Strawberries are a summer favourite that hens tuck into with real enthusiasm, leafy tops included. Here is what they offer nutritionally, how much to give, and why the whole berry is fair game.
Can chickens eat strawberries?
Yes. Strawberries are a safe and genuinely enjoyable treat, and the good news is that the entire berry can go to your flock — flesh and green leafy tops alike. The tops are not just safe but often the first bit a curious hen will grab. Strawberries bring a welcome dose of vitamin C along with antioxidants, and their high water content makes them refreshing on a warm day. As ever, they belong in the treat category: sweet fruit like this should stay at roughly a tenth of the overall diet, with a complete layer feed providing the bulk of what your birds need. You will find more on getting that balance right in our guide to what chickens eat.
Health benefits of strawberries for chickens
Strawberries punch above their weight for such a small fruit. The vitamin C and antioxidants support general health, and the moisture helps with hydration during summer. They are also low enough in calories that a modest handful will not tip a hen towards putting on too much weight, provided you keep the portions sensible.
The green tops deserve a mention of their own. Many keepers bin them out of habit, but chickens are happy to eat them, so there is no waste involved in sharing a punnet with the flock. If you grow your own strawberries in the garden, the slightly overripe or damaged berries that you would not want yourself are ideal for the birds. They pair well with other berry treats such as blueberries.
A word of warning for gardeners, though: chickens have no idea which berries are yours and which are theirs, so a flock with free run of a strawberry patch will happily strip it bare. Many keepers net their strawberry beds or fence the birds out until harvest, then share the surplus afterwards. The tiny seeds dotted over the outside of each berry are harmless and need no attention at all.
How to feed strawberries to your chickens
There is very little preparation needed. Strawberries are soft, so most hens manage them whole, though halving larger ones makes sharing easier and reduces squabbling.
- Wash the berries to remove any pesticide residue.
- Feed them whole for smaller berries, or halve the big ones.
- Leave the green tops on — your birds will happily eat them.
- Offer strawberries a couple of times a week rather than daily, because of the sugar.
- Keep grit available so the flock can grind their treats down.
Overripe berries and keeping things tidy
Soft, overripe strawberries are perfectly fine to feed and are a great way to use up fruit that has turned in the fruit bowl. The one thing to watch is that squashed, sugary fruit left lying in the run will attract flies, wasps and even rats. Feed a sensible amount, let the birds clear it up, and remove anything they have not finished before it spoils. That keeps the treat healthy and your coop area clean and pest-free. As a rule, if a berry is soft or slightly mushy it is fine, but anything showing fuzzy mould should go straight in the bin rather than the run.