One of the things we like about where we live is the wildlife we see. There are sandhill cranes that summer in our field. We also see lots of deer, wild turkeys, pheasants, and an occasional coyote. We enjoy watching hawks and have even spotted a great horned owl sitting on our power line pole.
The wildlife is also one of the things we DON'T like about where we live. I have yet to grow a decent sunflower. Every year I plant them and every year they are eaten by deer. This year I thought we could just plant LOTS of them as we have the room. We are preparing more land to plant with native prairie plants so we used some of that area for a very large sunflower plot. I thought there would be enough for the deer and still have a few survive. Not so.
We also planted extra pumpkins knowing that the deer and other critters would find them. There are some pumpkins in the weedy area of the garden that have not been nibbled but quite a few have large holes.
Last year we planted corn three times and the cranes walked through the garden eating the sprouts as they came up. We did not get a single plant. This year we treated the seed with something that is supposed to deter the cranes. That worked. Now, we hope the raccoons will leave a few ears for us.When we returned from our trip this weekend, we saw two red tailed hawks sitting on our power line pole. They were eyeing our chickens. They found out while we were gone that they could get a good chicken dinner here. We lost a couple of our new chickens including the feather footed buff cochin. I wish they had gotten the new roosters instead of the hens. When we are home there must be enough activity around the house to keep the hawks away.I sometimes feel like the wild creatures are invading our little farm place. But, then, I remember it is the other way around.We have invaded their place.We are working out a way to coexist on the same land. I do admit that I would rather lose the chickens to a red tailed hawk, coyote, or fox than to a neighborhood dog. We will just continue to plant and grow more than we think we will use and hope to end up with enough to make us happy for the effort.
Instagram Photos
