Enjoy a bit of colour in your eggs

This is especially so with ‘backyarders’ who want a specific coloured egg and don’t care as much about the breed.

Traditionally eggs have been generally white and if you grew up in Australia many decades ago, the White Leghorn with its very white eggs was the go to bird.

How things have changed over the past decades and now a quick perusal of the supermarket shows that the tinted egg holds sway.

These eggs mainly come from the Isa Brown, preferred by many big producers, but heavier soft-feather breeds like the Rhode Island, Orpington and the Australorp have this quality.

Lighter soft-feather breeds such as the Ancona and Campine still go to the white egg.

These are not the only colours available though and if you want something a little special it is available.

The amazing South American breed, the Araucana, lays a blue egg, sometimes a bluey-green hue, which always begins a conversation.

Often it is hard to convince people that the inside of the egg will taste just the same and there is no difference.

You can also get a speckled egg from a Welsummer or Marans if that is your preference.

The Welsummer is making a bit of a comeback with breeders because of this quality.  

Another bird with a distinctive egg colour is the Barnevelder, a breed made popular by the great George Childs.

These eggs are a chocolate or deep brown colour and are very impressive indeed.

It is also a great idea if you are just after eggs to get a selection and have a ‘mixed dozen’ as these are great fun and make egg collecting for kids a little more exciting.

It is important to remember the egg inside is no different, it will depend on what you feed the birds how good the egg is and how yellow the yolk becomes.

Very yellow yolks are from green feed and perhaps a supply of cracked corn which are also good for the birds.

Do not use anything artificial to get this yellow colour.

Enjoy your birds and have a great 2019.