04/08/2026
Trying to make use of everything at Hilltop Farm and minimise waste is always a bit of a challenge—but that’s part of the fun.
Keeping our chickens’ protein levels up through winter can also be tricky. We’ve tried all sorts of ideas over the years, but I think we’ve finally found a system that works.
Our ducks lay far more eggs than we can eat (and we’re not huge fans of duck eggs ourselves!), so instead of letting them go to waste, we scramble them up and feed them back to the chickens. They absolutely love them.
Every eggshell is put to good use too. The shells from both our duck eggs and the chicken eggs we eat go into the freezer until we have enough. Then we bake them, crush them into a fine shell grit and feed them back to the flock as a natural calcium supplement.
We’ve also started growing black lentil sprouts in some inexpensive little sprouting trays we found at Big W. In just five days we have a fresh crop of protein-rich sprouts, and the girls make short work of them. 🌱
It’s a simple system, but one that keeps nutrients cycling around the farm instead of ending up in the bin.
Best of all, our ladies have started laying really well again. Hopefully it won’t be long before we’re collecting enough eggs to once again supply the Uniting Care Food Shelf in Morwell with fresh eggs for our local community. ❤️
