What breed is your best winter layer?

[Lady of McCamley]

I am looking for a really good winter layer breed. I can (and have) read the books...but I want to know what your experience is.

What in your opinion is a good overall winter layer (I am taking into consideration that birds differ under differing circumstances and farm care)

I live in the grey Northwest, so we don't get a lot of light during the winter...just days and days of grey drizzle. Good news, we don't get a lot of frigid weather either so I'm not worried about frozen combs.

Having burned a coop down (and nearly the house too) with electrical lighting in the coop (something about a lamp, heat, straw, dust, and a couple of flighty birds with electricity), I do not light my coops any more (please don't post to tell me how I should or could add lighting...I have and several friends have burned coops to the ground and none of us were careless.)

So I am on the lookout for good winter layers that lay naturally well in the shorter daylight hours without artificial lighting.

Thanks for your input and thoughts.
Lady of McCamley

 

[Fancychooklady]

My Wyandotte lay all through winter.

 

[Egghead_Jr]

I like my Plymouth Rocks. The key to more winter eggs if not using light is to rotate half your flock each year to pullets. They wont moult and your taking advantage of their first 4 months of stellar laying during early winter.

 

[CascadiaRiver]

Chantecler hens are known well for thier winter laying