I have some new feathered friends here at my Bedford, New York farm.
I’ve been raising chickens for many years. Not only do I love keeping them for their fresh, delicious eggs, but I also enjoy learning about the different breeds and varieties. As part of good animal husbandry practices, and in order to maintain strong egg laying production, it’s very important to regenerate the chicken population from time to time. Not long ago, I attended the 2022 Northeastern Poultry Congress, a large poultry show held every year in Springfield, Massachusetts. While there, I purchased 18 chickens including Golden Speckled Hamburgs, Old English Game hens, Blue Laced Wyandottes, a Buff Cochin, and four Buff Silkie Bantam chicks. I also brought home 46 Silkie eggs, which will soon hatch right here at the farm. All these birds will be great additions to my flock.
Enjoy these photos.
Hard to resist any chick, but the Silkie Bantam is among the most popular. Can you make out my four Silkie chicks? Silkies are loved for their hair-like plumage and incredibly sweet temperaments. I have them in my antique bird cage located in my stable feed room, where it is warm and safe.
Silkies were originally bred in China. Underneath all that feathering, they have black skin and bones and five toes instead of the typical four on each foot.
Silkies are naturally more calm than most other breeds, and tend to be very friendly without any special effort to be tamed.
Silkies also have bright turquoise earlobes – another unique characteristic of the breed. Their beak is short, quite broad at the base, and is gray or blue in color. And, although it is hard to see, the Silkie’s eyes are also black.
Starter feed is a protein dense variety of chicken feed designed to meet a chick’s dietary requirements. Chicks remain on starter feed for the first six weeks and then progress to grower feed.
There is always plenty of food and lots of fresh water for these youngsters – everything is replenished or changed whenever needed.
They also get fresh leafy greens straight from my indoor greenhouse.
I wonder what their conversations are like. In general, chickens are quite vocal. They make around 30 different calls to communicate with each other, expressing everything from “I am hungry” to “there’s a predator nearby.”
On the other side of the stable feed room is my incubator from GQF Manufacturing, Inc. in Savannah, Georgia – a company that specializes in game bird and poultry supplies. Here, I have 46 Silkie eggs.
Chicken eggs take 21-days. While the eggs incubate, they are automatically turned once a day, 45-degrees each way, back and forth during this period.
Once the chickens are old enough, they are moved down to the first coop in the chicken yard to join the others.
The youngest chickens stay together in one section until all are acclimated.
Female chickens are called pullets for their first year, or until they begin to lay eggs. For most breeds, chickens generally start laying eggs around four or five months of age.
Dawa checks every nesting box daily for eggs. They are brought up every afternoon – beautiful fresh, organic, and delicious eggs.
And look at this giant hen – I love its golden buff color.
And look above – these chickens love to roost in the rafters of their enclosure.
All my chickens have clear eyes, shiny feathers, and are always very alert – signs of good health in the coop. This Silver-Laced Wyandotte hen on the left arrived here last October as a day-old chick. It’s grown so beautifully.
Food is also provided in the coops. The hanging feeders are filled with organic layer feed. It provides the hens with protein, which helps them lay strong and healthy eggs. These feeders are positioned at just the right height for easy, comfortable access.
The water is replenished several times a day. In the reflection, one can see the protective fencing above. It covers the entire chicken yard to protect my flock from flying predators such as hawks and falcons.
I’ve raised many different chicken breeds and varieties over the years – they are all so beautiful to observe. I am fascinated by their many colors and feather patterns. A bar in front of the nesting boxes serves as a nice perch. When laying, hens appreciate privacy – my coops are open all day, so the hens could go inside to their nesting boxes to lay their eggs.
My chickens have access to the yards via a ramp on the side of the coop as well as sliding doors on both ends, but they prefer to go up and down their custom made ramps.
By sunset, all the chickens are in their designated coops. I have a total of four. They stay safe inside until they are all let out again at 6am the next morning.
If you're interested in raising chickens or just love learning about all the breeds, find a poultry show near you!
Earlier this month, I attended the 2022 Northeastern Poultry Congress in Springfield, Massachusetts - a poultry show held every year at the Eastern States Exposition Center. The event features more than 2500 birds, including large fowl, waterfowl, turkeys, pigeons, Guineas, and of course, a variety of wonderful breed chickens. Various breeds of poultry are exhibited and judged for ribbons and prizes. There are also informative seminars offered on different topics, and an area for vendors of good, nutritious feed and other supplies. It’s a great way to see some of these fascinating birds and to build relationships with knowledgeable, passionate breeders.
Enjoy these photos.
The Northeastern Poultry Congress holds its annual poultry show every January. I have been making the trip to this show for several years – it is a very popular and well-attended event.
All the show birds are exhibited and judged in the Mallory Complex of the Expo Center. Visitors are able to see the various breeds up close in their crates. Each cage is tagged with the bird’s breed, color or variety, and gender.
Prior to poultry shows, these birds are bathed and groomed – every feather is in place.
There were more than a thousand chicken breeds – some with gorgeous markings and feathers. This is a Silkie – a breed of chicken named for its fluffy plumage, which is said to feel like a combination of silk and satin.
This is a Speckled Sussex hen. The Speckled Sussex was developed in Sussex County, England more than 100 years ago. It is of medium size, in the heavy breed class and has rich mahogany feathers as its base color with white tips.
This is a Frizzle. Their feathers are curly and windswept which gives them their frizzled appearance.
As part of this winter show, The Congress also offered a Funky Chicken Class. A Funky Chicken is a mixed breed bird – some are very interesting. This is a large fowl Funky rooster – his markings are very handsome. Cross breeds can have wonderful plumage colors, fantastic new egg colors, and friendly personalities.
This Champion Funky Chicken is named Ziggy. She is a pullet, or a young hen less than one year old.
The Black Breasted Red Cubalaya is a rare breed most notable for the pea comb and low carried tail. This variety also features gorgeous shades of black and red feathers.
The Silver Laced Wyandotte is the original variety of Wyandotte chicken. It has silver-white plumage sharply marked with lustrous greenish black edging. The Wyandotte is an American breed of chicken developed in the 1870s. It was named for the indigenous Wyandot people of North America. The Wyandotte is a dual-purpose breed. It is a popular show bird and has many color variants.
The Sebright is a British breed of Bantam chicken. It is a true Bantam – a miniature bird with no corresponding large version. Look at its markings. It’s named after Sir John Saunders Sebright, who created it as an ornamental breed in the early 19th century. The Silver Sebright rooster is also hen-feathered, meaning it has rounded feathers rather than the pointed feathers typical of males.
The Golden Sebrights, such as this hen, have stunning golden bay feathers laced in black.
Poultry shows are family-friendly and allow visitors to see both traditional and new breeds. The first poultry show in the United States was in 1854, before there were even standards of showing.
Some birds are quite small and fit in the palms of one’s hands.
While others are noticeably large.
This is a large fowl salmon Faverolle cockerel. Faverolles are good-sized chickens with beards, muffs, feathered legs, and feet, and fifth toes. Males are straw-colored with reddish brown and black markings.
The Silver Spangled Hamburg has lustrous, greenish black spangles on silvery white plumage giving them an interesting polk-a-dot appearance. They also have rose combs, white ear lobes, and leaden blue shanks and toes.
The birds are judged against others of the same color, sex and age. They are also judged based on variety and breed. In the end, chickens compete against large fowl and water fowl.
The birds are ranked in each of their classes and then compete for super champion. Here is a large fowl being shown for judging.
The Northeastern Poultry Congress is always very informative and very interesting. I always learn something new when I attend. And, I did bring a few birds home with me too — I will share more of those photos in a future blog, stay tuned.
Here in the Northeast, it's bitter cold. Temperatures are expected to hit 30-degrees Fahrenheit at my Bedford, New York farm today - very different from the weather on the Caribbean nation of the Dominican Republic, where I recently spent a glorious week with friends.
If you follow me on Instagram @MarthaStewart48, you may remember my trip to the Dominican Republic over the holidays. Most of our time was spent in La Romana, at the beautiful resort complex of Casa de Campo, about 70-miles from the historic city of Santo Domingo. We went fishing, enjoyed delicious meals, and relaxed on the most pristine beaches. We also visited the village of Altos de Chavon, home to the Altos de Chavon Cultural Center Foundation, a non-profit educational and cultural entity dedicated to maintaining an arts community within the Dominican Republic. It was a fantastic trip with perfect weather every day.
Enjoy my photos.
My friend, Dominique Bluhdorn, owns the most gorgeous home called La Favorita. Look at the breathtaking views.
Dominique’s house has many seating arrangements in many different scenic locations such as this covered loggia, which is a covered space running along the length of a structure similar to a porch, but with columns or arches on the open side.
This is the formal living room — where we did not sit once.
And here is her swimming pool – also with such delightful views.
These are the steps to the beach and to the swimming pavillion at the end of the pier.
And these are the sitting arrangements on the way to the hot tub, where I went every single day at 7am.
This is the swimming pavilion, with its thatched roof – it’s definitely a favorite place to sit and relax. Dominique’s home is within the boundaries of Casa de Campo Resort and Villas – a seven-thousand acre hotel, resort, and residential community on the southeastern coast of the Dominican Republic. The exclusive retreat was built by Dominique’s father, industrialist, Charles Bluhdorn.
Here is one of the dinner dishes we enjoyed – cooked wahoo fish with butter, capers, herbs, and lime. Wahoo is a scombrid fish found worldwide in tropical and subtropical seas – it’s in the same family as mackarel and tuna.
Here is my plate along with rice, avocado, and traditional Dominican Republic empanaditas, or bite-sized empanadas.
And of course… Martha’s Chard, my new wine from 19 Crimes. It was unanimously everyone’s favorite wine at dinner. Look out for it – it will be in stores near you very soon.
For breakfast the next morning, we had house eggs poached with broiled tomato, potato balls, cauliflower, onions, and herbs.
Here are two poached eggs with scallions – perfectly cooked.
The sunrises and sunsets were absolutely amazing. This photo was taken at 7:25am.
We saw some beautiful marine animals. This is a star fish, or sea star. They come in a variety of colors, shapes, and sizes. They also all have spines covering their upper surfaces…
… And soft undersides. When looking at the underside of a live sea star, one can see its tube feet wiggling.
For another meal, we shared a platter of grilled meats and chicken. Dominican cuisine is made up of Spanish, indigenous Taíno, Middle-Eastern, and African influences. And the largest, most important meal of the day is lunch.
Here is a platter of lobster, grilled to perfection.
And here are the Island tamales, known in the Dominican Republic as pasteles en hoja – often stuffed with meats.
We had salads with every meal – fresh, ripe tomatoes, avocados, cucumbers, pickled onions, and more.
Here’s my first helping – it may, or may not have been, my last. Everything was so flavorful.
On another day, I went to Puntacana and visited its Ecological Foundation, a project of the Puna Cana Resort and Club. I learned about their composting process. The garden is completely farmed using organic waste and soil from a worm-composting shed. The processed compost at the bottom is then sent back to the resort’s kitchens as well as other local restaurants, and a weekly local farmers’ market.
Here I am with Jake Kheel – sustainability innovator and Vice President of Grupo Puntacana Foundation.
The beaches stretched for miles and miles.
Here I am on the fishing boat – I wonder what we’ll catch.
I learned some great techniques from fishing with Kevin Fox.
And look, we caught a nice sized wahoo.
Casa de Campo is also home to Altos de Chavón a one-of-a-kind 16th century replica Mediterranean village. This project was conceived by Bluhdorn and the Italian architect, Roberto Copa. Dominique is the current president of the Altos de Chavón Cultural Center Foundation.
The entire village is located atop the Chavón River. The project began in 1976 when the construction of a nearby road and bridge crossing the river was blasted through a mountain of stone. The stones were used to create the village and celebrates the artisans of the Dominican Republic.
Much of Altos de Chavon is made from coral block and terra cotta. This giant fish sculpture is part of a fountain – it looks like it has been here for centuries.
Each stone was hand cut, each wooden door frame was handcrafted, and each wrought-iron detail hand-forged. The village was finally completed and inaugurated in 1982.
Another attraction in Altos de Chavon is this five-thousand seat amphitheater. It is mainly used for music concerts and other performances. The amphitheater is so beautiful and carved all from stone. The term “amphitheater” derives from the ancient Greek words meaning “on both sides” or “around” and “place for viewing”.
It was a such a wonderful get-away. I hope to return again sometime soon.
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