How much does daylight affect egglaying

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ECBW

ECBW

Songster
8 Years
Apr 12, 2011
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NJ
Hi, I have heard a lot from both sides regarding winter lighting. Some argue that it is better to let them rest and no light. Some say light 24/7. I have been experimenting and would like to share my finding so far.

I have a batch of brand new layers so age and molting are not issues. They started in August and have been going strong. The day light is down to less than 10 hours now and no supplemental light. The overall production rate has been on a gradual decline since late October. However, breeds do respond differently. The RIR, BR and Easter Egger are chugging along. Wyandotte is slowing a little. Silkie and Polish pretty much have ceased and account for the overall decline.

Winter solstice is about a month away along with the temperature dropping. We shall see how they would react.
 
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I do chores at 6 am, so I have to see to function. That's first. So, yes, the pre-dawn only lighting I use comes on at 5 am and off at 10 am.

Since we are at the 45th parallel, in northern Michigan, our wimpy, 8 hours of light days are horrible in the fall and winter. Supplementing a little light in the pre-dawn hours does absolutely no harm, as far as I am concerned. We have an egg business and production cannot fall to near zero. We are always heavy on first year pullets, so this helps considerably. I suspect that next year, you would have much different results, of course, as you likely know.

That said, lighting 24/7 is tough and I don't do it. The birds also need their rest.
 
Chickens need 14 hours of daylight to lay. I have a light on a timer that comes on in the dark morning hours and goes off after the sun is up. It comes on again at dusk and stays on until 9 PM or so.
 
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They might need that to lay at peak amounts, but not necessarily lay at all. I provide no supplemental lighting, we're down to about 11 hours of light, and mine have barely slowed down, if at all. If they do, I'm probably going to just let them take a break.
 
you have to understand that eggs and i are down to about 7 hours of daylight a day. personally i run a 13 watt compact floresent light 24/7. the ladies do have a place to git out of the light if they wish to.
 
I trust everything that Fred's Hens says. We live at the 35th parallel, but we are also in a bit of a valley, and the sun doesn't come up over the ridge until about 45 minutes after official sunrise. Our light comes on at 5am, and then girls are typically let out into their run around 7. We don't add additional light at night. We have 8 chickens, four of whom are considered production breeds, and this is their first laying year, so we are still averaging about 6 eggs a day. I have noticed that unlike early this fall, every girl skips at least one day a week or maybe more. I don't think adding a bit of light in the morning is pushing them too much.
 
Light here starts getting to where you can see around 20 minutes till 7:00. Last night at 6:00 it was pitch dark. Still yesterday I got 5 eggs from 7 hens with one putting her eggs in a hiding place for herself. If I got that one I would have 6 eggs from 7 hens. Considering what I've read and what I'm getting, I feel lucky.
 
This is my first winter with chickens, but all I have is solar powered christmas lights in the coop to provide dim light to guide them in when it's getting dark. It's light from about 6:30am to 4:30pm. They have decided this is the perfect time to start laying a bunch of eggs! One started laying again and two others followed. I thought we were going to have an egg break until spring.
 

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