Egg laying and daylight

[Ole rooster]

I've been reading where a hen has to have 14 hours of daylight to lay like she's supposed to. I've been thinking about this and even asked the wife how much daylight we get, at the most. She agrees with me that 12 hours is just about it. So are some of you saying I should put a light in the coop so as to get the right amount of light for the hen? What part of the country do we get that much light in a day?

I don't think my BO's are going to lay no matter the amount.

 

[WoodlandWoman]

The farther north you go, the longer the summer days are and the shorter the winter days are. It's really noticeable up here and even worse up in Alaska. Around here, it's dark when you go to work and dark when you get home from work, at the worst time. I know your winter days are longer down there, but I don't know how much longer. I think anything in the 12-14 hour range works for chickens, when supplementing.

Some breeds are better winter layers than others, without supplemental lighting. Pullets usually lay well their first winter, anyway. They don't seem to be as effected by seasonal changes until they're hens.

 

[Mimi and the Peeps]

My brother has a light on a timer, it goes on at 6 pm and off at 9. He has little reduction in egg amounts during the winter. I'll be doing the same thing, mine are going to be laying soon. My father raised huge flocks and also had a light in the hen house. I'm interested to see what others do.

 

[Fred's Hens]

Rather then adding light at night, I prefer to add a little light in the early, pre-dawn mornings. I allow the evening dusk to vary according to the season, naturally. I have the light come on at 5 am and go off at 8 am, year around. Our late fall and early winter days are horrid and only 7 hours long.

 

[greymane]

Just curious, how much light are you providing? What wattage bulb for a coop of about 150 sqft?

 

[PaleMelanesian]

In my 64 sq ft coop, I use a 60W equivalent CFL that draws 13W. It's probably more than what's necessary, but it's what I had on hand. I use CFL for power savings because they don't need heat, it's light they need.

 

[greymane]

Great info. Thanks!