Purple Martin Forum

i hang my gourds that im working on above my cars in the shop. i bought, what i call--i hooks, , i took a small drill, and drilled pilot holes a bit smaller than the screw threads into the 2x4 rafters .screwed them in. went to mennards, they sell a stiff iron rod about the size of the hole on top th...

Steve, first, i want you to know how deep my passion runs for these birds., ive had colonies for yrs, when you enjoy somthing about their morning song, and how magestic they are , and how far they fly to come home, if they are able to make the effort to come back, - to your home, you take care of th...

ED, Last yr was unusal for Iowa, we had snow in late march, cold temps, in april.The birds made their trip, but you could tell they were worn out and ragged. with the cold and no insects to eat, i supplelmented scrambled eggs, placed them in front of their porches, , with egg shells.for calcium, nou...

after last yrs brutal heat in Ia, i put 1 2" luvered vent in the back of my gourds,(center) and 2 -3/4 elbows above near the top, to vent the heat, a must when you have jumpers like we had last yr, not pretty, i drilled thru my supers, and placed the elbows in, and screwed gromets to the inside, to ...

matt,
always tough getting them where you want them, highlines are a key, if not, make sure you have plenty of perch rods on the tops of your poles, and your housing is in the open, it helps , good luck, keep us posted.
pm charter1

Tony,
your on your way, your friend, pm charter1--- it s great aint it?

Steve, your housing is amazing, love what you do.im in the middle of a gourd transformation, to add to my colony, , i started a project, all tunnells are done, gourds vented, but i designed my rack, waiting for my welder buddy to show up sat and weld mt 3/8ths threaded rods to my collar that slides ...

eyestothesky, im sure my friend can help you. last yr , him and i, founded the first pm chapter in IA,our Second potluck -presentation is august 17th this yr in Madrid ia.we our launching a a wb site this month, where you can go to, its www.iamartin.org, you can visit it now, but not totaly live.til...

I agree with mike, onece the owl visits, he will be their nightly. you can pur owl racks around your housing, expensive, but they work,, the pic mike showed, they work, but, owls still can breech those two little rods.even tiger hawks,. I would call your local game warden, and see if they could help...

my neighbor has a old one , not sure if they still make them, it a sheridon, (sp)the hardest pellet gun ive seen, and accurate , he doesnt use a scope, and still knocks those sparrows at 20 yrds!

Dave, nice set up, how in the world do u you keep up with nest cks with almost 400 cavities???, i have 32 cant keep up, especilly with supplimental feeding this spring as cold as its been, im scrambling eggs as we speak as its going to get in the 30s in iowa the next few days for lows. you have an i...

dancing girl76, yes im nuts, 4 yrs ago i had a fledgling get stuck in my porch railing.his wing was messed up, so on came the gloves, and i got him, taped his wing up with the brown streatchy tape for a ankle, modified, cut in half ect, brought him in the house in a nesting box, fed him, i have pict...

Avian.
my rule of thumb, if you are already thinking, you are 80% occupied, add more housing. some my just be passing thru as the migration is slow, they may be over night guests, its never to late to add housing in my opinion!
sincerely, pm charter1

Dancing girl, i feel your pain!, i live in Madrid IA,we have taken a beating with snow and rain, a week ago Monday, 85 , degrees, one day later, cold , rain, snow, it hasnt stopped.i cleaned my housing out after the snow, as it was wet in some of my trio rooms , , been supplimental feeding them scra...

i use the microwave, - dont be shy, grabbing a glass bowl, cracking 6 at atime, slash of milk, stir, throw in the wave, they fluff up, , stop, stir them cook again for 30sec, or till fluffy, i take a whisk , or mashpotato utincil to mash them up in cubes, i tried the skillet, its work!-- bottom line...

as wheather is turning bad in iowa the next few days, please supplimental feed. I Scrammble eggs and put them in my feeders, i place some in each room,, they enjoy them.as the wheather is cold, rainy, the insects arnt flying, our temps are in the 40s for highs, the next few days, they need nutrition...

mine, yours, everyone who is a active landlord, -- our passion runs deep. Here in Iowa, our whether is still crud!, they are talking snow, this week, temps in the 30s, rain, tough! i had 3 pairs show up a week anda half ago, looked good, i feed them scrambeled eggs, nesting matrerial, in place, then...

first, i want to thank louise, for all she does on this web site, how she keeps up, i dont know! migration has been tough this yr, esp, the midwest, and the dakotas, one thing ive found, as every landlord on this site have pulled togeather, to give insite to others in need, where it be nesting, supp...

kathy, the ones i had were labeled that, they were handed down to me from my grandad 20 yrs ago, he bought them in a case, 10bxs 50shells to a box, and same with the 22 long rifels, he bought them by the case. my shells are crimped on the end, and hold several tiny pellets, they hold a small charge ...

why they are not taking them, i dont know. i take eggs, add a splash of milk in a glass bowl,stir them up, microwave till they fluff, stir them again, heat them afew more seconds, and chop them up fine. i take and place them on the porches, my feeder, and sprinkle them in my active rooms, they seem ...