Grounds Page three

  Located three miles from a large, recreational lake, Castle Victorian sits back one- quarter mile from the road; only accessible by a private drive. The adjacent rural road connects to another rural road, which in turn connects to a rural highway. The adjacent properties are large acreages, and/or farmland. Our community, Lincoln, Nebraska, is a twenty-five minute commute away. We are definitely “out-in-the-country;” but the drive into town is a pleasant country drive, past the lake and sprawling farmland. It is quite serene here.

  Our sixty acres, plus the surrounding rural landscape, provide habitat for a variety of wildlife. The deer in the adjacent photo are actually standing on our lawn; in the winter they come up to the house to nibble on the grass. On the occasion that I took this photo, there were 11 deer in the yard. Wild turkeys, pheasants, and quail can also be regularly seen and heard, along with assorted song birds.

  Of our 60 acres, approximately half had never been plowed or planted in crops; it was truly original, virgin prairie. When we purchased the land, 23 acres were planted in sorghum. We plowed the sorghum stubble and replanted native, tall-grass prairie in its place; leaving it year-round for habitat. An 11-acre section of the tall-grass prairie skirts our drive and is on a gentle slope. It has been suggested to us that this section of land would be perfect for growing either Christmas trees or grapes for making wine. Both options include considerable work and a delayed harvest, but they do also provide the potential for expanded revenue, especially the vineyard option. A large winery in the area supports the production of local grapes in many varieties. For now, we are content to enjoy the prairie.