All Things Avian Field Day
Learn about the birds flying through your farm and how they might be a benefit to your
operation. Hear from and connect with innovative farmers, avian researchers, and other experts
about practices that attract beneficial birds for pest control and manage pest birds. In addition,
participate in a demonstration conservation planting and learn how this habitat can benefit your
farm. You will gain valuable experience in planning for practices aimed at attracting beneficial
birds and other natural enemies. Registration is $15 and includes lunch and a copy of Wild Farm
Alliance's Supporting Beneficial Birds and Managing Pest Birds Booklet.
Cost: $15 per person (includes lunch and a copy of WFA's Bird Booklet)
About Riverhill Farm
Almost 20 years ago, Alan Haight and Jo McProud transformed a dry grassland with a couple of
ponds into a profitable farm and an oasis for birds and other wildlife. Their goal was to increase
the biodiversity on their farm. Ornithologists and entomologists tell them they've succeeded.
Counts show there are now more birds and insect life on the farm than in the surrounding natural
landscape. Beauty is everywhere you look, thanks to Jo's skills as a landscape architect and to
Alan's sense of "the more diversity, the better." They have sculpted the farm using crops, native
vegetation and permeable fencing to allow for water and beneficial wildlife to flow right through,
while holding the soil in place and reaping some pest control along the way. As farmer-naturalists,
Alan and Jo look at ways to blend their need to be productive with their interest in giving back to
wild nature. Supporting the wild with habitat is one way to do that. Recently, Alan and Jo have
leased their farm business to Antonio Garza and Daylin Wade, but they still live on the property,
managing the farms' edges and wildlands.