Couple of egg-laying questions

[xjonesy]

I finally got my first egg yesterday (hurray!).

1) Is there a certain time of day that the hens typically lay their eggs? Morning, evening, or does it just vary?

2) Once eggs are collected, what's the best way to store them? In the fridge or simply on a kitchen counter?

3) How long do eggs last, if stored correctly?

Hopefully many more eggs to come! Thank you...

 

[AmyRey]

There was a link to a very interesting article on storage methods posted around here somewhere. I think the article appeared in Mother Earth News. Maybe try doing a search for that?

I believe the best they got was several months (wow!) out of unwashed refrigerated eggs.

 

[momahenTN]

Hen will generally lay at around the same time each day. i have a black star that lays in the morning. on the other hand i have a legghorn ans EE that lay around noon. then my langshans lay in the evening. So generally they lay about the same time for that breed. lol and at first they will probably lay anytime. they will get a patern. and then the heat and weather plays a roll on how long you will get eggs this year.

 

[momahenTN]

Oh I just rememdered that my mom-n-law used to live on a boat on Catalina Island and she would put Vaseline on her store bought eggs. She didn't have a refridgerator. They would last a very long time.

 

[momahenTN]

It also depends if you are eating the eggs or if you are incubating them.

 

[xjonesy]

We'll be eating them all -- I assume it's safe to say that a refrigerated egg will last at least 1-2 weeks if collected the day it's laid?

 

[AmyRey]

Quote:
Again, in this study they got MONTHS out of non-storebought, unwashed eggs kept in the fridge. MUCH longer than I would have expected.

They also tested Vasoline, sawdust, sand and various other methods.

 

[ranchhand]

Quote:
Months, not weeks.

 

[AmyRey]

Here it is!

http://www.motherearthnews.com/Sustainable-Farming/1977-11-01/Fresh-Eggs.aspx