How can I make my hens produce more eggs?

[3chimama]

I throw out a bit of cat food everyother day too...

 

[familychickenman]

One other thing that I have done is give them greens in the Winter to help keep them up on production. I make garbage bag silage from lawn mower clippings which I feed through Winter. This year I was also able to get about 10 bags of cauliflower greens which I have been feeding to my flock. They love the cauliflower greens, and eat them over any other greens I have given them.

 

[Mac in Wisco]

Quote:
If you have the pasture to do it... and good forage conditions are seasonal at best in most parts of the country.

For those that are keeping hens in an urban backyard on mono-culture turfgrass, for those that live in the west where any forage can be non-existent for a good part of the year, for those that have three feet of snow on the ground several months out the year, a balanced layer ration will provide the best results when pickings are scarce. When conditions are good the birds will forage, and providing a balanced layer ration gives them something to fall back on.

 

[chickendude]

Quote:
If you have the pasture to do it... and good forage conditions are seasonal at best in most parts of the country.

For those that are keeping hens in an urban backyard on mono-culture turfgrass, for those that live in the west where any forage can be non-existent for a good part of the year, for those that have three feet of snow on the ground several months out the year, a balanced layer ration will provide the best results when pickings are scarce. When conditions are good the birds will forage, and providing a balanced layer ration gives them something to fall back on.

Ditto to what mac in abilene said.

 

[Jane Jill Jack]

My family loves radishes, and we feed the leaves to the chickens. They seem to like them better than any other green we can offer them now, some lettuce and strawberry tops. They also eat the potatoe peels which have a lot of minerals, potassium, calcium, and some protein, etc.. I think these help their production and substitute for fresh grass ok. Just a little treat.

 

[Kittymomma]

Quote:
Seems like raw potato peels have something in them that is not good for chickens--they're fine once they've been cooked. I can't remember what off-hand, but if you're feeding lots of it you may want to do a bit of research on it if you start seeing problems.

 

[Count Orloff]

Quote:
I'm not sure what you are talking about with tomato worms, but my Buff Orpingtons go absolutely crazy for the surplus Roma tomatoes that I can't use for making pizza sauce. It is probably they're favorite food!

 

[CARS]

Quote:
Seems like raw potato peels have something in them that is not good for chickens--they're fine once they've been cooked. I can't remember what off-hand, but if you're feeding lots of it you may want to do a bit of research on it if you start seeing problems.

I think peels are fine (in moderation, like everything else in life) as long as they are not green. Which is no different than what we should do (eat). Compost the greens

 

[Organics North]

Quote:
Not everyone uses commercial feed.

My self and at least one other on this thread mix our own..

I want my birds to give me a decent amount of eggs. For me with the breeds I keep that is 180 to 200 eggs a year.. Our damp moist mature forest provides a complete range from May through September. However, a serving of crack corn a day ain't going to do it for the other 7 months of the year.. For me, I am a sustainable agriculture nut case.... No way in heck would I feed my birds industrial feed.

ON

 

[Mac in Wisco]

No way in heck would I feed my birds industrial feed.

ON

Industrial feed?

Some of it may not have the diversity of ingredients that some desire, but I don't think most of it is any less wholesome, especially when when supplemented with some natural forage.

I think the thing that puts off most people is "the big unknown". They question what kind of strange stuff the "evil" feed companies are putting in there, but for the most part it is domestic grains.

I get our organic feed from one of our local organic mills. Yes, I realize everybody is not so fortunate to have a local source... I know what is going in there as it is grown in fields all over our area and sold to the mill to fill their bins; corn, wheat, field peas, and soybeans that are processed in their own soybean processing facility. I have bought thousands of bushels of organic corn from our neighbors, who grow it right in our valley, and had it delivered to the mill to be "banked" for our use. I can get next day delivery of any custom mix I want, yet the same mill sells common mixes of bagged organic feed all over the region. Just because it comes in a bag, doesn't make it inferior.​