Scarecrow

A scarecrow is a figure usually made of sticks. It looks like a person. It is dressed in old clothes. A farmer puts a scarecrow in a field after he has planted seeds. He hopes the scarecrow will frighten birds away from the field. Some birds  such as crows and sparrows  eat the seeds the farmer plants. He does not want the birds to do this. If the birds eat the seeds, the farmer will not have a big crop of things to eat.Lesley Brown (ed.). (2007). "Shorter Oxford English Dictionary on Historical Principles". 6th ed. Oxford: Oxford University Press. .

Scarecrows in stories and literature

Scarecrows are sometimes characters in stories. Nathaniel Hawthorne wrote a story about a scarecrow who comes to life in "Feathertop". The most famous storybook scarecrow is probably the one in The Wonderful Wizard of Oz by L. Frank Baum.

 References 

 Other websites 
British history of the scarecrow 
Photo of a crow trap in Australia
A typical English scarecrow made of discarded clothing

Category:Agriculture