An article that appeared a few weeks ago in the New York Times home section captured the eye of the Martha Stewart production team who brought it to the attention of Martha Stewart herself. A fellow martin landlord, Larry Melcher was able to be on her show and did a great job as an ambassador for Purple Martins. At Martha Stewart’s website, you will find athe actual video that aired on her show and also an easy to follow “how to” guide for making natural purple martin gourds.

Just remember. If you want to attract purple martins, one gourd will not be enough. Be prepared to make at least 4 and use a face mask as the fine dust created by cutting gourds is very irritating to the lungs. Also remember that you cannot successfully attract martins by hanging one of these from a tree. It must be hung in an open area at least 10 feet or more, off the ground. If you don’t have a pole to hang the gourds from a pole like this one is perfect for hanging a few gourds. Easy to raise and lower and a top perch to boot.

Check out Martha Stewart’s website and enjoy!

If you don’t want to call it “storing” I won’t blame you. The gourds didn’t get taken down and hopefully my little experiment in laziness will pay off.

What have I actually done? Well, the gourds were emptied, cleaned out with water and sprayed down with a dilute bleach solution. Then after a good air dry I simply bagged them up in kitchen garbage bags. I will see how the plastic holds up after a few months of the hot South Florida sun beating down on them. Hopefully the purple martin gourds will be none the worse for wear.

Now this is an experiment so I will see how it goes and barring any hurricanes (kinda late, so I doubt it) the martin housing should be fine to wait it out. Now I do plan on replacing one of my pulley ropes on my older gourd rack. I have noticed some stiffness and minor frizz but no real fraying yet, but better to change them before my martins arrive in January than to have a problem arise in mid season.

When my birds do arrive I should be able to simply remove the bags and fill the nests with pine needles and be good to go…or so I think. But we all know how plans can work out.

Any other procrastinators out there?

I told you about the new gourds by Andrew Troyer that were on the way. Brand new for 2010 the Troyer Vertical gourds are here. I am impressed by the design and I am very excited to show you the pics of these beauties.

troyer vertical gourd

13″ deep (just like a horizontal gourd) but has the aesthetic look of a “regular” gourd that many folks prefer. At around 8″ wide the interior compartment is generous in size and yet doesn’t look like a gourd on steroids as some other plastic gourds appear. It looks a lot smaller than it actually is, in fact. The weight is distributed evenly and the 4 molded canopies on the top of the gourd can be easily drilled out for added ventilation.

All in all a superior gourd that I am very happy to offer at PurpleMartins-R-Us.com

We are entering the weeks where the first arriving purple martin sightings are made. Though only a few birds trickle in at first, these few birds serve the great purpose of getting us off our rear ends and away from all the holiday food and out in the back yard scrambling to ready our purple martin houses.

Like many landlords, I have a few plans swirling in my head. A new gourd rack has been sitting in my garage for about 10 months awaiting its christening. (A sprinkle of water as the concrete cures) New gourds sit waiting eagerly to fill up the racks and the brand new 2010 Troyer VERTICAL Gourds will be in stock before the new year and are available for preorder now. Though photos of this new gourd are not available yet, they will be up ASAP.

Troyer Vertical Gourds ?

Yes, you heard right! Andrew Troyer, the Amish gentleman who revolutionized plastic purple martin bird houses by making the T-14 (T is for Troyer) and gourds with the introduction of the Troyer Horizontal Gourd, is introducing a NEW gourd. The Troyer Vertical Gourd is brand new for 2010 and should be available within the next few weeks. It is so new that pictures are not available yet but as soon as they arrive I will be taking photos and posting them up on the website, www.PurpleMartins-R-Us.com.

From what Mr.Troyer tells me they will feature a standard built in SREH tunnel to give the same protection of the deep 13 ” nesting area AND they will be able to be hung on standard vertical gourd arms.

It’s going to be a VERY Merry Christmas!