69制片厂制作传媒播

He started working at Berkline in 1964 and he lived around Morristown for several years before moving into his current home in the early 8069制片厂制作传媒檚, the location where he houses the birds.

Johnson got the idea to help house the birds from a neighbor who had been doing the same job for several years.

69制片厂制作传媒淎 neighbor of mine named Rodney Mack started building birdhouses for the birds and one day I was talking with him and he told me about them and what he does and he inspired me to do it myself,69制片厂制作传媒� he said. 69制片厂制作传媒淚 tried it and the first year I had a pair of them nests, the next year 15 birds built their nests and then after I lost count and more and more kept coming in.

69制片厂制作传媒淲ith each year I added more gourds to my yard and now I have 184 gourds for all the birds to come in and build their homes for the summer.69制片厂制作传媒�

69制片厂制作传媒淚 have learned a lot about them,69制片厂制作传媒� he said. 69制片厂制作传媒淭he birds travel 7,000 miles for 2 months to South America. They stay there for 3 months and come back and spend 5 months in the Lakeway Area to raise their young. They leave and come back in the spring.

69制片厂制作传媒淭he earliest they ever arrived was February 19 and the latest was at the end of May. When they come in early you never know if there will be a cold spell and in the past it has snowed and they69制片厂制作传媒檒l huddle in the homes and won69制片厂制作传媒檛 come out for days until it69制片厂制作传媒檚 all gone.

69制片厂制作传媒淓ach year more and more birds come to my land and it69制片厂制作传媒檚 getting to where there are so many I can69制片厂制作传媒檛 handle them.69制片厂制作传媒�

To prepare for the growing number of visitors he spends the entire year preparing for their return.

69制片厂制作传媒淚 keep all the egg shells I use throughout the year and crush them up and put them on a platform so when the birds fly in they use them to feed their young which is a great source of vitamins,69制片厂制作传媒� Johnson said. 69制片厂制作传媒淚 mainly use gourds as the houses for them and to do that as the gourds grow you let them dry out and then you drill a hole into it, it has to be big enough for a bird to get in..

69制片厂制作传媒淚 dry them out in the winter and it takes all winter to dry them full because if you do it while it69制片厂制作传媒檚 still green those holes you drill will expand and cause the gourd to burst open.

69制片厂制作传媒淚 clean them up real good and put two coats of paint on them to withstand the weather. You also have to drill two small holes in the bottom so if it rains the water will run out the hole.69制片厂制作传媒�

As soon as the birds leave is when his work starts.

69制片厂制作传媒淎fter they leave I take all the gourds down and clean them out,69制片厂制作传媒� he said. 69制片厂制作传媒淪ome of them are replaced or repainted, but they are very durable. There are some out there that have been sitting there for probably 10 to 12 years.69制片厂制作传媒�

He explained that with his age he struggles to maintain his duties, but he continues to push on.

69制片厂制作传媒淚 used to grow gourds but as I get older it69制片厂制作传媒檚 harder for me to maintain them but I have a brother who grows them for me in Sneedville and he gives me some for the birds,69制片厂制作传媒� he said.

69制片厂制作传媒淧eople may think I69制片厂制作传媒檓 crazy for keeping up with it, but it gives me something to do. I like to keep myself busy.69制片厂制作传媒�

As Johnson looks back on the many years he has maintained the homes he recalls the rescue of a baby bird.

69制片厂制作传媒淥ne year a baby bird fell out of the nest and it was so small and had no feathers so I decided to take it in and help get its strength back,69制片厂制作传媒� Johnson said. 69制片厂制作传媒淚 kept feeding and gave it water out of a medicine dropper. Eventually it got bigger and was back to health.

69制片厂制作传媒淚 couldn69制片厂制作传媒檛 get away from that bird. Anytime I got up or moved around it would follow me. It would fly onto my head and my arms.

69制片厂制作传媒淭hen when the other birds came back to nest he spent time with them and once they migrated out of the area it went with them.69制片厂制作传媒�

Johnson lives on a cove area of Cherokee Lake, in Bean Station. So it69制片厂制作传媒檚 difficult for the public to see his work, but many might have seen him at local craft shows.

He has been spotted at Rose Center selling his extra gourds at Rose Center69制片厂制作传媒檚 Mountain Makins and other craft events.

69制片厂制作传媒淚 used to sell my gourds at Rose Center years ago,69制片厂制作传媒� he said. 69制片厂制作传媒淚 would sit up for a few hours and sell almost $500-$600 worth of gourds when I set up.69制片厂制作传媒�

69制片厂制作传媒淚 would go to Sevierville and other places to set up as well and would sell my gourds, basket and other things I would build but as I got older I couldn69制片厂制作传媒檛 do the same stuff anymore and I69制片厂制作传媒檓 slowing down.69制片厂制作传媒�

Johnson plans to continue maintaining the homes until he is no longer able to continue.

69制片厂制作传媒淵es I am slowing down, but I plan to keep working on them until I can69制片厂制作传媒檛,