Hi fellow Marylanders! I just joined - I live in Boonsboro, but work in Westminster so I'm going to get my peeps at Bowman's on Monday. So excited! Is anyone in the Boonsboro area hatching Welsummers before the end of March ? I'd love to get my hands on one but they aren't available at Bowman's until May.
For Welsummers (and Marans, Ameraucanas, and Delawares) I highly recommend Whitmore Farm in Thurmont. Wil is a local breeder and his stock is far, far better quality than the hatchery chicks you get at Bowmans (or any feedstore). The hatchery stock may lay better, but likely not very dark in color and that is why most people want Welsummers in the first place. One potential problem is that they are straight run, not sexed, but if you read the "fine print", the feed stores don't guarantee the sexing either, the hatcheries generally get it right 90 - 95% of the time, but some cockerels always slip through. The only way to be certain is to get sexlinked hybrids or autosexing breeds.
Also, Whitemore might already be sold out for the season. They only hatch limited numbers and the demand for their stock is high.