Jackie French's Chook Book
Yes, this is 'Diary of a Wombat' Jackie French. Her Chook Book is helpful about principles and methods for those of us who still like a good hold-in-your-hand resource to read through.
Jackie French's Backyard Self-Sufficiency
She has a whole section on 'small barnyard animals' in which chickens are briefly mentioned. But the whole book is a good introduction to planting and eating more from your own garden.
Linda Woodrow's Permaculture Kitchen Garden
The author who first made me realise that I could keep chickens in the garden and how to make the 'downsides' of chickens an 'upside' for the garden. The downside is that she focuses on the method she uses in the garden, not the principles. That said, the concept of using chickens as not just egg-layers but as mulch-makers, manure, food scrap processing, insect and pest control, and garden clean-up was revolutionary to me, and broaded my perspectives in so many ways. The book is some twenty to thirty years old, but the concepts are very relevant all the same.
The Google.
Yes, you get a lot of results, but you can refine searches. I'm in suburban Australia, so I prioritise those who live in other parts of urban and suburban Australia. Good for general information about things before you get down to the specific. Also, lots of videos from people (mostly homesteaders) who have ideas about chicken coops or advice on how to integrate chickens.
Special mention to Self Sufficient Me whose video on chicken bullying I just watched as advice on how to integrate our two new chickens (the New Shanghai) with the old ones (Original Recipe).
Pinterest
Yes, it's full of pretty pictures and glorified stories of happy clappy chooks and their perfect pristine pens. But there are some gems in there, if you're willing to read up. All knowledge is worth having.
Local gardening groups.
I'm the current president of Permaculture Sydney North, and an active member of Crop Swap Sydney/ My garden was in the Virtual Sydney Edible Garden Trail this year. These are all local groups to me, and important knowledge networks - people who have done this before, or who are having the same problems, or who might have solutions to your problems that you haven't thought of yet.
Facebook Groups
There is almost certainly a group for your locality or area.
Mine are:
A small matter of courtesy
Join a local group, by all means. But please don't just barge in and ask your question. Start with a search - for Facebook there should be a search box either at the side of your screen (desktop) or along the top of your screen (mobile app). Chances are, other people have asked the question before and received many helpful answers. Read through them all, look at the arguments and think about how they do or don't apply to you. Sometimes it helps to ask a similar or related question on the same post, so whoever comes along afterwards can find all their answers in the once place.
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