Will they lay through the winter

[chickenscratch]

Hi. My 4 hens, which are 2 Rhode Is. Reds, 1 Delaware and 1 Bantam (I think) are 18 weeks old today. So in theory they may start laying eggs in 2-3 weeks time. Which is also coinciding with the onset of fall/winter. I live in seattle where we are affected by limited sunlight hours during the winter. So my question is should I put a light on timer to trick them into thinking there's more sunlight then there actually is or will they still lay eggs just not as many through the winter.
Thanks!!!

 

[Frozen Feathers]

That's what I do. I have a light on a timer...though I don't know why I bother since the eggs usually end up frozen anyway.

 

[davecash]

the rhosde island reds are known to be hearty during the winter, but i dont know about the others., hope this helps.

 

[WindyOaksYokes]

http://www.ithaca.edu/staff/jhenderson/chooks/chooks.html

This is a very good site for obtaining info on chickens... the RIRs will lay through the winter... as for the others not sure...