When Brian and Robin Monser moved to their farm south of Junction City in November of 2012 there were only five trees on the whole place and none of them were in very good shape. One had to be removed because it was infringing on the foundation of the house and an old elm lost a big limb that hit the house when it fell.
Brian works as a Biological Technician in the Environmental Division at Ft. Riley and Robin is the Assistant Director of Operations at the Marianna Kistler Beach Museum of Art on the K-State campus.
Both have a love of the outdoors and of all things that grow. Besides the farmstead the couple also own a 98 acre pasture near Clarks Creek where Brian has done some timberstand improvement work removing less desirable trees like hackberry and eastern red cedar so more beneficial trees have room to thrive.
Work on the windbeak began that first spring in 2013 when 250 trees were purchased and planted around the property. The main line of trees lies along Lyons Creek Road to the north of the home. In subsequent springs, groups of about 50 more trees were planted.
Brian sited some of the benefits of the windbreak as being, good habitat for wildlife, reduction of heating and cooling costs for the house, reduction of soil erosion and aesthetics.
The Monsers are avid gardners and are currently working on installing a hoop house to extend their gardening season. They are also starting to keep bees to help with pollination around the property and in the adjacent crop fields and hope to enjoy the honey of their labors once the hives are established.
Brian and Robin accepted their award at the Geary County Conservation District Annual Meeting which was held on January 23. The award is sponsored by The Geary County Banker’s Association, Geary County Extension and the Conservation District.