Wendy Burns
Real Estate Agent
Specializing In:
Apex • Cary • Holly Springs • and Raleigh • NC
Apex • Cary • Holly Springs • and Raleigh • NC
Backyard Chickens in Apex
There is a growing movement of people wanting to get closer to the origins of their food and in touch with the rewards of nurturing and growing their own small bounties. Small home gardens are cropping up and local grown produce is in demand. In Apex, there is a new Saturday Farmers market in the parking lot of the chamber of commerce/ old train depot. Local farmers and artisans offer free range meat, locally grown fruits and vegetables, honey, soaps, home baked goods, landscaping plants and more. Several vegetable stands have popped up along the roads with local farm grown vegetables. I have also seen a few rustic signs posted in yards advertising “free range eggs.” Always loving chickens in artwork and pottery, I started to wonder about the possibility of having a few hens in my Apex backyard.
First of all what I find in the local ordinances is that the town of Apex allows backyard hens within the Apex Town limits, but no noisy Roosters. Further research into the basics revealed that one happy hen produces one egg a day, so 2-3 hens should eventually produce enough eggs to feed a family and a little extra to give to neighbors. Maybe an occasional gift of organic free range eggs will keep neighbors happy. Without a rooster around to make noise, the hens should go pretty much unnoticed. A recent visit to the local upscale nursery, The Garden Supply Company, opened my eyes to the new, very attractive chicken coop designs. They are like the adorable play houses you see in many backyards, only scaled down to chicken size. They offer seamed metal roofs, charming trim details, flower boxes and more. Who could object to such a charming structure? See the photos I took below and some links to my favorite sites on chicken coop designs, chicken care and different breeds. Contrary to common beliefs, 2-3 chickens are not smelly or noisy. They make great pets; eat bugs, offer eggs and organic fertilizer.
I understand that the biggest things to consider when raising hens are keeping the coop from overheating and predators. The coop should have good ventilation and natural shade. Keeping them safe from predators is another concern. We do have local fox, and neighborhood cats and dogs to worry about.
Although the town of Apex allows backyard chickens, most of the people of Apex live in neighborhoods with covenants and restrictions. I recently pulled a local neighborhood’s covenants which allowed for “3 usual pets.” I don’t know how to define “usual,” but one could argue hens are so.
Downtown Raleigh is a great example of how well chickens can work in a neighborhood environment. They have an abundance of urban homes with backyard coops. Every spring, several of the coop owners open their yards to a tour of the cities backyard coops. See the link http://www.newraleigh.com/articles/archive/henside-the-beltline-tour-dcoop-2009/
My favorite site on the subject of backyard chickens is http://www.backyardchickens.com/
