When Do Chickens Start Laying Eggs? Egg Laying Basics

There is nothing like being thrilled and blessed with the first egg from your very own flock of chickens. Months of caring for your flock finally start to pay off and the excitement is real! When do chickens start laying eggs? What can be used for nest boxes? Can you keep hens laying eggs through the winter? We are here for you with all this information and more.

Egg Laying Basics Video

Below is a link to our video on egg laying basics. Click the play button if you want to view, otherwise keep going!

When do chickens start laying eggs?

If you have given your chickens good food and good care, the egg laying should start anywhere between sixteen to twenty-four weeks. It does depend on the breed. Breeds, like Leghorns, that have been bred for egg production generally lay sooner than other breeds. Some larger breeds like Brahmas may take up to seven months or more to become mature enough to lay their first egg.

We have Plymouth Barred Rocks and Black Jersey Giants. Our first egg was at 21 weeks – one of our Barred Rock hens. On average, hens start laying eggs somewhere around 6 months of age.

It should be noted that the first eggs are normally quite a bit smaller than you might expect and are sometimes abnormal looking in other ways as well. It takes a month or two to consistently get good eggs of a desirable size according to the breed.

How should you prepare for egg laying hens?

In general, chickens do not demand a lot of extra care. However, there are some things you should provide for your egg laying hens.

Nest Boxes for Egg Laying Hens

Consider where you want your chickens to start laying eggs. You can buy commercial nest boxes, but hens will generally lay their eggs in anything that is out of the way and comfortable. Crates, buckets, and baskets lined with hay or other materials are all possible options.

Just be sure that your nest boxes are about 15-18 inches off of the ground, but below the roost bars in your coop. This allows the hens to be up and out of the way and protects your eggs from the general population. It also prevents chickens from trying to roost and poop in the nest boxes at night, since they prefer the highest location possible (the roost bars). The last thing you want is poopy eggs.

Dan made our nest boxes with some free buckets from a hardware store. The buckets held heavy J-hooks, so are very sturdy and a nice size for our larger hens. Keep your eyes open for something that will work for nest boxes. We love to repurpose – below is a video on making our free nest boxes. They are working GREAT.

Be Sure Your Egg Laying Chickens Have Enough Calcium

When chickens start laying eggs, you need to make sure they have enough calcium. It is very possible that they will lay eggs that have thin, fragile shells if there is not enough calcium in their diet. Sometimes it may be no shell at all!

Start having a calcium supplement available around 18 weeks of age. Enough calcium is easily taken care of by providing crushed oyster shells. Better still, you can recycle your egg shells into a calcium supplement. Here is a link to our article on processing egg shells to use as a calcium supplement for your chickens.

Switch to Layer Feed Before the Hens Start Laying Eggs

Also at 18 weeks of age, take a week or two and transition your flock over from grower feed to layer feed. Layer feed has more calcium, vitamins and minerals that your egg-laying hens will need. Give them a half and half mix of the two feeds over a week or two, then layer feed only from that point on.

What time of day do chickens lay eggs?

As a general rule, chickens usually lay their eggs sometime during the morning. Egg laying can also occur in the afternoon, but hens will not normally lay their eggs in the dark.

After the first year with your hens, egg laying may lessen or even stop during the winter months when days are short. Here in Iowa, the days are much shorter in winter. Our shortest day is only about 9 hours. Then as it gets closer to spring and the days start to get longer, egg-laying resumes.

How can I keep chickens laying eggs in winter?

Providing some artificial light in the winter can induce hens to keep laying. They need about 10-12 hours of light per day. However, some do feel that a rest for the hens is good for them over the wintertime. They believe that it will extend the time in the hen’s life when they are producing and laying eggs.

A more natural way to ensure you have eggs during the winter, is to hatch out some new chicks every spring. Maturity for your new chickens to start laying eggs will be reached in the fall of that year. Your older hens will slow or stop laying for the winter, but your young hens will pick up the slack and continue to lay eggs throughout their first winter.

Are you going to raise your own flock of chickens? Maybe you are raising your first flock right now. Either way, we are excited for you! You are on your way to becoming more self-sufficient, and maybe we will be a small part of that. Let us know about your flock in the comment section below – what breeds do you have? Have you gotten your first egg yet? Spill it all!