You are getting me interested in martins. Any suggestions for the pole. I am not a handy woman; it took me all day to fix my smashed mailbox. How could I get started the easy way just to get my toe in the water and see if I want to expand later?

Helen, look in the Garden Junk Forum -- I don't know the date, but the thread is "I'm obsessed with birdhouses!" Spiderwoman had a great write-up about a pole she made that is hinged and collapses for cleaning and repair. I'm not handy, but I printed it out because I probably could do that.
Sunny

Helen, the absolute simplest way is to buy a telescoping pole and a martin house. Now the cheap plastic one that you have to snap together is what I have and the birds seem to like it just fine. The $100 plus price on the others always put me off. I saw Wal-Mart has the plastic ones back near the garden center for around $30. It just sits on top of the pole.

I just used plastic ties to fasten the pole to a fence post (corner of the garden...square wooden one.)

You just push a button on a spring to collapse the pole. I was afraid to set the post in concrete.....thinking the minute I did, I would want it somewhere else.

The plastic house seems flimsy but unless it falls crashing to the ground, it didn't seem that the weather didn't hurt it last year. The front snaps down for cleaning out old nests.

Someday, I will probably invest in a better one. If you ever have these birds you will want them coming back!

Do some online research before you buy; I am no expert by any means.

I believe each manufacturer of the houses has their own telescoping poles to fit the bottom of the house.

Good luck.

Glenda

Thanks. Plastic ties to a fence post sounds like my kind of set up.

I saw two males eating grape jelly this morning.

Yesterday the first male B. Oriole came to the porch with the female. She ate jelly, he chose the hummingbird feeder. They are a glorious color.

The little Carolina Wren is back too. They have the loudest voices for such a little bird.