Nothing works without light
Chicken life and daylight
The behavior of chickens from egg laying to moulting depends on the amount of daylight available. The length of the day varies between summer and winter. The further you move away from the Aquator, the greater the difference in day length between the seasons. Here in Germany, the day of the summer solstice on June 21 lasts around 16 hours. The day of the winter solstice on December 21 (the shortest day of the year), on the other hand, is only about 8 hours long.
As the days slowly get shorter in the fall, the hen notices this and prepares for winter, when it would make no sense to produce eggs for offspring in the wild. Many chicken breeds then stop laying eggs until the following spring or only lay very few.
Instead of putting the energy into eggs, the chicken then normally begins the energy-consuming moult – the replacement of the feathers. In terms of light, our poultry are still close to nature.
Artificial lighting in the barn
To maintain egg production during the winter months, artificial lighting can work wonders for poultry. This is controlled by a timer, thus keeping the day longer. However, chickens should not be given more than 14 hours of light a day on a permanent basis, as the animals can otherwise become ill-tempered and peck and pluck at each other.
If you start using artificial lighting in the fall, it should be introduced gradually rather than suddenly. However, the light is not extended in the evening, when the chickens come into the coop to sleep at dusk, but in the morning. As a result, the birds wake up earlier, start eating and drinking earlier and also lay reliably in winter. The artificial light source does not need to be particularly bright, the main thing is that it is bright enough (at least 5 lux) so that the animals can orient themselves well.
Important: Do not use fluorescent light. Chickens have a higher visual frequency than humans and see neon light flickering, just like we do when the tube is broken.
Useful links on the subject of daylight:
– Calculate sunrise/sunset
– Background knowledge on day length and solstices
– Calculate day length around the globe