Hybrids

Hedgerow Speckledy Description

The Hedgerow Speckledy is a pretty commercial quality hybrid with her beetle green black shining through her feathers like jewels. Her genetic breeding is part Marans and part Rhode Island Red. The Speckledy (pronounced Speckle Dee) makes a “spectacular” addition to your flock, and everyone invariably wants one. From a distance she looks grey but when you get closer you can see that she has a beauty that is particularly noticeable in the sun when the black shines though. Her vivid red comb and wattles contrast beautifully with the colour of her feathers.

To an untrained eye our Hedgerow Speckledy looks similar in appearance to a Coucou Marans, but there are some marked differences. She doesn’t lay a dark brown egg as a Marans does. Her neck feather look more like a Sussex (columbian) pattern. Her legs are clean and unfeathered too. She is not quite as stockily built as a Marans.

Hedgerow Speckledy Breed Temperament

She is a very calm and peaceful hen and will therefore enjoy a cuddle once she has decided she can trust you. This breed often has a tendency to be quite chatty. Speckledy hybrids are expected to be non-broody which is normal for most hybrids however, there may be the odd one who didn’t read the manual.

Breed Size

The Speckledy is classified as a large fowl – light.

Eggs

A Speckledy will lay over 300 large light brown eggs in her first laying year. Her first eggs will be smaller however, she will produce larger eggs over the coming weeks.

Further Information

To find out more of our other types of chickens please see our chickens for sale page. If you feel the need to learn more about garden chicken keeping you can try one of our courses. It will fill in all the blanks in your knowledge, even those you didn’t know you had!

Hedgerow Blue Description

This Hedgerow Blue chicken is a very popular powder blue beauty and we normally sell out of these very quickly. She is a commercial hybrid created using top producing strains of Blue Plymouth Rock and Barred Plymouth Rock. Her blue colouring can vary enormously from pale grey right through to a darker blue/grey. She has lovely darker lacing around the edge of each feather which is more noticeable in some hens than others. Her neck feathers are darker too and again it is more prominent in some hens rather than others. These hens are very similar looking to a hen known as a Bluebell.

Hedgerow Blue Temperament

Personality wise, she is a calm hen with a good character, however, they can vary enormously in terms of bravery. Some birds can be very skittish whereas others are very “in your face”. They don’t generally cause any problems within a mixed flock. This blue chicken is a sweet-natured beauty and is a pleasure to own.

Breed Size

Our Blue has quite a matronly build, but neither too big nor too small.

Eggs

Our Hedgerow Blue will lay in the region of 300 delicious largish darker brown eggs in her first laying year. The eggs size will start off fairly small as she is learning her “craft” but they increase in size gradually over the course of the following few weeks. She is considered to be point of lay between 22 and 25 weeks

Eggs are laid in their highest quantity in the hens first laying year which is 52 weeks after point of lay. The second laying year will, therefore, have a slight reduction in eggs numbers. The third laying year will have an even more marked reduction in the numbers of eggs produced. Egg production is a big strain on the hens resources, therefore, hybrids – due to their high numbers of yearly eggs – will stop laying sooner than pure breeds. The term live fast – die young is applicable to most hybrids.

Further information

More info on our birds for sale can be found here. If you are looking to join us on one of our courses please check out our courses page

Hedgerow Goldilocks Breed Description

The Hedgerow Goldilocks is a new version of a hybrid that we haven’t stocked before. We are now delighted to offer some for sale. She is a commercial quality hybrid which comes from a Brown Leghorn and Sussex recipe. She is more golden round the neck than the Brown Leghorn in her genetics hence her fetching name. We have not got adult birds yet so the gallery picture is a picture of a grower. The other Goldilocks picture in the gallery is a hen balanced on my hand. I wanted to show the colouring of her back feathers. When she grows up she will be rather good looking we reckon. A hen changes quite a bit from their grower colouring. The adult hen is going to be more golden still.

Goldilocks Breed Temperament

The Sussex in her makeup will tone down the liveliness of the Leghorn so this Goldilocks is a rather more mellow bird in comparison with a standard Leghorn.

Breed Size

Our Hedgerow Goldilocks is classified as a large fowl – light. She looks more like a Leghorn shape rather than a Sussex shape.

Eggs

A Hedgerow Goldilocks is expected to lay 280-300 cream eggs in her first laying year. The Leghorn in her will drive egg numbers for sure so she certainly won’t disappoint in egg laying terms.

Further information

More information is to be found on our chickens for sale page. If you would like to learn more about chicken keeping you will find more about our courses here

Availability

We don’t have any of these hens available at the moment at Hedgerow Henporium.

Hedgerow Rhode Rock Description

A Hedgerow Rhode Rock is a glossy commercial hybrid. She is a product of Rhode Island Red and Barred Plymouth Rock. She is a mostly black chicken, but it’s no ordinary black. When the sun shines on her she lights up with a lovely beetle green sheen to her feathers with a stunning amber bib. She is similar in colour to a Black Rock but she is a hybrid. She will produce approx 300 delicious brown eggs in her first laying year. Rhode Rocks are very friendly birds and are always at the front when there is something delicious on the menu. She is also calm and a very good addition to a garden flock. The amber bib is variable in that it can be a large area in some hens and a faint colour in others. No two are exactly the same. Her petticoats are fluffy and matt black so lack the sheen of the rest of her body feathers. Her comb and wattles are quite small and bright red in an adult.

Rhode Rocks are not Black Rocks

With looks very similar to a Black Rock, they are often mistaken for the same breed, however, this is incorrect to call her this. She is a high-quality hybrid but she lacks the traditional breeding which has gone into the official Black Rock chickens info here. A Rhode Rock may well lay more eggs over a shorter period due to her scientifically controlled origins. She is also just as beautiful as the official Black Rock. If you want to source an official and genuine Black Rock check out this page on our website Black Rock Chickens ® as we are official agents for the Wirral, Merseyside, Deeside and North Cheshire area.

Breed Temperament of Rhode Rock

A Hedgerow Rhode Rock is friendly, and calm with people and makes a very good garden chicken. They may sometimes be a little boisterous with other more timid chicken breeds. They often become head chicken or at least high ranking in a mixed flock due to their confident and sassy nature.

Breed Size

The Rhode Rock is classified as a large fowl -light.

Eggs

The eggs are large and medium brown.

Further Reading

More info on the rest of our stock is listed under our chickens for sale page here. Courses for correctly looking after chickens and learning the tricks to an easy experience are on our courses page.

Availability

We don’t have any Rhode Rocks currently at Hedgerow Henporium

Hedgerow Buff Barred Description

A Hedgerow Buff Barred is a beautifully marked commercial style hybrid hen. She is a little different from the usual Rhode Island Red based hybrids. Not all hybrids look the same and she is visually very different and we think she is much prettier. The Buff Barred is a product between a Barred Rhode Island Red and Rhode Island Red. Her attractive feathers have soft cream barring on a red background to her petticoat feathers. There is a smattering of black and cream on a background of red over her wings and back. Her tail sports a black tip as do her neck hackles. She is a beautiful and productive member to add to your flock.

Buff Barred Breed Temperament

The Hedgerow Buff Barred is a calm and friendly bird but with an adventurous streak. She loves to investigate new things. As she has Rhode Island Red in her she is very confident and will hold her own in a mixed flock of hens however her Rhode Island genetics might make her rather a strong character so she might not be well suited to a more timid flock. This particular hybrid hen will always be top or fairly close to the top of the pecking order in most flocks.

Breed Size

She is classified as large fowl – light.

Eggs

A Buff Barred is a top egg layer, with around 300 large brown shelled eggs in her first laying year. She will lay less in subsequent years as all hens do.

Further information

More info on our birds for sale can be found here. If you are looking to join us on one of our courses please check out our courses page

Partridge Leghorn Description

The Hedgerow Partridge Leghorn is a gorgeous commercial hybrid hen resulting from Gold and Partridge Brown Leghorns. These pictures definitely do not do her justice.  They are more slender than the other hens we have but their colours are stunning. She has yellow and chestnut neck hackles, grey petticoats, and a rich mahogany to the wings and back interspersed with black and grey pencilling. They look fairly similar in colour to a Welsummer chicken.

Breed Temperament of the Hedgerow Partridge Leghorn

As she is a Leghorn she is a very active and inquisitive bird. Never far away when there are worms to be had. Leghorns in general are quite flighty and aloof, however with considerate handling they can be very friendly. Chase a Leghorn and you will always chase a Leghorn. Their acrobatics when you do decide to chase them will tie you in knots, so don’t begin.

Breed Size

The Partridge Leghorn is classified as a large fowl – light. They are a bit like the Whippets of the chicken world. As they are lighter and more active than most other large fowl. They are pretty good fliers as their body weight is lighter than most large fowl, consequently they may need wing clipping if escaping will put them in danger.

Eggs

Leghorn eggs are large and white or may be cream in some individuals. She will lay 280 eggs in her first laying year. They usually come into lay between 20 and 22 weeks of age. Her first “pullet” eggs will be small but will grow larger over the coming weeks.

Further Reading

If you are wanting to know more about our other chickens you will find more on our chickens for sale page. Do you have a thirst for chicken knowledge? If so we run regular courses in keeping chickens which give you masses of extra info and support.

Hedgerow Cuckoo Description

The Hedgerow Cuckoo is a pretty commercial quality hybrid with her beetle green black shining through her feathers like jewels. Her genetic breeding is part Barred Plymouth Rock and part Rhode Island Red. The Cuckoo makes a “spectacular” addition to your flock, and everyone invariably wants one. From a distance she looks grey but when you get closer you can see that she has a beauty that is particularly noticeable in the sun when the black shines though. Her vivid red comb and wattles contrast beautifully with the colour of her feathers.

To an untrained eye our Hedgerow Cuckoo looks similar in appearance to a Coucou Marans, but there are some marked differences. She doesn’t lay a dark brown egg as a Marans does. Her legs are clean and unfeathered too. She is not quite as stockily built as a Marans.

Hedgerow Cuckoo Breed Temperament

She is a very calm and peaceful hen and will therefore enjoy a cuddle once she has decided she can trust you. This breed often has a tendency to be quite chatty. Cuckoo hybrids are expected to be non-broody which is normal for most hybrids however, there may be the odd one who didn’t read the manual.

Breed Size

The Cuckoo is classified as a large fowl – light.

Eggs

A Hedgerow Cuckoo will lay over 300 large light brown eggs in her first laying year. Her first eggs will be smaller however, she will produce larger eggs over the coming weeks.

Further Information

To find out more of our other types of chickens please see our chickens for sale page. If you feel the need to learn more about garden chicken keeping you can try one of our courses. It will fill in all the blanks in your knowledge, even those you didn’t know you had!

Hedgerow Lavender Breed Description

Hedgerow Lavender is a very pale grey bird with a smattering of dark grey or black splashes in some individuals. She is commercial hybrid using top strains of Rhode Island Red and White Leghorn.  She has a small amount of ginger feathers at the top of her head and the front of her neck, which is more noticeable in some hens more than others.

The Lavender hen is a slender bird that gets chunkier with age, much like Leghorns do.

Breed Temperament of a Hedgerow Lavender

Personality wise a Hedgerow Lavender is a slightly nervous hen and has a good character. They can vary enormously in terms of bravery. Some birds can be very skittish whilst others are very “in your face”. They don’t generally cause any problems within a mixed flock.

Breed Size

A Hedgerow Lavender is classified as large fowl – light. She has quite a slim and sleek build, but neither too big nor too small.

Egg Production for Lavender Hens

Lavender hens can be expected to lay a large number of cream coloured eggs especially in her first laying year. Her egg is a very good size too. The early eggs will be quite small to start with but will increase in size over the coming few weeks.

Further information

If you need any more information about other breeds check out our chickens for sale page, here. If you are keen to learn more a chicken keeping course might be right up your street. A course is the easiest way to get loads of expert knowledge under your belt. Details here

Amber Breed Description

The Hedgerow Amber chicken is a lovely commercial hybrid lady. Top strains of Rhode Island White and Rhode Island Red are in her breed profile. Rhodie based chicken genetics are in most of the top egg producing breeds, therefore, she is almost an egg factory on legs. She is a creamy white hen with varying amounts of amber across her wings and back. Some ambers have lots of dark amber, and some have a faint amber hint to the feathers. She is very beautiful indeed however we could be described as biased. We think they do look very feminine with their soft colouring. Amber link is the name that is also often used to describe this hybrid.

Amber Temperament

Hedgerow Amber Chickens in common with all Rhode Islands, have a friendly, calm and inquisitive nature. It is unusual for the Ambers to be aggressive with their coop mates. They usually stand their ground very well with other chickens of a similar size.

Breed Size

An Amber chicken is classified as a large fowl. She is fairly stocky which gets more obvious with maturity.

Eggs

She is a top producer of about 300 light brown eggs in her first laying year. This is 52 weeks following her start of laying. In common with other commercial hybrids the egg numbers tail off each year.

At about 22 weeks of age she will start to lay her first eggs. The first eggs will be quite small but gradually get larger after a month or so. Her final egg size is medium to large.

Further Information

Although the Amber is a beautiful creature, if you were to consider breeding, then you would not get an Amber out of the pairing with an Amber cockerel. This is because Hybrids do not breed true to type.