howdy today @sugarcreek! beautiful girls you got there! they look so healthy, how many eggs do you guys get each day and does it take a certain type of breed to produce the most?
and the Heirloom seeds, you don't have to special order them or does everyone carry those?
love the post, very encouraging and informative as well!
Hi there @janton!
Baker Creek is a great website to get them from. They are mixed in with others at box stores sometimes but it will say heirloom on the packaging.
Oh the dreaded which breed question! I imagine if you asked 100 chicken farmers you'd get 100 different answers.
These girls in the photo are Light Brahma and are my favorite breed. Great layers of big brown eggs, great mothers, great disposition, dual purpose eggs and meat birds and they are a heritage breed. Which is sort of like the heirloom seeds.
They are from old time heritage stock so as a general rule pretty healthy and hardy birds.
They do very well in cooler climates. And thank you I think my girls are beautiful.
I have six California Whites.... They are a more commercialized breed. Great layers but not the same sweet disposition. Lol
and would any of them do well in Texas, the heat and all, it was 111 today.
Their are seeds that can grow in such a climate. The humidity can cause Alot of problems. Shade cloth is great. We used Alot in south Florida climate. Are you familiar with permaculture?
howdy today @sugarcreek! thanks for reminding me, I was going to ask you what permaculture was. smithlabs knows all about it, I assume, but I have no idea what that is.
Well it's a very simple complicated thing... Lol
Basically you mimic nature, work with it not against it.
that sounds simple but is it easy?
Oh... How many eggs... Up to two dozen depending on the weather. 3 or 4 of my girls are getting on up there and only lay occasionally. But the rest lay even in freezing weather. Lol
holy cow what do you do with all those eggs?
Haha we eat a lot, I pickle some, barter some and feed back occasionally.
eggs are so wonderful especially yours, homegrown. what is feed back?
Feedback is cooking them for the chickens. I scramble them up then sprinkle them with oregano, red pepper, basil, a little garlic powder... As a nutrition boost for the girls
wow @sugarcreek! I have never heard of that before! I don't know why, is this a common practice?
It is very common to feed back but my recipe is just something I came up with as a nutrition /health booster.
oh ok well then that's a great idea!