Birds & Views

I was out behind the barn washing the leafy green veggies and herbs this morning watching the barn swallows swoop over the pond getting bugs and bringing them back to their babies in the barn. It was a nice sight. The swallows were a bit perturbed that I was standing kind of in front of their doorway but would make it in to feed their progeny. We did not have barn swallows at the Crubaugh Rd farm because we had no barns. Farming without a barn is not an easy task and I don't know how we got along for over 10 years. I guess we just didn't know what we were missing and made do with what we had. Namely a house stuffed full of farming paraphernalia and no good place to do the cleaning and packing chores. We also had 2 Small sheds stuffed to the rafters with tillers, crates, row covers, irrigation tape, a forge, tools, hoes, chicken feed, fire wood, mowers, seed starting flats, compost, peat moss, flower pots, chicken crates, plastic sheeting for hoophouses, hoophouse supports, wire row cover hoops and many other items. Enough items to pretty much fill up a large bank barn. I do not know how we managed to cram all that stuff into the limited space we had but we did. I am so glad we now have enough space to do what we do for a living.

I am glad we own our own land and that we have such a pretty piece of land, at that. We have one of the most beautiful views I have ever encountered. We are on a high point (the top of the 40' pitch) and see our pond, our hillside covered with wildflowers, day lilies (we brought them from the old place) and waving grass. Beyond that is undulating terrain and large trees. It is simply spectacular and it changes constantly with the seasons and time of day.

And this varied terrain brings in a wide variety of birds. We have a bluebird family, chimney swifts, a kingfisher, many humming birds, several kinds of sparrows, grackles, turkey and black vultures, robins, blue jays, crows, many kinds of hawks, peregrines, chickens (oh wait, those are not wild), tree swallows, chickadees, cardinals, nuthatches, etc.. I suspect we will get ever more birds as they figure out we do not use poisons on our land and we leave areas tall and wild so there is a food supply for the wild life