and more chicken tips
(Page 2 of 2)
January/February 1971
By Esther Shuttleworth
As Roberta's adviser said, there's no need to buy "store bought" chicks. You can hatch your own if you have fertile eggs. The average hen can cover 21 eggs but she has to be set in a place where no one will disturb her. If you use your brooder house you can set several hens in the same room provided each has her own box or nest.
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Sometimes, however, it's impossible to find a broody hen. If that's the case, you can scout around for one of the incubators that many old farmers have tucked away in the attic. We used to have one that held about 100 eggs.
One final point: Don't sell the large English Leghorn short. Folks used to let their Leghorns (the layin' hens) fend for themselves while feeding ground grain to some heavier breeds reserved for the table. Naturally, when the Leghorns finally went into the stew pot, they were tough. Properly fed plenty of corn, wheat and other grain, they're actually better eating than White Rocks and other heavyweights.
For that matter, we've had Big English Leghorn hens weigh as much as six pounds and you'll find that you get more meat from a three pound Leghorn fryer than a heavy fryer of the same size because the Leghorn's bones are smaller:
For a real treat, start some Leghorn chicks in late February or early March. By late May or the first of June (maybe even sooner if you really pour on the feed) you'll have 1-1/2 to 2 pound broilers that are just right for individual servings: One chicken to each eager eater. Talk about tender and delicious!
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