Getting the Purple Martin Apartment House Ready to Open

by Donna Lewis

Hello all my Martin Friends in Central Texas.

I last showed you how I got my gourd rack ready for the return of the Martins.

Now let’s look at readying the apartment house for the Martins.

It has been cleaned, emptied of all nesting materials and covered last August when the Martins left this area. Then the house was lowered down and secured till the next season which usually starts in Central  Texas in late January and on.

At my site, February 14th is the normal time for my friends to return.

Once again, the first scouts are normally males looking to get a nest they like. They will then start singing trying to attract females to the site. It is a beautiful song..

Right now I uncovered the house. I inspected it to make sure no wasps, spiders or anything else had taken up residence since I last closed the house.

I then slide in the nest box that I have put fresh dry pine needles in all of the 26 compartments. I also have an early arrival door that goes over the openings. It has only the door for the birds to enter. When the summer heat has arrived and there are babies in the house, I switch the doors to ones that are made with more ventilation.

It can be extremely hot inside the houses. That is why I have aluminum houses painted white to reflect the heat as much as possible. So now, I recover the house and keep it as low as it will go.

When I hear the Martins arriving, I remove the cover and roll it up. Then I only open a few holes at a time. That will keep some of the House Sparrows from taking over. It is absolutely a requirement to keep them out. They can ruin an entire colony by killing the Martins.

So right now is the time to get new or existing ready to open at a moment’s notice. It’s kinda like a fire drill. So naturally, the weather is going to be cold, windy and rainy. That is why you want to do what you can while your hands are warm.

So my timeshare is OPEN, come on in!  I just love the Martins and all birds.

I am part of all that I have met.

Alfred, Lord Tennyson