Artificial Lights v/s None During Winter for Egg Production Poll

[HPancho]

Have you seen her? I posted her in the Ugly Molt thread (it's not called that, but it should be.) Here she is. She is normally my prettiest bird!

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Molting for sure. I try to give more protein when they Molt.

 

[HPancho]

I have a white Christmas rope light in the run that I turn on at coop open and turn off at lock up. It's to brighten up the run a bit, not the coop. It doesn't extend their hours of daylight.

I like this. I have some Christmas likes up too, some times the the younger ones wait to late to go into the coop and can't see to get on thr roost. It helps them find thier way then turn off the light. The days shorten very quickly in WA.

 

[BigBlueHen53]

Molting for sure. I try to give more protein when they Molt.

I started giving 20% protein when they molted several years ago and have just kept them on it ever since. They do very well on it!

 

[HPancho]

I started giving 20% protein when they molted several years ago and have just kept them on it ever since. They do very well on it!

What are you using for your Protein? I have read the 20% is really best. I would love for them to have more protein.

 

[BigBlueHen53]

What are you using for your Protein? I have read the 20% is really best. I would love for them to have more protein.

We feed an All-Flock formula from Bomgaar's.

 

[BoundlessLove]

I started giving 20% protein when they molted several years ago and have just kept them on it ever since. They do very well on it!

We do the same. Tucker Milling All flock feed 22%

 

[SourRoses]

I used to keep things natural, but we have shorter days in the south.
One year we had broody hens all summer, spread out molting in the fall, pullets who hadn't started laying by fall... Well pretty much the only consistent eggs we got that year were in the spring.

I got some mellow lights - ones with a low level, warm/ yellow setting, and timed to come on for two hours after dusk. It did the trick without being too disturbing and the chickens roost and sleep like normal. Plus the roos don't crow earlier like they would with pre-dawn lights.
We get to control when the chickens take their big break, it's not about giving them none.
One could even plan to stay in eggs during the break period (molt) by having pullets of the right age to already be in lay, so they will keep laying through their first winter.

 

[BoundlessLove]

Another point that stands out is there are breeds that lay well during winter.
Even without added lighting, my sussex continue to lay well during the cold months; while my Cream Legbars and Olive Eggers drastically slow down egg production.
As @5Australorpasaures has said earlier, with no added light, his egg production slowed but did not stop. And his black Australorps continued laying eggs throughout winter.

 

[NestingMillenial]

Another point that stands out is there are breeds that lay well during winter.

Ohhh, so interesting - de we know about this (tendency to slow down a lot or not too much with shrinking daylight duration) for more breeds? I'm taking notes!

 

[NatJ]

Ohhh, so interesting - de we know about this (tendency to slow down a lot or not too much with shrinking daylight duration) for more breeds? I'm taking notes!

Some breeds are traditionally considered "good winter layers." It often gets mentioned in breed descriptions.

If you can't find more information, you can go with the very rough guideline that breeds developed in northern areas are more likely to lay in the shorter days of winter, and breeds from tropical or equatorial areas are less likely to lay during that time. That especially goes for breeds that were developed before artificial lights became common. Of course there will be plenty of exceptions in all directions (like the Australorp that was just mentioned: the breed was developed in Australia, which is closer to the equator than to the poles.)