Free is not free.

[seedcorn]

farmer gave me an aluminum purple Martin house with adjustable pole buried in cement. Took it home on my trailer. Dug hole put the monster in hole only to see bent pipe and all the pipes were bent. So cut off below bend, now pipes rusted together. Took another pipe to pound out of container pipe. Now it's stuck. Spent 4 hours on it plus today (who knows how many hours today). Smart thing would be to start fresh but I've never been accused of being smart.....

Now it's a matter of pride! Not going to let rust get me down. (Yes, I've poured vinegar down it.)

 

[Ridgerunner]

Thanks for the smile this morning. Been there, done that with so many different "free" things. I don't know how much time or money I've invested in free things. I under stand the pride thing too. Sometimes these projects take on a life of their own. Solving the problem becomes more important than the end result.

 

[Nyboy]

It will be worth it if purple martins nest in it. If not then decorative garden ornament.

 

[catjac1975]

Kind of like a free horse...

 

[seedcorn]

Kind of like a free horse...

Don't even think a thing......... J'ing

Went outside, pounded it. The other way, here it came.... VICTORY! Put stub back in hole, will wait till spring to place house.

How early do I place it?

 

[Ridgerunner]

Purple martin scouts arrive in early spring to find a place for the colony to nest. You are pretty far north but I'd have the house up mid-March at the latest.

 

[thistlebloom]

Perseverance pays off again!

Will other birds use it before the martins move in?
My mom battled the English sparrows (I think that's the one) when they would build in her birdhouses that she intended for the swallows. They would even kill any babies that were already in there to claim it for themselves. It made her furious. She would hose down all the interlopers she spotted, then finally got a pelletgun and would sit at the kitchen table by the window and try to ping them. She was a lousy shot by the way. Funny memory...

 

[majorcatfish]

my fil has one at his house in new york and he put grease on the top 4' of the pole, that way snakes at climb the pole can not grip it to eat the babies.... pretty smart for a yankee.

 

[Nyboy]

Major does he ever get purple martins ? I didn't think we had them in NY. Some garden centers sell the houses I thought they where more ornamental. How I need to shop for Martin house

 

[Nyboy]

http://www.ebay.com/itm/HOME-BAZAAR...M-HOB-9069L-/321465009192?hash=item4ad8cec428 I like this one !! Look great in garden