I might see if, I can buy the individual percentages locally and perhaps save money. Or just some of these reccomended species.Thank you. I wil see about modify this list. I don't want the growth to be so thick that I can't get eggs or birds.

[NortheastDude]

I decided to plant, Mammoth Red Clover, Medium Red Clover, Alsike Clover, White Dutch Clover, Ladino Clover, Dwarf Essex Rapeseed, Perennial Ryegrass, Creeping Red Fescue, and Vernal Alfalfa. These seeds should be in after my classes are done in late may.

I'll experiment with percentages. Thanks Reeves. And of course I will supplement with that purina game bird at first, maybe wild bird seeds and grit later, and w/e other good tips I pick up here.

[NortheastDude]

Yea, this seed blend should cost me 34.16, and is more than enough. I think its for half an acre.

If anyone viewing is interested. I'll provide a link. I'm a kid of 20 and I am addicted to the info the internet has to offer  .

http://www.frigidforage.com/Category/main.taf?cat=20

Sorry I apologize if I inundate you guys with links or posts.

[CharlieHorse]

If I where you, I'd plan on buying feed for them.  You'll waste more time and money trying to grow your own feed than you could buy the feed for.   Try to grow anything like that around here and the deer will come along and munch it down the night before the day you plan to pick it.   

How many BW's are you planning on keeping?

How big is this "simple pen" that you speak of?

[NortheastDude]

Oh, well I plan on making around either a 25 by 40 or a 40 by 40. I still haven't decided. I want to roof about  1/4 of it for the winter. I can get about 8 inches or more of snow sometimes up north.

I plan on ordering about 25 eggs and using the hova bator. So i'm guessing raising around 20 BWs. Not counting any chicks they have over the summer. 

[NortheastDude]

I just don't want to use my lawn grass. It can get so tall without mowing. And if I have the pen on the lawn grass. I'll have this huge grass and invisible BW's inside.

I'm keeping them on the ground by the way. It's just I'd like to have something they could eat too.

I'd rather not have a massive pen that i'd have to move once in a while just to mow.

[Reeves]

So i'm guessing raising around 20 BWs. Not counting any chicks they have over the summer. 

You will not get any this summer. Bobs will lay the next spring.

With that amount you plan on raising, I'd go with the 25'x40'. At 40' wide you'll have troubles with the top netting.

I also wouldn't worry too much about the grass getting too high. They'll stomp a lot of it down.
On the plus side of letting the grass grow, they'll have places to hide when flying predators are around.
Without hiding places, Hawks (etc) will make them go balistic ......not a good thing.

Also, with Bobs, they'll eat anything green in the pen.

If you need to mow the grass, no need to move the pen, as long as the Quail have a place to go hide.

I used to mow the grass in my pens all the time. Looked real nice and tidy for me, but all the birds I have like the long grass much more.

[NortheastDude]

 I'll go 25 by 40 then. This leaves ample room for more chicks to be born next spring? Thanks. I'll get on it as soon as possible