The farm was a mess.

A 30-foot deep sinkhole had developed, thanks to hundreds of cattle treading over terraced land, land that should have never been used to plant crops.

John and Dena Adams’ farm was suffering.

The 160-acre plot in Globe, near Overbrook, might not have been worth the three cars John’s father-in-law traded for it in the 1950s.

“We just took for granted that the farm in Lawrence was being taken care of,” said John Adams, a retired dentist who lives in Prairie Village. “To see that erosion was a rude awakening.”

His wife, Dena, 60, wondered if there was any way to revitalize the farm, purchased from her father 25 years ago. It had failed to sustain row crops and was abused by cattle overgrazing. Luckily for the Adamses, the Wildlife Habitat Incentives Program exists for that purpose.

The Adamses enrolled in the program in 1998, and 10 years later they are the recipients of the Kansas Bankers Association Wildlife Award.

“When you see how the land around (the farm) is beginning to develop, I just look at it and think that one day it’s going to be an oasis,” Dena Adams said.

Today the farm is home to coveys of quail, deer and even snakes. The Adamses’ WHIP program, guided by Clyde Mermis of the Douglas County Conservation District, included the installation of two ponds. The belching of frogs is now commonplace in the wetland area, which also provides a home to turtles and other amphibians.

It’s quite a turnaround for the farm that was once neglected.

“We’re kind of embarrassed about how bad that farm got, with the erosion and everything,” John Adams said. Mermis and his colleagues “have done such a great job of helping us. To see it now, we’re finally starting to see the fruits of our labor. It really is fun.”

Adams enlisted the help of his brother, Dan, to work alongside Mermis and colleagues Alan Gentry and Colleen Davisson. Together they created controlled burns of fescue and spent countless hours cutting invasive trees and brush. To replenish the land, the Adamses planted native grass across the farm.

“For the first three years, almost all the growth of that grass is below ground, so you can’t see it,” John Adams said. “We’re just now to the point where we’re really getting to see how much native grass we’ve got.”

They also relied on the help of their daughter, Carly, who is the environmental program coordinator for Olathe.

While the farm is recovering, the Adamses and their tenant, Mike Wintermantel, rely on tips from the government on how to maintain the land including, for example, how many cattle should graze at one time.

“We’ve learned a lot, and we’ve had a lot of fun doing it, even though it’s been really hard,” John Adams said. The most rewarding aspect, however, is knowing that their legacy is left with the land.

“You like to say that maybe you left something better than it started. I can say that this farm now is better, because of what we’ve done, than when we got it,” John said.

“It’s a good feeling,” he added. “None of this was rocket science. It’s just hard grunt work. It’s nice to go up there, and it’s quiet and it’s peaceful.”