What time in the morning do hens usually lay?

[Smokin Silkies]

I've searched this site and the internet trying to find an answer. I know there is no set time for every hen, but do they usually do it when the sun comes up or hours after? My banty cochins are almost 6 months old and at least one of the hens just started laying on the 26th. I got my first egg on the 26th at about 7:30 am and it was still a little warm. I live in PA and its been in the mid teens here the last week. So I figured they had just layed it recently. Then I got one the 28th, 30th and one today. Yesterday and today, there was no eggs at 7:30 and when I got a chance to go out again a couple hours later, there was an egg but it was cracked and frozen? I have 2 babies and its hard for me to keep running out there every 15 minutes. Is there a round-about time they normally lay? Also, the very first egg I decided to through in my bator with my White Rocks (on the 26th) I checked Friday night and it is fertile

 

[Bantimna]

Hens usallly lay at about 6-9 o'clock in the morning.
Don't let your gals' out until 9:00-9:30.

 

[HEChicken]

They will lay at all times during the day. An "average" cycle is 26 hours, so if they lay at 9am one morning, it will be 11am the next and so on. When they reach the point where the egg-laying time is after dark, they will just wait until the next day (take the day off!) and then lay early the following morning, starting the cycle over again. Of course, each hen is an individual and one of mine is on about a 23 hour cycle so has not taken a day off in the last 20 days. My other layer is on an A A B cycle, laying for two days and taking the third off, over and over. They are both BO's so there is a lot of variation even among the same breed.

 

[ThePamperedPullet]

A chicken will lay an egg every 26 to 28 hours which is to say that the same hen will lay at different times of the day. Ours will lay anywhere between 6:30 am and 5:00 pm.

 

[speckledhen]

I've had them lay as late at 7 o'clock in the evening. Morning-only laying is a myth just like morning-only crowing.

 

[newchickmom09]

Quote:
Yep, my earliest egg was about 6:00 am and the latest was about 6:30 pm before it got dark. They very from day to day.

 

[Koolduck]

I have some that lay before 9am, some around 11am, and one 3-11er(like me) who lays as late as 3pm!

 

[ChickenCharmer]

It's a cycle. They lay an hour or two later every day. Then laying time gets into the evening hours and they won't lay in the evening, so they wait till morning and the cycle starts again. The saying is "lay for six days and rest on the seventh"

 

[momof2monkeys]

My one and only layer (she's also my first chicken) lays everyday between 9am-10am. She likes to get out and forage first, then she'll take her lazy booty back to the nesting box. I usually hear her bragging about it so I know I can go get it. I can't wait until the other girls stat laying too. I wonder if they'll take after big sis?

 

[Smokin Silkies]

Oh boy!

I'm afraid I'll have alot of frozen eggies then. This is temporary coop so its not heated. Til I get the other one repaired, which I hope is soon. Is there anything I can put in the nest box that will help keep them warmer longer? Right now I'm using straw...if I use pine shavings would it be better? Never had chickens lay in the winter before and I'm surprised these ones are as cold as it is. They started laying right after I moved them to this coop...about 15 hours later, I got my first egg...which is also strange since I heard they temporarily stop laying with a new move? I must got strange hens.