Swedish Flower Hens

 

 

As of June 2016, we decided to

stop breeding Swedish Flower Hens and

just focus on breeding our own

Catskill Homesteader Chickens.

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If you are looking for Swedish Flower Hens,

I'd recommend joining this Facebook group:

https://www.facebook.com/groups/393227777394043/

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Three other NY State breeders on that group

that I'd reccommend are:

Carmela Migliore, Tobie McCarty & Lisa Mawson

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My Experience with the Swedish Flower Hens:

(Written 9/4/15)

 

To answer a question about the Swedish Flower Hens & if they're "good layers" - it all depends on what you're comparing them to. If they're in a free-range environment or where they can forage a lot, then that's where they excel & therefore they won't eat as much purchased grain, making the eggs they lay more "efficient". If compared to today's "high-octane" layers that are bred to be efficient when confined and only fed layer mash, then the SFH would fall short in their production, as would most other "breeds". 

From my experience with them, which the oldest hens are 1 1/2 years old, they lay creamy light brown eggs, usually medium to large, usually a longer, narrow "egg shape"; other breeders have reported extra large eggs when they get older. 

I'd estimate when they're pullets, they lay 6-7 eggs per week, sometimes with an occasional "break" of a few days in-between. Once they've been laying for a few months, it's more like 4-6 eggs/week; by 1 year old, they lay 3-5 eggs per week, depending on their "mood", season and availability of foraging "stuff" and/or grain.

Some people have reported them "dropping off laying" after 1 year old, and while I did experience some drop, they haven't stopped laying. I do expect them to molt this fall, at which time they will stop laying until they're done growing the new feathers.

One of the original SFH hens decided to switch breeding groups (read: good flyers) and she's been laying 3-5 eggs a week, and that's with no light in the coop. Because they are a landrace, I think they do best if allowed to "ebb/flow" with the season, rather than try to get them to lay year-round. 

As far as dual-purpose, they're not "big & meaty", more of a medium-sized chicken. Not as skinny as leghorns, but I think the hens are supposed to be 4 - 5 lbs, but I've never weighed mine. 

 

I think the main reason for me wanting to raise the SFH is because they're rare, unique heritage and they're "eye-candy". The only thing I wish is that I could get the "other" color varieties, since mine tend to be only the blue or black based red "millie fluer". And they have unique personalities, what it'd describe as "spunky" - not extremely flighty, but they love to fly; adventuresome, and fences are viewed as a challenge, because the other side always looks better! They're not a cuddly lap chicken (from my experience anyways), but if they're used to human contact, they don't mind being handled (if you can catch them first :) . And boy are they "talkers" and like their routine - if I delay in letting them out of the coop, we can hear them "complaining". 

 

While they're hard to hatch in an incubator, under a broody hen (which they're not typically), their eggs hatch very well. They seem to do the best when raised by a broody hen, and they very quickly pick up on foraging. I have some young ones now that are around 5 weeks old that avid foragers, and knew exactly what to do the moment they were given the opportunity, plus their broody-raised mom helped teach 'em. 

 

Here's some of my posts that include something about the SFH's, and this website has some good photos & info about the breed also:

http://southernvapoultry.weebly.com/swedish-flower-hens.html