Nice to meet you Debbie, so glad you joined us at Backyard chickens. NorthFLchick has given you excellent advice. You may also try putting the hens up on the roost at dusk and having lights out. Birds usually will not move in the dark. They need to learn nests are not toilets. If you have large, heavy breeds they may have trouble getting up to a high roost and landings would be hard and probably painful. In that case, roosts may need to be lower or have ramps leading up to them.
