Red Bucket Farm

Marilyn laid her first egg today! She's been preparing for this big moment for a few weeks. Yesterday morning she snuggled in a nest ...

We picked up our chicks at Abendroth's Hatchery on Monday morning. The hatchery was clean, friendly and well organized. Our girls were c...

So you'd like to order a few backyard chicks and you don't know where to start? First, decide why you want to raise chickens. Do you...

Cassie the Easter Egger has finally started laying eggs again! Her last egg was Dec. 21, nearly eight weeks ago. It's normal for molt...

I gathered three eggs from the hen house around 9 am this morning. One was warm and lovely; another was frozen solid with small cracks in...

What's wrong with this picture? Nothing, I suppose. Egg production from my backyard flock is way up. I should hardly be concerned! ...

Of course you know that egg production is dependent mostly on daylight. As the days grow shorter at the winter solstice, egg production n...

Some hens begin their egg-laying career with little fanfare, while other hens require extra encouragement. Generally speaking, I do not fus...

Ruby has just begun laying her first eggs! She is a hybrid known sometimes as Red Star, Comet, or Golden Buff. The females are veritable ...

I went out to gather eggs this noon and look what I found! The green egg is from Crocus the Easter Egger; the tan egg is from Squill th...

On Saturday, we volunteered as one of a dozen host sites for the Mad City Chicken Coop Tour. Visitors began arriving just after 9 am and con...

Our shipment of spring chicks arrived at Red Bucket Farm this morning via USPS. These girls hatched late Monday or early Tuesday, and were s...

At long last, all our hens are back in production! Crocus the Easter Egger laid a beautiful green egg this morning, her first egg since O...

The hens at Red Bucket Farm are laying eggs once again! After a long winter rest, the girls are back to work. Supplemental lighting has b...

We began lighting our chicken coop a week ago. We installed compact fluorescent bulbs in the rafters above the covered run and the hen ho...

I'll admit that I'm pretty frustrated with my backyard flock of hens. We haven't gathered an egg from these girls since Novem...

Several people have inquired, so here is a quick update on my molting hens. The girls are doing okay, or at least they're not complet...

As an urban farmer, the size of my chicken flock is regulated by city ordinance. Most cities with chicken ordinances permit three or four...

Welcome, Thelma and Louise! These two girls are a Delaware-Buckeye hybrid, recently acquired from an area farmer. I love their bright yel...

It's time for me to recognize that my girls are food snobs. Oh sure, they love the treats we give them---bread, pasta, rice, melon r...