Billings Farm has been home to a variety of chickens since the 1890s. During that time, chickens were commonly raised for the dual purposes of meat and eggs and were strictly for home rather than commercial use. Our original flock consisted of Black Langshans, Crested Polish, and Buff Cochins, all of which were used for meat and eggs (both commercially and personally used), and some were even shown at local fairs! 

Nowadays Billings Farm raises Silver-Laced Wyandottes, Black Sex Links, and Amber Link chickens. Today the farm keeps a small flock of 15 laying hens. Without a rooster as part of the flock, the eggs laid by our hens are never fertilized and therefore will never hatch into chicks.  

Beginning at the age of six months, hens lay between 50 to 300 eggs per year and continue to do so for around six to seven years. They lay more during the longer summer days and fewer during the shorter winter days. Different breeds lay different colors of eggs; our chickens lay white, light brown, and dark brown eggs. Some breeds will lay blue or greenish eggs.  

In the warmer months, our chickens live in a mobile chicken coop, often called a “chicken tractor.” This allows us to care for both the chickens and the land as it provides the chickens with indoor nesting boxes, food and water, and plenty of space to roam around eating bugs and aerating the ground wherever the mobile coop travels to.