Farm fresh eggs....have you ever tried them? I was thinking about eggs this morning as I was getting my sons breakfast ready this morning. We got our day old chicks on the 4th day of June. They broke out of their shells on the 3rd day of June and were shipped to us that day....we are expecting them to begin to lay then around October 21st. Lets see, what did we order? Buff Orpingtons are pretty dark gold chickens that lay brown eggs, Barred Rocks & Production Reds which also lay brown eggs. Then we also got some Americana's...also called easter egg chickens since they lay blue to green tinged eggs. Really neat and our son loved getting them from the nest boxes when he was younger! They came from Decorah IA, so not too far from us. They can travel up to 3 days with no food or water since they absorb what is left of the yolk so that is their nourishment. The post office called us when the chicks arrived, my son and I went to pick them up. They put 26 chicks in our little box....they stay warm with their own body heat until they get to us. Once the baby chicks arrive they need a few things...heat, water and food. We use a rubbermaid 18 gallon tote (no lid). The shop light clamps to the top with a 100 watt lightbulb for their heat source. The chicks can move in and out of the light if they get too warm or too cold. The babys need food (chick starter) and water. They grow really quickly! What starts out as a little ball of fluff quickly becomes a hen or a rooster. The hens are ready to lay in about 20 weeks. That to me is really amazing that it only takes 20 weeks for a hen to lay an egg, which basically means that she can reproduce. You dont need a rooster for the hen to be able to lay eggs. The picture at the top was taken back when we first got chickens in 2001. There is a variation in the colors and sizes...the tiny eggs were from hens that had just started to lay. Then we go all the way up to huge eggs that wouldnt even fit in the jumbo egg cartons. Now, if you do have a rooster then you have the opportunity to expand your flock. For this you can use a broody hen, which is a hen who wants to sit on her clutch of eggs. A good way to tell if she is broody is when you go into the coop and try and take eggs from a hen that is sitting on her nest. She may squack at you or even peck your hand. Another option is to put the eggs in an incubator. This means that you have to act as mother hen....turning the eggs and providing the right temperature and humidity. Not all hens will be broody or interested in raising their own chicks. We do have extra roosters that will have a date with the freezer later this fall....they just need to have a bit more meat on them. We dont need 30+ chickens...my son and I hatched some eggs in our incubator to bring us up to that total...plus we have 2 ducks that wehatched out as well. Soon we will go through, decide which roosters we want to keep. We do like to experiment with eggs in the incubator and is a good way to replace hens that have declined in the number of eggs that they lay. Production declines after about a year or so at which time the hens can be butchered and replaced. The hens are not pets to us, however they are a vital function to the farm. For now they are allowed to free range in the yard and pasture. This means that they have access to bugs, greens (grass and weeds), fresh air and sunshine. It is amazing how many bugs they can eat too, we feed them at night when they go in the coop. No need to feed them during the day as they are out foraging for bugs, worms and grass. I put chicken wire around the garden to keep them out but they love to roam around the edge and I cant even imagine how many crickets and grass hoppers they have probably eaten! The green beans I didnt fence in as the chickens were not bothering them and I havent had one green bean with a big nibble on it....amazing! Usually the grass hoppers love them and I have to toss quite a few. Not this year, I have trimmed, blanched and put loads of green beans in the freezer. Will make some great eating once the winter months hit. Below is a picture of a frying pan of eggs. I hope you can tell how bright orange the yolks are! They are rich and delicious with a nice firm yolk that stands much higher than the store bought eggs....the whites are firmer too. If you are at a farmers market or out driving around and see a sign for Fresh Eggs....give them a try!