Attracting Purple Martins

[thatguy]

We just bought a John Deere purple martin house (yellow roof, green body, cheap JD decal on the side).. My wife read that they eat 'stink bugs' (if you are in VA you certainly know what im talking about) so she had to order one.. lol

I still need to put it up, but that will require a hole and cement.. hehe I hope it works, we've had too many stink bugs for the past few years

brian

 

[QRTRHRS]

Many years ago while living along the Delaware River, I put up a martin house. After two years, I had a pair set up housekeeping. They raised two young. Around the time one would expect them to head south, I came home after work and heard all of this chattering going on. There must have been seventy five martins sitting on an overhead wire behind my yard. The next day, they were all gone. It was like the clan stopped by to say let's go and off they went.

The next year, the martins arrived the same day I was leaving for a two week vacation. I had the house all cleaned and ready. When I got home, the house sparrows had taken over and not a martin to be seen.

For other reasons of course, I sold the house after that so I don't know if they ever came back or not.

The water nearby idea does not alway ring true by the way. Growing up, my neighbor had a christmas tree farm with no water close by and they had a huge colony. I have seen others like that as well.

Anyone have any luck with those plastic gourds that are on the market?

 

[Abe460]

It's funny that this post is here...to me.

I've been listening to my father, his friend, my neighbors and one of their friends have this debate for years.

They have all built their martin homes to spec from the same plans. My neighbor has more martins than he can keep up with and so does my father's friend. The only difference I can see is the distance from trees. I would like some myself, but the only place that far from trees is out in our pasture. I don't think they would travel the distance to help our fly issues. I dunno, maybe I'm wrong.

I really can't wait to bring the tree distance issue up...I'll wait till everyone is there. I'll sound like an expert.

 

[Mike Costello]

We just bought a John Deere purple martin house (yellow roof, green body, cheap JD decal on the side).. My wife read that they eat 'stink bugs' (if you are in VA you certainly know what im talking about) so she had to order one.. lol

I still need to put it up, but that will require a hole and cement.. hehe I hope it works, we've had too many stink bugs for the past few years

brian

Your house is identical to mine, except mine is red with a gray roof. S-K Manufacturing made my house. They sell sleeves you can install in a concrete base which allows for removal of the house in winter. Mike.

 

[ToadHill]

I put up a purple martin house 20 years ago and have never had one in it. I'm not close enough to any large body of water. I have 2 ponds on my property one 1/2 acre and one 1 acre but that ,'s not enough for them.

Every year I have several families of swallows occupy the house and they are great to watch while you mow the lawn, dive bombing for insects, they will fly right at you while you mow and swerve away within a few feet of you. Great fun!!

 

[dave1949]

I put up a purple martin house 20 years ago and have never had one in it. I'm not close enough to any large body of water. I have 2 ponds on my property one 1/2 acre and one 1 acre but that ,'s not enough for them.

Every year I have several families of swallows occupy the house and they are great to watch while you mow the lawn, dive bombing for insects, they will fly right at you while you mow and swerve away within a few feet of you. Great fun!!

Nothing wrong with swallows Do they fly close over the pond water and run the very tip of their beak across the surface? Looks like someone drew a toothpick across the water or maybe a fishing line. I have never known if they are getting a drink or catching bugs. Whichever, it is amazing flying.
Dave.

 

[ToadHill]

Yes they do it all the time.

 

[Redneck in training]

Weed tried to atract PMs for years in our former place. They came and checked it out but no single nest. Then we moved to our current place. We had almost full house (10 nests) the first year I put the PM house up. I might buy another large PM house for this season.
The PM house is about 50 feet from our house and maybe 70 80 ft from the closest trees and pond. It is vaguely visible in my avatar.
Sparrows are the biggest problem. They build a nest in less than a day. I remove it and next day there another. Then I shoot them with a BB.
I am trying to atract bats for mosquito abatment though. I see them around but none inhabits the houses I put up for them. I should start a thread about bats I suppose.

 

[Jim in ICT]

I purchased a purple martin house for $45.00 at auction last fall. Home made by a cabinet maker, really cool. Slides up and down a 4"x6" post with a cable and pulley over the top attached to a boat trailer crank near the bottom of the pole. The bird house is shaped in an X with the post in the center, like four seperate bird houses joined together. Each bird house has a hinged door with seperate compartments for the birds similar to a shoebox with an end removed. To open up the house, you crank the boat crank and lower the house down the post, open up each door, slide the compartment boxes out and turn the around with the open end out. Then close the door and crank the bird house up the post. Reverse process for closing up in the fall. I'm in the process of cleaning it up and painting right now. Thinking of getting some corrigated tin to make tin roofs. If I can get pictures of it posted, I will.

 

[2manyrocks]

Looks like they would get really hot in any kind of birdhouse so exposed to the sun. I know I've seen these gourd houses like that many places, but how do they stand the heat?