The Farm - Week 3
Fun at the farm continues! This week, our trail grew in length, our knowledge increased, and we saw many, many feathered friends.
Restoration conversations continued as a number of nature friends visited the farm and gave their two cents on potential opportunities to restore the land. While time is on our side and many decisions are needed to be made, this restoration is a long term project. It will be amazing to be a part of this transformation of reed canary grass infested land into a harmonious ecosystem of prairie, wetlands, and forest.
To help our nature friends traverse the land a bit easier, I took the mower out multiple times and extended the trail. Watching the kids meander through the mowed grass and escape in their own backyard is quite a sight to see.
Besides hiking, we have enjoyed watching the birds. Though primarily inundated with sparrow, doves, and grackles, a few more unique birds joined the beaked bonanza this week. Flickers, Cardinals, Woodpeckers, and our Sandhill Crane pair made multiple appearances. Still, a mystery bird’s identification is on the lam. We believe it is our resident bird of prey. We have noticed we have lots of birds visiting, but have yet to see a chipmunk or squirrel. We did have a woodchuck make an appearance and based on some well-placed holes in our barn, it appears we may have one renting out the barn.
Speaking if the barn, a solid amount of time was spent clearing out lots of loose rubbish items from the barn’s dirt floor. Cardboard, rags, Styrofoam, and other treasures were collected and discarded. A growing collection of metal pieces is piling up and preparing for a trip to the scrapyard. Lots of potential barn plans exist, but a key first start is getting it cleaned out tidied up.
With school creeping around the corner, farm work will certainly adjust to meet the needs of the school year. The work certainly won’t end but if you enjoy it, is it really work? And if you don’t enjoy it, at least you still get gorgeous sunsets and the sounds of Mother Nature filling up your bucket each and every evening.
