Urban Farming in Charlotte

[Guest]

Hey guys, so my wife and I are working on moving back to Charlotte this summer, and I was wondering if anyone knew that rules about urban farming in Charlotte. Specifically keeping chickens, bees, etc. 

In this thread you can also share any experiences past or present you might have with growing food, or urban Farming in Charlotte. 

Fellow Urban Planeteer @Charlotte_native, who no longer posts here, used to have a hell of an urban farm in NoDa 

http://www.charlottemagazine.com/Home-Garden/September-2015/Linwell-Farms-A-Paved-Paradise/

[kermit]

1st, welcome home (prospectively)

2nd, based on a neighbor of mine bees are completely unregulated by the city (he has had them for more than 20 years and they are pretty great)

3rd, not sure about regulations on chickens, but I have also had neighbors who kept 10-15 of them at a time about 5 years ago in Dilworth. They were fine and didn't generate any complaints from neighbors, but one of my dogs would escape our yard and go down the hill to get some feathery snacks periodically (kinda embarrassing for me -- I had to take injured birds to the vet more than once)

My wife knows some folks who were big into urban farming in Charlotte a few years ago, I'll see what I can find out. 

Edited May 29, 2019 by kermit

[Crown]

Maybe the peeps over at Microfarm Organic Gardens would be a good resource? http://microfarmgardens.com/

[HighRiseHillbilly]

Not sure of the rules, but I see and hear chickens everywhere. 

[videtur quam contuor]

I, too, had neighbors in Dilworth with chickens (different people than Kermit knew) and a major issue for their chickens was Death from the Sky (hawks and other raptors).*

The man who started Cloister Honey

https://cloisterhoney.com/pages/about-us

Began in his yard at the Cloister neighborhood off of Providence Road.

*occasionally a hawk or owl would swoop through my yard in and out of a roost on a lower limb and if my dog was in the yard at the time he would drop to the ground and try to put his belly five feet below ground level. Terrified.

Edited May 29, 2019 by tarhoosier

[kermit]

^ how big was the dog?

[Guest]

13 minutes ago, tarhoosier said:

I, too, had neighbors in Dilworth with chickens (different people than Kermit knew) and a major issue for their chickens was Death from the Sky (hawks and other raptors).*

The man who started Cloister Honey

https://cloisterhoney.com/pages/about-us

Began in his yard at the Cloister neighborhood off of Providence Road.

*occasionally a hawk or owl would swoop through my yard in and out of a roost on a lower limb and if my dog was in the yard at the time he would drop to the ground and try to put his belly five feet below ground level. Terrified.

I had no idea Cloister Honey was named after the Cloister neighborhood, how funny.

[videtur quam contuor]

That is what he told me when I bought some honey at Atherton Market (gone, sob). He also had (has?) a moving company and they moved us to our condo in 2015. A little conglomerate.

[jtmonk]

1 hour ago, ricky_davis_fan_21 said:

Hey guys, so my wife and I are working on moving back to Charlotte this summer, and I was wondering if anyone knew that rules about urban farming in Charlotte. Specifically keeping chickens, bees, etc. 

In this thread you can also share any experiences past or present you might have with growing food, or urban Farming in Charlotte. 

Fellow Urban Planeteer @Charlotte_native, who no longer posts here, used to have a hell of an urban farm in NoDa 

http://www.charlottemagazine.com/Home-Garden/September-2015/Linwell-Farms-A-Paved-Paradise/

 

Sec. 3-102. - City permits.

Required. It shall be unlawful for any person to own, keep, have, or maintain any equine animals, cloven-hoofed animals or other livestock or any chickens, turkeys, ducks, guineas, geese, pheasants, pigeons or other domestic fowl in the city without first receiving from the bureau a permit to do so or to continue to have any of such animals or fowl after a permit has been denied.

This section shall not apply to, and no permit shall be required for, any agricultural operation within G.S. 106-700, which pertains to nuisance liability of agricultural operation, or to any rabbit that is kept exclusively inside its owner's residence. The permit shall be valid for one year from the date of issuance and shall be renewed annually. The annual fee for such permit shall be $40.00 per household. The application shall list all such animals and fowl on the premises. Before a permit is issued an employee of the bureau shall inspect the premises to determine if the keeping of the animals or fowl on the premises will endanger or is likely to endanger the health, safety, peace, quiet, comfort, enjoyment of or otherwise become a public nuisance to nearby residents or occupants or places of business.

Denial. When a permit is denied for any reason, the applicant shall be given a written explanation of the reason for denial.

Compliance required prior to issuance. An owner or possessor of such animals or fowl shall comply with the following applicable subsections before a permit is issued. Compliance with the following applicable subsections will create a rebuttable presumption that a permit shall be issued. That presumption may only be rebutted by specific findings supported by competent evidence that, despite compliance with the following, the presence of such animals or fowl is still likely to endanger the health, safety, peace, quiet, comfort, enjoyment of or otherwise become a public nuisance to nearby residents or occupants or places of business:

Fowl and other specifically identified animals. The keeping of chickens, turkeys, ducks, guineas, geese, pheasants or other domestic fowl or rabbits shall be in compliance with the following:

Such animals must be confined in a coop, fowl house or rabbit hutch not less than 18 inches in height. The fowl must be kept within the coop or fowl house and the rabbits in the hutch at all times.

The coop or fowl house must be used for fowl only and the hutch for rabbits only, and both must be well ventilated.

The coop, fowl house or hutch shall have a minimum of four square feet of floor area for each fowl or rabbit.

The run must be well drained so there is no accumulation of moisture.

The coop, fowl house or hutch shall be kept clean, sanitary and free from accumulation of animal excrement and objectionable odors. It shall be cleaned daily, and all droppings and body excretion shall be placed in a flyproof container and double-bagged in plastic bags.

The coop, fowl house or hutch shall be a minimum of 25 feet from any property line.

No more than 20 such fowl or rabbits shall be kept or maintained per acre. The number of fowl or rabbits should be proportionate to the acreage.

[videtur quam contuor]

My cross the creek neighbor has chickens, no rooster, near Freedom Park. Permit? Dunno. 

This Is Your Urban Planet

[JRNYP2C]

I have a friend in Gaston County that may be able to provide some info on bees.  They keep them in their back yard here for honey and to keep the population alive.

[KJHburg]

My cousin raises a few chickens in a NW Charlotte inside the city limits neighborhood.  and yes hawks are a problem around here so be careful no free ranging them unless you have a net up or you are personally watching them.    and please no roosters that is what gets people  upset.  Fresh eggs! 

Coyotes and foxes can smell chickens from a long distance away be aware. 

Edited May 29, 2019 by KJHburg

[InSouthPark]

Regarding chickens: I had 6 at one time for five years. You don’t want any more u less you have like 5 kids to feed. Cost was about $20/m to feed them (great feed store on Independence near Matthews). 

With 6 you get 4+ eggs a day from April to late October when they slow way down. Late winter you might get 4-5 a week unless you artificially give them light on a timer. 

You need an automatic feeder and about a 3 gallon automatic water thing.  Have to scoop the poop at least once a week.

I let mine free range all day and lock them up at night (they go in by themselves).  One year I lost 5 in one shot from a fox that got in the yard at 6am just after I let them out (they can climb a 6’ privacy fence). 

Lost some to hawks when they were little. One to my dog. One to sickness.  One got stuck in my pool skimmer (and lived) LOL. 

Some are the sweetest birds, others are neurotic. They are extremely intelligent. I even thought one a trick.  They eat most anything including lizards, bugs, etc. love bread and yogurt. 

I enjoyed having them but they are work. The eggs, especially since mine free ranged all day, were better than any egg you ever had store bought by a country mile. Orange yolks. Sooo good.  Never washed the eggs and they stayed for months. 

Good luck! DM me for any other direct boring question!

 

[davidclt]

4 hours ago, ricky_davis_fan_21 said:

Hey guys, so my wife and I are working on moving back to Charlotte this summer

Well, welcome back once you get here. Hurry! We could use more people before the 2020 Census count.

4 hours ago, kermit said:

3rd, not sure about regulations on chickens

I believe you can have up to 20 hens an acre (roosters for many reasons are frowned upon).

http://www.charlottemagazine.com/Home-Garden/March-2017/5-Things-to-Know-About-Owning-Chickens-in-the-City/

4 hours ago, kermit said:

My wife knows some folks who were big into urban farming in Charlotte a few years ago

I wonder if I might have known the same people at one time?  

Edited May 29, 2019 by davidclt

[Guest]

3 hours ago, InSouthPark said:

Regarding chickens: I had 6 at one time for five years. You don’t want any more u less you have like 5 kids to feed. Cost was about $20/m to feed them (great feed store on Independence near Matthews). 

With 6 you get 4+ eggs a day from April to late October when they slow way down. Late winter you might get 4-5 a week unless you artificially give them light on a timer. 

You need an automatic feeder and about a 3 gallon automatic water thing.  Have to scoop the poop at least once a week.

I let mine free range all day and lock them up at night (they go in by themselves).  One year I lost 5 in one shot from a fox that got in the yard at 6am just after I let them out (they can climb a 6’ privacy fence). 

Lost some to hawks when they were little. One to my dog. One to sickness.  One got stuck in my pool skimmer (and lived) LOL. 

Some are the sweetest birds, others are neurotic. They are extremely intelligent. I even thought one a trick.  They eat most anything including lizards, bugs, etc. love bread and yogurt. 

I enjoyed having them but they are work. The eggs, especially since mine free ranged all day, were better than any egg you ever had store bought by a country mile. Orange yolks. Sooo good.  Never washed the eggs and they stayed for months. 

Good luck! DM me for any other direct boring question!

 

THIS IS SO USEFUL! THANK YOU!

[grodney]

16 hours ago, ricky_davis_fan_21 said:

Hey guys, so my wife and I are working on moving back to Charlotte this summer, and I was wondering if anyone knew that rules about urban farming in Charlotte. Specifically keeping chickens, bees, etc. 

In this thread you can also share any experiences past or present you might have with growing food, or urban Farming in Charlotte. 

As I'm sure you might guess, teh Agenda is the ultimate source of info on this:

What it’s like to raise 5 backyard chickens in Plaza Midwood: https://www.charlotteagenda.com/67485/what-its-like-to-raise-backyard-chickens-in-charlotte/

Want to raise livestock in your backyard? Make sure you know the rules: https://www.charlotteagenda.com/98349/want-to-raise-livestock-chicken-in-your-backyard-make-sure-you-know-the-rules/

This gas station’s fried chicken is better than Price’s: https://www.charlotteagenda.com/82377/gas-stations-fried-chicken-better-anyone-elses-even-prices-video/

Disclaimer:  I didn't actually read any of t hose.  Mods please Lock/Delete/Ban as appropriate for violation of no-links-without-a-summary clause.

[Vitamin_N]

One of my neighbors in Cherry had chickens, and they had issues with foxes, believe it or not.

I was surprised to see the 25-feet-from-the-property-line restriction since the lots here are so narrow that's almost impossible.

[tozmervo]

An old NoDa neighbor kept losing their free roaming chickens to something - dogs maybe. They turned it into a tirade about growth.

[kermit]

^ It appears that urban chickens are much more of a microcosm of urban issues than I had realized.

• how many chickens can free-range in a parking space?
• Will chickens be willing to pay tolls to drive on 77?
• how do chickens feel about the epicenter?
• could chickens build out the first ward faster than danny?
• Can we use chicken coops to shield the parking deck at Atherton?
• if chickens were used as drivers on the blue line, would it be on time?
• Do chickens also think Legacy Union one is fugly?
• can chickens tell us if an Apple store is coming to Tryon Place?
• dockless chicken rental?

Here is an image of Peggy Hill and the Boggle playing chicken for no apparent reason... (Peggy beat the chicken)

 

Edited May 30, 2019 by kermit

[Vitamin_N]

When will we see a chicken coop with a beige EIFS exterior?

[Guest]

Just now, Vitamin_N said:

When will we see a chicken coop with a beige EIFS exterior?

No EIFS, but I was going to put a big steel pyramid, with translucent plastic panels, on top.

[tozmervo]

11 hours ago, kermit said:

^ It appears that urban chickens are much more of a microcosm of urban issues than I had realized.

• how many chickens can free-range in a parking space?
• Will chickens be willing to pay tolls to drive on 77?
• how do chickens feel about the epicenter?
• could chickens build out the first ward faster than danny?
• Can we use chicken coops to shield the parking deck at Atherton?
• if chickens were used as drivers on the blue line, would it be on time?
• Do chickens also think Legacy Union one is fugly?
• can chickens tell us if an Apple store is coming to Tryon Place?
• dockless chicken rental?

Here is an image of Peggy Hill and the Boggle playing chicken for no apparent reason... (Peggy beat the chicken)

 

She only won because they played boggle en español

Edited May 31, 2019 by tozmervo