Farmer and Chef South: Biltmore Estate spruces up brooder house

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Here’s the latest installment in my cross-posting partnership with Farmer and Chef South. Here, Sherida Buchanan writes about the recent restoration of the brooder house on the grounds of the Biltmore Estate:

The original flock boasted beautiful heirloom breeds such as Brahmas, Cochins, Leghorns, Plymouth Rocks, and Wyandottes.

In a nod to Biltmore’s love for preservation and long-standing farm-to-table legacy, Biltmore is using the restored Brooder House to hatch chicks throughout the year. This ensures a steady population of hens to meet the estate’s growing need for eggs. The flock boasts many of the same heritage breeds raised in George Vanderbilt’s time.

In addition to chicks, the Brooder House is home to the estate’s quail operation. This new venture began last winter in an effort to provide eggs for the The Dining Room at the Inn on Biltmore Estate and the Bistro. The flock now boasts more than 100 quails, and continues the farm-to-table legacy started by George Vanderbilt in 1895.