I'm brainstorming the idea of an earth-sheltered greenhouse that also houses chickens in the winter (with deep bedding). Do you think this is a good idea and would it really be beneficial?
I'm in West Michigan, zone 5b/6.
Thoughts and questions in my head so far...
- Is it really worth it to combine the two? The chickens could contribute carbon dioxide to the plants and the plants could give back oxygen. The warmer greenhouse temps could be nice for the chickens, but they don't necessarily need that. After all, it's the daylight length that determines their laying, not the temperature, right?
- How could I design it so the chicken-coop part is above ground (to make it easier to haul out soiled bedding and easier for chickens to have access to the outdoors) and the greenhouse partially underground? The north-side would be mostly dirt so that would insulate the chickens better.
- I thought about having the chickens run around below the plants but knowing chickens, they would want to perch on them I'm sure! Also, I'm not keen on all the dust they cause being over all my plants. The greenhouse would mostly be for starting plants up over winter. I suppose I might also try keeping some plants there year-round if I could figure out how to do that without too much trouble.
- About earth-sheltered greenhouses... do you get the same thermal benefits from scooping up large amounts of dirt around a ground-level structure as you do from digging below ground?
