The snow has finally melted and we're starting to get hints of spring: warmer weather, thunderstorms and daylight savings time. The birds also tell me that spring is on the way. Yesterday I spotted a bluebird down by the pond (checking out the wood duck nest box - much too big for him) and I've been hearing the Carolina wrens calling for mates.Since we bought our property 3 years ago (wow, has it been that long??), we've been tackling all kinds of crazy, back-breaking projects, all in the interest of making our land more naturally beautiful and hospitable to the wildlife. Like the time we (just the two of us) spent every weekend for two solid months, armed with only a chainsaw and a rented Bobcat, clearing the world's largest wood pile (don't believe me? that's minuscule me in the lower left-hand corner, for scale). Or the time we roped our friends into helping us dredge out the pond - with just shovels, some 2x4s and our respective SUVs.
So today's project was pretty mild by comparison. Our mission: to beautify the area around our oil well with some native wildflowers. Together, we raked, shoveled and relocated about 1/5 of an acre's worth of gravel, tilled up the soil, and broadcast a great "bird and butterfly" seed mix. Then we covered it all up with leaves and other vegetation (there's plenty of that lying around) to keep the seed moist and protected over the next several weeks. But until I see something sprout I'll be on pins and needles, convinced that nothing can grow in that contaminated soil, or that I did something wrong, or that I got a bad batch of seed.
Since our wood pile project last year, I've begun to think we can accomplish anything in the name of Nature. Once we got all that wood processed, we transformed one of the ugliest spots on the property into a beautiful meadow, and the birds, butterflies, deer and foxes have been rewarding us with their presence ever since. Let's hope we can do the same for our oil well area.
