Best Winter Layers

Orpington are said to be great winter layers. I have only a couple and they are just going on 5 months so I can't say for sure but that is why I got some of them. BR and RIR are also great layer though the winter. Never a problem with laying for me in the past. I have four older hens about a 1 year old and I get about two a day from right now.
 
I live in Ontario and my Barred Rocks and sexlinks haven't even slowed down their egg production yet. I do use a lamp in their coop from about 6:30 a.m. until sometime after supper.....I get 5 to 7 eggs everyday from my 8 confirmed layers.
 
I have 1 RIR and 5 Comets (Red Sexlink). No light or heat in the coop and I am getting 4 eggs a day. I will say that layer feed is key for my girls to keep laying. We ran out of layer feed and just had on hand scratch, cracked corn and kitchen scraps for a week or so and the eggs stopped. Once we got more layer feed the eggs started to show back up.

I'm glad I came across this thread though! I was wondering if my birds would lay through the winter with no light or heat. I had 4 RIR hens a few years ago and they stopped laying around October ... even with layer feed. I'm not sure my current RIR hen is laying now though. But I am positive at that my Comets are!
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Me too! Western Mass, Golden Comets. They started laying in July and haven't slowed at all, even with no supplemental lighting.

What color eggs do Golden Comets lay? Assuming they are hens, of course.
 
mediazeal,
I have three comets that lay a large medium brown coloured egg. Some have darker brown speckles, but most are a shade or two around medium. My one partridge rock lays a pinky brown and the leghorn's is white. That's the only reason I know who is laying what.
I have noticed that as the days get shorter, the production has picked up. It may be because we put a heat light out there. We're getting four or five a day from the five girls.
 
I have 24 pullets hatched in early June. They do 14-17 a day. I have nearly equal amount of:
Rhode Island Red
Barred Rock
Black Australorpe
Buff Comet (Golden comet or golden sex link)

They started at 4 months, just after molting, and have not yet slacked off. A few are not yet laying and I have no idea which ones except for one lame runt (chirpy) that has become a pet.

All are reputed to be good winter layers. Mine are young so I will know more next year. Barred rocks seem to be friendliest at the earliest age, and comets the least. Black Aussies are shy and sweet natured and have come around and now want to be held and petted. Comets ( sex links) seem to start earlier than other of the standards.
 
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Did anyone say Black Australorp, yet? Mine is laying a very large egg nearly every day; 6 eggs a week, without artificial light. The dark cold days don't seem to bother her egg-laying as much as my other hens.
 

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