The 55 Flowery Hen is a remarkable autosexing breed developed in the mid-20th century with both practicality and beauty in mind. Beyond their striking, speckled plumage, 55 Flowery Hens are prolific layers of jumbo white eggs, offering both reliability and abundance in the nest box. Hardy, efficient, and visually stunning, they bring together utility and elegance, making them a favorite among poultry keepers who value both performance and charm in their flock!
Breed History
55 Flowery Hens were created –spoiler alert!—in 1955 in Sweden by Father Martin Silverudd, the same visionary breeder behind the Silverudd’s Blue. In fact, the 55 Flowery Hens were his very first creation, and more than half a century later, it remains his most enduring success. While the half-dozen or so of the Silverudd chicken breeds have largely slid into obscurity, 55s remain in a few commercial flocks in their native country. While most of Silverudd’s other breeds have faded into obscurity, the 55 still persists in a handful of commercial flocks in its native country. Silverudd’s goal was simple yet ambitious: to design an autosexing chicken that could produce eggs in commercial quantities. By crossing different Leghorn varieties, he succeeded in creating a breed whose chicks can be sexed at hatch by their feather patterns and whose males and females remain visually distinct throughout their lives.
Today, the 55 Flowery Hen continue to deliver on both beauty and utility. The hens are prolific producers of jumbo, round white eggs, the largest of any breed we keep here at Greenfire Farms, making the 55s not only a striking bird, but also one of Silverudd’s greatest achievements!
Appearance and Behavior
As day-old chicks, 55 Flowery Hens are easy to sex thanks to their distinct down patterns: males are pale, with blonde fluff on the backs of their heads and light yellow or white bodies, while females display a dark brown or gray chipmunk stripe down the back. As they mature, the difference becomes even more striking—roosters are almost entirely white, while hens are adorned with the beautiful speckled plumage that gives the breed its “flowery” name. There are 2 color varieties of the 55 Flowery Hen: gold and silver, with the gold being more common. At Greenfire Farms, we maintain flocks that produce both, though most offspring are gold.
Roosters tend to be between 5 to 6.5 lbs, while hens average about 4 to 5 lbs. Hens are prolific layers of jumbo, white eggs, laying a whopping 200 to 250 eggs per year! Though hens will occasionally go broody, they are not especially dependable mothers and are quick to leave their nests if eggs are disturbed.
Active and alert, 55 Flowery Hens are excellent foragers and prefer to spend their days on the move. True to their flighty nature, they instinctively take to higher ground when threatened. Roosters are typically attentive guardians of their hens and generally not aggressive toward people. However, they can be a bit more challenging to integrate into a flock, as they are protective of their ladies and prefer not to share.
One quirk often noted by customers is that hens can be quite independent when given the chance to free range. They don’t always return to the coop at night, sometimes choosing instead to roost in trees or even on rooftops. We’ve found a rooster-to-hen ratio of 1:10 works well for the 55 Flowery Hen.
Breed Standard
Hens display striking white speckling across their plumage, accented by white tips on the tail feathers. Roosters, by contrast, are predominantly solid white, occasionally showing light gold barring on the saddle feathers. The 55 Flowery Hen features white earlobes, clean legs free of feathers in shades of yellow to pearl, and a straight comb.
Since the 55 Flowery Hen is essentially a Leghorn derivative, it should be bred to the Leghorn standard of perfection. The primary distinctions lie in feather coloration, as well as the roosters’ tails, which tend to be flatter and more squirrel-like compared to other Leghorn varieties.
For a more detailed look at the 55 Flowery Hen, visit this link, just a heads up, you will have to translate this page to English: Fifty-five Flowery Gold – Swedish Cultural Chicken Association
Hatching Eggs
We incubate at 99.5°F and 55% humidity. After the eggs are placed in the hatcher for lockdown, you can typically expect about a 70% hatch rate. Chicks routinely hatch on day 21; however, it’s not unusual to have a few stragglers making their appearance a day or two later. As with most autosexing breeds, you can also expect a fairly even split of males and females—typically close to 50/50.
Defects
On occasion, female chicks may hatch with a faint chipmunk pattern, which typically results in lighter speckling as adults. While this is not inherently a disqualifying trait, females with a darker, more defined chipmunk stripe generally develop into more attractive birds. We select against the lighter-patterned females, though you may choose to manage your flock according to your own breeding goals.
Notes
Our gold and silver flocks are kept together rather than in separate breeding groups, so you should expect a mix of both color varieties when ordering hatching eggs. For day-old chick orders, we make every effort to provide either gold or silver individuals rather than a mixed group. If you have a specific color preference, please contact us—we will do our best to accommodate your request.
Import Notes
Greenfire Farms was the first to import this breed into the United States.
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