![]() The breeders knew they had something special on their hands, but when the bird started taking home awards in laying competitions and setting world records-an Australorp holds the world record for egg production, laying 364 eggs in 365 days-the rest of the world took notice. They added Rhode Island Red, Minorca, White Leghorn and Langshan into the mix, producing a large-sized laying hen with stellar egg production. They started breeding the chickens for egg production over its table-bird qualities. Black Orpingtons were imported to the country from England, where the large bird was mostly regarded for its meat.īut Aussie breeders took a fancy to the Orps’ big, brown eggs. The breed was first developed in Australia, where it’s considered the honorary national bird, around the turn of the 20th century. Thinking about raising some urban chickens? Read up on it here. And when it came time to place our chick order, we knew exactly what we wanted.īecause our favorite chicken has always been the Black Australorp. They keep chickens but haven’t ordered chicks in a few years, and the farm’s chicken population has dwindled.īut you can keep chickens in a lot of urban areas, and this year we made the jump to bring in a backyard flock to produce eggs for ourselves and our neighbors. My parents took over daily stewardship of the land while we moved closer to the city for work and school. In recent years, my family of five has seen a few changes. Our favorite, though, was a runaway winner for the top spot. Our flock was composed of Barred Rocks, Easter Eggers, Rhode Island Reds, Comets, Leghorns, Jersey Giants and more. Though we didn’t venture into some of the fancier breeds (egg production was always of primary importance to our farm-business model), our hand-built coop housed a wide swath of chicken types. In addition to the moveable pens of Cornish Cross and Freedom Ranger birds we pushed across our land every summer, we kept a wide variety of laying hens. ![]() For years, my family and I raised chickens on our farm-a lot of them. ![]()
0 Comments
Leave a Reply. |
Details
AuthorWrite something about yourself. No need to be fancy, just an overview. ArchivesCategories |