Fresh Free-Range Eggs

Happy, Healthy Hens

Happy, healthy hens are at the heart of our fresh eggs. Our eclectic flock is made up of a variety of breeds that have come to us from a variety of places. Some were rehomed to us due to friends bumping up against city ordinances, some were leftovers from farm store “chick days”, some were rescued from research farms, and some we ordered from Murray McMurray Hatchery in Webster City, Iowa, our very favorite hatchery.

We have been fortunate that all of our lovely ladies, whenever and wherever they have come to us, have learned to get along just fine, whether they’re scritching and scratching around their play yard, resting or laying in their cozy nesting boxes, or jostling for roosting position in their spacious coop as night falls.

Domestic poultry in rural Iowa has to share space with native wildlife. So much of our wildlife habitat is being destroyed daily, those creatures are being pushed onto our 14-acre sanctuary state. In quite a different idea of what free-range hens should be!

This is why our hens have a comfortable indoor coop, and year-round access to a large outdoor “play pen” that, while being outdoors and offering natural sunlight, vegetation and scrounging for bugs, worms, and other chicken treats, is fully fenced and as protected as it can be against the many predators taking shelter in the timbered acres of our property,.

Our hens enjoy eating locally prepared layer feed, along with what we call “Chicken Salad”… yummy veggie peels and garden trimmings. They especially like apples and carrot peels, and will spend enjoyable afternoons pecking at Jack-O-Lanterns past their prime. In addition, we supplement their meals with oyster shells and ground egg shells to provide the necessary grit and calcium to product the highest quality egg

Chicken Trivia

Chickens begin to lay eggs when they reach somewhere between 4 and 6 months of age, depending on the breed. And, depending on the breed, can be expected to lay between 5 and 7 eggs per week. After a couple of years, the number of eggs a hen lays begins to decrease, until she no longer lays any eggs at all, several years before her natural lifespan expires. Commercial egg farmers regularly dispose of hens with decreased egg production, as it is illogical to continue to feed and care for livestock that are not contributing to the bottom line

At Harbacheck Harvest, for better or not, we don’t always act logically. Once in our care, a hen can be assured of living out her natural lifespan among our flock, enjoying a well-earned retirement even after her days of laying eggs have passed. It’s just what good neighbors do.

Coop-to-Carton Freshness

Eggs are gathered by hand daily, and sold coop-to-carton. That means we leave our eggs unwashed to preserve their natural barrier against early spoiling. We do scrape off bits of dirt or wood shavings, but we leave the naturally occurring protective coating on the egg. This helps eggs stay fresher, longer. Be sure to wash eggs in their shells before using them and wash your hands carefully after handling raw eggs.

Year-Round Ups and Downs

We offer fresh eggs throughout the year. However, the number of eggs we have available rises and falls with the seasons. Hens are light-sensitive, so they lay less frequently during the winter months. Egg laying also drops off when a hen is molting (shedding her outer layer of feathers), which happens once or twice a year. In general, our roadside market operates on a first-come, first-served basis, but we’d be happy to reserve a dozen or two eggs for you. Contact us and we’ll be in touch about your egg order.