Encouraging and adding biodiversity to our farm is an ongoing process, something we continually strive for, the benefits of which go beyond words. If we had to list a few reasons why biodiversity is critical to the health of a farm, it might look something like this:

• biodiversity improves soil health, which in turn promotes plant health (and human health!)

• biodiversity enhances pest, weed, and disease resistance by breaking up cycles

• biodiversity encourages beneficial relationships between living organisms and the success of beneficial organisms, giving them space to live their lives.

We try to keep biodiversity it in mind with all decisions related to our farming practices - when considering soil fertility, crop rotations, pest management - and this biodiversity is most outwardly visible in our hedgerows.  Our hedgerows are made up of a variety of perennial plants, most of which are native to California. The diversity of plants is important, because it not only attracts different species of birds, bees, mammals, reptiles, and amphibians, but the diversity actually helps each of those species thrive (especially the bees!).  Selecting   plants that provide continual pollen and nectar throughout the year sets the table of health for these pollinators that play such an important role in our agricultural landscape.

Some species, though, don’t find habitat in our hedgerows and for those we need to get a bit more creative. These past few weeks we’ve been doing just that. We started with installing bat boxes around our shop and equipment yard. One of the boxes was given to us from our region’s UCCE pest management advisor, Rachel Long. She even helped us determine the best places to install the boxes for the bats. Bats are important farm friends, as they can consume enormous amounts of insects during their nightly hunt (many night-flying insects are big farm pests!).

Another farm friend we want to encourage to stick around is the burrowing owl we spotted taking “residence” in a hole made from a large irrigation leak next to our field road (we’re not sure it’s a “resident” owl, meaning it will stay here year-round, as many burrowing owls do migrate seasonally). Burrowing owls, like their larger nocturnal counterparts, are a big help in pest control. They are most active, feasting on large insects and small vertebrates, around dawn and dusk, but remain out and about for most of the day. In the far right photo below, you can see “our” owl peeking out of its burrow mid-afternoon.  Burrowing owls do not make their own burrows, but rather seek out existing cavities or holes in the ground in areas with low vegetation so they can see far and wide to detect oncoming predators.

When we first noticed the burrow back in November, we were so excited for our new found friend that we flagged off the area to protect it from getting driven over or otherwise damaged by equipment. We have since learned that using flags (or anything that can flap) is a big no-no, as the noise from the flapping of the flags can desensitize the owl to noises, thus making it more vulnerable to predation. In the far right photo above you can see the owl peeking out of it’s burrow. They use multiple burrows, so they always have protection from predators, and in the spring they will use burrows to lay eggs and nest. In the day time you can often see them perched outside the burrow, either on a post or mound of dirt.

Jim recently shared a photo of “our” owl, and in response a friend of his who happens to be the president of the Burrowing Owl Preservation Society offered to come out and help us install a more permanent burrow in hopes it will stick around and potentially mate here (she taught us a lot about burrowing owls in the process!). Burrowing owls will often return to “good” burrows year after year, so we hope ours passes muster.

Catherine from the Burrowing Owl Preservation Society brought all the supplies and directed us in how to make the perfect burrow. An old sprinkler control box made up the main cavity, with tubing creating tunnels that curve outward from both sides. The cinder blocks at the tunnel openings prevent coyotes (or other large predators) from digging into the tunnels if they spot an owl enter. We buried and covered the box with about 1.5 feet of dirt above its lid.

We chose a location that was nearby the existing burrow (which is beginning to cave in on itself since it was created from a water leak), and replaced our flags with (noiseless) white stakes, which the owls can use as perches.

It was an interesting process to learn about and create this new farm habitat, and we (hopefully) look forward to watching the owls move in!