Accidental farm

12 June 2010

We have a few bird feeders around the garden, some hanging from trees and one on the fence near the back door. In the front garden the birds are very good at clearing up the seed they drop, but in the back garden they’re less interested in being tidy. And so the seed is dropped and, in the case of the feeder by the back door, it drops onto nice fertile soil among the flowers.

We’ve had a few little seedlings before, which didn’t turn into anything, and the odd sunflower appearing out of nowhere, but this year growing conditions were evidently just right and below the bird feeder has appeared a little crop of wheat and oats. It’s so much fun to watch them grow, with the ears of wheat already swelling, that I’ve sprinkled some bird seed into a pot of compost to grow.

I’ve also this morning picked out some wheat seed from the bird food and planted a small patch in my vegetable patch. I’m hoping there will be enough time for John to make me a tiny combine harvester before the autumn. Meanwhile, I’m toying with the idea of doing something a little different in the vegetable patch next year: sowing bird seed to attract the birds, along side green manure such as red clover, which is also popular with the birds.

Posted in: garden, photos

Comments

3 Responses to “Accidental farm”

Thursday
13th June 2010 @ 9:46 am

We’ve had bird seed with cannabis seeds in it which could have taken some explaining if they’d germinated.

[Reply]
Brenda
14th June 2010 @ 9:23 pm

last year I used dried ears of corn for the squirrels an birds. they loved it… so last spring. I had 1 cornstalk. I was thinking…. wow…. those squirrels are thinking….. what if this lady doesn’t give us corn again. Hey, let’s just grow our own. It eventually got knocked down.See those birds have you trained.

[Reply]
From not so marvellous to blooming marvellous : dreamdust
18th March 2011 @ 10:43 am

[...] saving did last year. Maybe the sparrows came indoors and took it? After all, they polished off the wheat before I was prepared to let [...]