Fresh Eggs Daily®

If you're a fan of Maple Walnut ice cream, you're going to love this homemade version. Using my basic vanilla bean ice cream recipe, and simply adding some maple syrup and walnuts, I created a delicious Maple Walnut Ice Cream.

If egg production is your primary goal from your backyard chickens, then you can't go wrong with any of these breeds that are known for their egg laying prowess. I think most of us raise chickens for several reasons. Of course fresh eggs are a part of it, but some choose breeds that lay different color eggs , some choose family-friendly breeds .  Others are interested in breeds that will do well in hot climates , or those that thrive in cold climates . 

Fresh raspberries and white chocolate turn vanilla ice cream from plain to yum! I've read that  New Englanders eat more ice cream  than the rest of the country, and Massachusetts leads the pack, which is odd since it's cold there for so much of the year, but I can say as a kid growing up in the state, I remember going for ice cream all the time in the summer.

A hen's diet can affect how her eggs taste, but not as much as you might think. Now that you raise your own chickens, you are likely convinced that the eggs your chickens lay taste better than store bought eggs. It's no mystery that eggs from your backyard are  fresher  than their commercial counterparts . But do they actually taste better?

Fowl pox is a fairly common, easily spread virus that can plague backyard chickens flocks. Fowl pox is a fairly common, highly infectious virus that can affect chickens, ducks and other types of poultry and can spread through a flock quite easily through direct contact or through the air.  

Choosing the best location for a chicken coop is one of the most important decisions in getting started with a backyard flock. Chickens need a secure home to sleep in and lay their eggs in.  Called a chicken coop or hen house, it can be built from scratch,  assembled from a kit, purchased turnkey or repurposed from a shed or playhouse.  But regardless, the chicken coop location is of utmost importance.   The ultimate position of the coop is critical for your chickens' health, happiness and, of course, safety. 

Getting started with baby chicks isn't difficult once you are familiar with the basics necessary for them to grow up into happy, healthy chickens. So you've decided to start raising chickens!  I assume you've checked with your town or municipality and know the rules as far as how many chickens you are allowed, if you need a permit for either the chickens or their coop (or both), if you can have roosters, etc.  And now you're ready to get started.

Vitamin D is essential for backyard chickens optimal health and egg laying ability. Just like humans, chickens need sunshine too. The UV rays from the sun provide essential Vitamin D to both people and pets.

Each spring it's a good idea to do a deep chicken coop cleaning. I rake out all the bedding, scrape the roosting bars, clean out the nesting boxes, and get my coop ready for spring chicks!  Keeping a clean chicken coop is, of course, optimal for the health of your flock. Your coop doesn't need to be spotless, but it does need to be dry and free of mold, mildew, parasites and the like.  It may surprise you that I only do a full-on, down to the studs, deep cleaning twice a year. Yup, that's it.

It's easy to dye Easter eggs using natural plant dyes made from foods you probably already have in your pantry or kitchen.  Dyeing eggs at Easter is a time-honored tradition in many cultures. You can make it even more natural and creative when you use veggies and spices from your kitchen and pantry to color the eggs.  There's no need to use commercial dyes or food coloring. It's healthier for your kids and chickens, and more economical to use plants - specifically vegetable peels and skins - especially if you grow your own veggies. 

Homemade Dijonnaise sauce is deliciously easy to make using fresh eggs from your backyard chickens. Once you start raising chickens, you'll likely find yourself with so many eggs, you won't know what to do with them all.  Homemade mayonnaise is one great way to not only use up all those extra eggs, but it's also so much more delicious than anything you can buy.

Save money by mixing your own herbs and edible flowers for your nesting  boxes and chicken coop. Everybody loves sprinkling aromatic herbs in their chicken coop .  Am I right? Fresh or dried, so many different types of herbs and edible flowers look pretty, smell nice and are even thought to keep rodents and other pests out of your coop .

Adding flax seed to a chickens diet results in healthier hens and more nutritious eggs. Fun fact:  A hen is able to direct the nutrients in the food she eats directly into her eggs.  Because of this, it's important to provide your chickens with the best diet possible.  There is a  proven direct link  between the feed a hen eats and the quality and nutrition value of her eggs. Adding all kinds of nutrients to a chicken's diet that they then pass into the eggs they lay results in healthier hens, healthier baby chicks and more nutritious eggs.  Benefits of Flax + Omega-3 for Chickens (and Humans) Since eggs are such an important of so many people's diet, figuring out a way to increase the nutrient content in eggs is beneficial. Studies have shown that increasing the Omega-3s in a chickens diet results in higher levels of Omega-3 in their eggs.  That makes for healthier baby chicks, if those eggs hatch, or more nutritious eggs for your family to eat. Sources of Omega-3 Omega-3

In addition to providing fresh, delicious eggs, a flock of backyard chickens offers a multitude of learning lessons for homeschooling children. Backyard chickens, like dogs, cats and bunnies, make wonderful family pets. But unlike raising a dog, cat or even a bunny, raising a flock of chickens provides a multitude of learning experiences for homeschooling children beyond the basic chores.  In addition to teaching kids responsibility and routine, chicken chores help get kids outside, interested in learning where their food comes from and also can teach basic math, history and other skills. Kids of all ages can learn important life lessons from backyard chickens.

From "albumen" to "zip", this glossary of common chicken keeping terms will help you get acquainted with the jargon. When you first begin raising chickens , you're bound to run into chicken keeping terms, abbreviations and phrases that might seem like a foreign language at first. There definitely is a bit of a terminology learning curve when you are just getting started. From "albumen" to "zip", this handy glossary of 100+ common chicken keeping terms you should know that will help you get acquainted with the some of the jargon associated with backyard chickens.