How to Use Guinea Fowl for Insect Control

By eHow Home & Garden Editor

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Guinea fowl are unusual looking large fowl. They're an African species classified as poultry and when set free to roam, guineas will consume bugs and weed seeds. They can be used very effectively by farmers and gardeners for insect control.

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Instructions

Difficulty: Moderate

Step1

Understand how the fowl work. Guinea fowl roost like chickens and can be kept with the chickens in the poultry yard. Guineas return each evening to roost after spending the day roaming freely, eating insects.

Step2

Control insects with guinea fowl babies, or keets. Start with about six keets for insect control.

Step3

Keep the keets warm. They must be kept warm when young until fully feathered at about 6 weeks old. Start with babies one day old, kept in a brooder or incubator.

Step4

Let the guinea fowl out to roam the garden for the first time at 6 weeks of age. When kept in the nursery for a full 6 week period, you will have more success at getting your guineas to come home to roost each night.

Step5

Provide protection. Each night the guineas will come back to their home inside the hen house and roost. They need the protection of the building for weather extremes and safety from predators.

Tips & Warnings

Guinea fowl help keep flowers free of insects, mainly Japanese beatles. They also eat ticks. They do not harm flowers or flower beds.
As an added benefit, the guinea hens lay eggs that can be eaten and used like chicken eggs. Two guinea eggs equal one large chicken egg.