I Replaced $340/Month in Feed Costs With a Kiddie Pool (Here's What Actually Works)
Regenerative Farmers of America
229,046 views
Floating forages are one of the most misunderstood feed tools on small farms. I spent four months testing five different floating and aquatic forages side-by-side using the same animals, same water, and same containers to find out what actually works — and what’s overhyped.
In this video, I break down the real production numbers, protein content, animal acceptance, and container requirements for azolla, duckweed, spirodela, water spinach, and watercress. One forage tripled my production per square foot, one replaced $340 per month in feed costs, and one my pigs refused to eat entirely.
This is not theory or extension recommendations — this is on-farm testing with chickens, ducks, pigs, and mixed livestock systems.
What you’ll learn:
Which floating forage produces the most protein per square foot
Why azolla is overrated for chickens despite fast growth
The floating forage that outperformed soybeans on protein density
Which aquatic forage pigs will eat — and which they absolutely won’t
How much feed floating forages can realistically replace (20–40%, not 100%)
Exact kiddie pool and container sizing for chickens, ducks, and pigs
Why harvest time and palatability matter more than growth rate
How to avoid common mistakes that cause animals to reject floating forage
Tested forages in this video:
Azolla
Duckweed
Spirodela (giant duckweed)
Water spinach
Watercress
Floating forages are supplements, not complete feeds. Used correctly, they can dramatically reduce feed costs, improve yolk color, increase protein intake, and stack nutrient cycling into your system. Used wrong, they waste time and money.
If you’re raising chickens, ducks, pigs, or mixed livestock on a backyard, homestead, or small farm scale — this video shows what actually pencils out.
Chapters:
00:00 Why I tested floating forages
02:10 Azolla — the overhyped option
07:45 Duckweed — highest protein performer
13:30 Spirodela — same output, easier harvest
17:40 Water spinach — massive biomass for pigs
24:10 Watercress — why pigs rejected it
28:40 Container sizing & scaling reality
33:10 Final results & best use cases
20 Comments
I grow duckweed in my 'frog' pond in my garden and harvest it regularly. I feed it to my chickens, ducks, and rabbits (both fresh and dried). I keep all three in a 10 x 20 run with the rabbits in suspended cages with wood chips under them. The chickens turn the chips daily hunting for dropped rabbit feed, and I just replenish it as needed. The run sits in the center of my garden and provides endless high nitrogen compost. I have several insect hotels, a full frog habitat, and use raised beds with both trellis and tunnel areas. Over all, I have very few pests, rotation takes care of most plant disease, and I manage this in an intensive 40 x 50 back yard (although I wish I had more space. I grow all of our vegetables except corn, several berry varieties plus hazelnuts, and I've been adding espaliered fruit trees along two of the fences. I have just enough space in my tiny front yard that I've considered moving the berries to the front to actually give me the space for corn. Somehow, I think my town would be offended by a front yard full of corn stalks lol.
I Replaced $340/Month in Feed Costs With a Kiddie Pool (Here's What Actually Works)
Regenerative Farmers of America
229,046 views
Floating forages are one of the most misunderstood feed tools on small farms. I spent four months testing five different floating and aquatic forages side-by-side using the same animals, same water, and same containers to find out what actually works — and what’s overhyped.
In this video, I break down the real production numbers, protein content, animal acceptance, and container requirements for azolla, duckweed, spirodela, water spinach, and watercress. One forage tripled my production per square foot, one replaced $340 per month in feed costs, and one my pigs refused to eat entirely.
This is not theory or extension recommendations — this is on-farm testing with chickens, ducks, pigs, and mixed livestock systems.
What you’ll learn:
Which floating forage produces the most protein per square foot
Why azolla is overrated for chickens despite fast growth
The floating forage that outperformed soybeans on protein density
Which aquatic forage pigs will eat — and which they absolutely won’t
How much feed floating forages can realistically replace (20–40%, not 100%)
Exact kiddie pool and container sizing for chickens, ducks, and pigs
Why harvest time and palatability matter more than growth rate
How to avoid common mistakes that cause animals to reject floating forage
Tested forages in this video:
Azolla
Duckweed
Spirodela (giant duckweed)
Water spinach
Watercress
Floating forages are supplements, not complete feeds. Used correctly, they can dramatically reduce feed costs, improve yolk color, increase protein intake, and stack nutrient cycling into your system. Used wrong, they waste time and money.
If you’re raising chickens, ducks, pigs, or mixed livestock on a backyard, homestead, or small farm scale — this video shows what actually pencils out.
Chapters:
00:00 Why I tested floating forages
02:10 Azolla — the overhyped option
07:45 Duckweed — highest protein performer
13:30 Spirodela — same output, easier harvest
17:40 Water spinach — massive biomass for pigs
24:10 Watercress — why pigs rejected it
28:40 Container sizing & scaling reality
33:10 Final results & best use cases