Hill Country Naturalist

 

 

• Home

•• KDT Columns

• HC Ecology

• Photos

• My Books

Kerrville Daily Times Columns Archived (Click on Title to open the article, to find a specific topic, go to "edit", then "find on this page" and type the topic) (Note, title may be different from the headline that appeared in the paper.)
Date Published	Title	Subjects/Key Words
12/31/2016	A Year in the Life of a Tree	Leaves, roots
12/24/2016	Observing Little Wonders of Nature	Spiders, lizards, squirrels
12/17/2016	Books for Christmas Gifts and Winter Reading About Nature and Texas	Nature Books
12/10/2016	Some Interesting Facts About Coyotes	Coyotes, urban
12/3/2016	What Exclosures Can Tell Us About Our Native Habitats	Exclosures
11/26/2016	Is Our Land Healthy?	Biodiverse, sustainable
11/19/2016	Well-Timed Rains Have Made for a Bumper Crop of Native Vegetation	Indian grass
11/12/2016	A Glimpse of the Hill Country in 1846	Ferdinand Roemer
11/5/2016	The Littlest Creatures Can be Truly Amazing	Spiders, butterflies, insects
10/29/2016	Some of the More Common Hill Country Shrubs	Agarita, Texas persimmon, Texas mountain laurel, possumhaw
10/22/2016	Will Our Parks Become Obsolescent?	National Parks
10/15/2016	Our Most Common Hill Country Trees	Oaks, cedar elm, hackberry, escarpment black cherry
10/8/2016	Learning the Names of Our Native Plants	Common Names, scientific names
10/1/2016	Our Late Summer Rains Were Great for Our Fall Bloomers	Gay-feather, Maximilian sunflower, common sunflower, zexmenia
9/24/2016	Screwworm Fly Eradication.  Local Lab Played a Major Role in Eradicting This Pest from Texas	Sterile Flies, Deer population
9/17/2016	In Defense of Cows	Cattle, 4-H
9/10/2016	The Ogallala Aquifer.  Lessons for Us All	Ogallala, Edwards, Trinity
9/3/2016	Three Native Hill Country Small Mammals. Two Big Rats and a Pseudo Cat	Porcupine, Beaver, Ringtail
8/27/2016	Rain:  First Too LIttle, Then Too Much	Rainfall amounts
8/20/2016	The Teachings and Philosophy of Aldo Leopold	Leopold, Land Ethic
8/13/2016	Want to be Healthier?  Spend More Time with Nature	Healing Power of Nature
8/6/2016	Rain Makes Us Happy	Wilting, Soil moisture
7/30/2016	Native Woody Plants with Long Bloom Periods	Desert Willow, Texas lantana
7/23/2016	Beauty, and Nature, in the Eye of the Beholder	Native habitat, understory
7/16/2016	Grasses, Soil, Erosion, Water Catchment--All Connected	Grass, soil, erosion, water catchment
7/9/2016	Watching Nature in the Backyard	Swallows, armadillos
7/2/2016	Cedar: More Complex Than We Think	Cedar, Ashe Juniper
6/25/2016	Watching Barn Swallows Raise a Family	Barn Swallows
6/18/2016	The Most Common Grasses of the Hill Country	Big Four grasses, native bunch grasses
6/11/2016	RAIN: It Changes Everything	Rain, Vegetation
6/4/2016	How to Become More Involved with Nature-Realted Activities	Master Naturalist, NPSOT
5/28/2016	How Can We Protect the Hill Country?	State Parks, Conservation
5/21/2016	A Spring Walk Around the House	Spring flowers, blooming shrubs
5/14/2016	There is Still Very Well-Managed Land in the Hill Country	Land Stewardship, Habitat versus Profit
5/7/2016	The Texas Hill Country.  How We Got Here	Ideal Place
4/30/2016	A Weekend Learning About Cedar, Soil and Water	Cedar clearing, land restoration
4/23/2016	Diversity: A Key Concept in Biology, Ecology and Ecosystems	Diversity, native habitat
4/16/2016	Mr. Texas Bluebonnet, Carroll Abbott, A Previous Kerrville Resident	Carroll Abbott, NPSOT
4/9/2016	Cotton Tails and Jack Rabbits: It Wouldn't be Texas Without Them	Cotton tails, Jack Rabbits
4/2/2016	The Backyard Cedar Tree	Cedar, squirrels, birds
3/26'2016	Its Great to be in the Hill Country on  a Day Like This	Bumblebees, barn swallows, blooms
3/19/16	Exotic Animals  and the Problems They Cause	Feral ungulates, hogs, cats
3/12/2016	Hill Country Wild Turkeys	Rio Grande Wild Turkeys, Gobblers
3/5/2016	Land Fragmentation	Land fragmentation
2/27/2016	Hill Country Squirrels	Mexican ground squirrel, rock squirrel, Eastern fox squirrel
2/20/2016	Winter Butterflies	Red Admiral, painted lady, orange sulphur, variegated fritillary
2/13/2016	A Visit with Laura Broyles of the Natural Resources Conservation Service	Soil Conservation Service, NRCS
2/6/2016	What Do We Want to Happen to Rainwater and What Does Cedar Have to do With It?	Should Water Soak In or Run Off?
1/30/2016	We Should Listen to Teddy Roosevelt	Conservation of Natural resources
1/23/2016	A Visit with Rufus Stephens of Texas Parks and Wildlife Dept.	Wildlife management, habitat management
1/16/2016	Two Hill Country Residents that are as Smart as Foxes	Gray fox, red fox
1/9/2016	Grass and Trees and God	A Fable
1/2/2016	Life in Early Texas.  Books to Read About Early Texans	Books,
12/262015	The Underground World of Roots	Tap, lateral and fibrous roots, micorrhizae, rhizobium
12/19/2015	A Visit With County Extension Agent Roy Walston	4-H, stock shows, farmers, ranchers
12/12/2015	Some Truly Amazing Things About Mother Nature	insects, monarchs, butterflies, seeds
12/05/2015	Listening to the Experts	AgriLife Extension, TPWD, TFS, USDA/NRCS
11/28/2015	An Example of Good Land Management	Bamberger Ranch Preserve
11/21/2015	Two Common but Strange Hill Country Critters	Opossum, armadillo
11/13/2015	Observations on a Year of Extremes	Wet spring, dry sumjmer, wet fall
11/6/2015	Plants Less Likely to be Eaten by Deer	Cenizo, evergreen sumac, Texas mountain laurel, agarita, Mexican silktassel
10/30/2015	What Can You Plant that Won't be Eaten by Deer?	Deer food choices
10/23/2015	Does it Matter How Rural Land is Managed?	Land Stewardship
10/14/2015	Two or Our Most Common Mammals	Raccoons, skunks
10/9/2015	The Basics of Oak Wilt	Live oaks, red oaks
10/2/2015	Lightning Hits a Favorite Tree	Vascular system destroyed, bark blown off
9/25/2015	Habitat--It's Where We All Live	Food, water & shelter
9/18/2015	Nature's Recovery After the Bastrop Fire	Old seeds respond to fire
9/11/2015	Soil for Water??	Healthy soil, soil organic matter
8/21/2015	Saving Water and Plants in the Hot Dry Summer	Evaporation, mowing
8/14/2015	Seed Dispersal:  Observing Mother Nature at Work	Root sprouts, seeds
8/7/2015	Watching Nature Adapt to Changing Conditions	Texas wintergrass, variations in rainfall
7/31/2015	The Most Common Shrubs and Vines of the Hill Country	Agarita, Texas persimmon, greenbriar
7/24/2015	Watching Our Backyard Wildlife	Birds, Squirrels, feeders, "creek"
7/17/2015	Where Did Our Native Plants and Animals Come From?  And How Can We Keep Them?	Native Species, evolved together, biodiversity
7/10/2015	The Water--Cedar Connection.  Its more Complicated Than You Think	Rainwater capture by vegetation, erosion
7/03/2015	Leaves--Common, complex, Essential to Live as We Know It	Photosynthesis, evapotranspiration
6/26/2015	Some of the Most Common Wildflowers of the Hill Country	Mexican hat, mealy blue sage, prairie verbena, frostweed, cowpen daisy
6/19/2015	The Universal Beneficence of Grass	John James Ingalls
6/12/2015	Storm Damage Along Your Creek?  Don't Rush to Clean Up too Much	Riparian Areas
6/5/2015	Yes We Still Have to Conserve Water	Drought Monitor
5/29/2015	Eighty Years After the Dust Bowl: Have We Learned Enough?	Erosion, sand storms, drought
5/22/2015	Which Native Animals Could Cause You the Most Harm?	Rattlesnakes, spiders, hogs, mountain lions, deer
5/15/2015	Some Native Hill Country Trees Other than Oaks	Cypress, cedar elm, escarpment black cherry, hackberry, pecan, sycamore, walnut
5/8/2015	A Lifetime Involved with Nature	David Attenborough
4/24/2015	The Do's and Don'ts for an Inviting Backyard Wildlife Habitat	Food, water, shelter, cover
4/17/2015	Choose a Tree for the Site, Not a Site for the Tree	Growth characteristics, requirements
4/10/2015	Why Native Plants and Not Exotics?	Native Habitat
4/3/2015	Other Less-Than-Favorite Native Plants	Cedar, hackberry, buffalo bur, ball moss
3/27/2015	In Defense of Prickly Pear	Diversity, pollinators, cover, nursery
3/20/2015	Surviving the Winter When You Only Weigh Half an Ounce	Finches, food as fuel
3/13/2015	What is the Most Valuable Part of Your Land?	Soil, minerals, organic, microorganisms, water, air
3/6/2015	Where Can We Get More Water?	Reservoirs, desalinization, reuse, conservation
2/27/2015	Stop, Look and Listen:  One Year of Visits to the Nature Trail	Sit still to really see nature
2/20/2015	Oak Trees: They Make the Hill Country Special	Red oaks, white oaks
2/13/2015	Bird nests Show the Ingenuity of Our Little Feathered Friends	Wrens, titmice, chickadees, fly catchers
2/6/2015	Winter Along the Nature Trail	Feral hogs, dead limbs, need to cage young trees
1/30/2015	The Backyard Creek	Bird baths, recirculating creek
1/23/2015	The Big Four Native Perennial Forbs of Texas	Bush sunflower, Engelmann daisy, Illinois bundleflower, Maximilian sunflower
1/16/2015	Living With Native Wildlife	Humans vs. Native Habitat
1/9/2015	It Ain't What We Don't Know, That Pains Us So	Riparian Areas, misconceptions
1/2/2015	"Society has an Indoor Kid Issue"	Nature-Deficit Disorder, LANDS Program
12/26/2014	Aldo Leopold's Five Tools of Land Management	Axe, plow, cow, fire, gun
12/19/2014	Good Books about Nature and Texas for Winter Reading	Aldo Leopold, John Graves, David Langford, Ricky Linex
12/12/2014	More Views from Stops Along the Nature Trail	Mealy blue sage, exotic animals, feral hogs
12/5/2014	It Has Been a Good Year for Grass	Native grasses, Nature's sponge
11/28/14	Nature's Calendar	Photoperiod, phytochrome
11/21/14	What Makes the Leaves Change Color?	Chlorophyll, nighttime hours
11/14/14	How Fast are We Losing Our Trees?	No replacement hardwoods
11/7/2014	Watching Deer and Grass on the Nature Trail	Texas wintergrass, KR bluestem, Deer
10/31/2014	The View from the Back Porch on a Beautiful October Morning	Fall wildflowers, Gregg's mistflower, butterflies, monarch
10/24/2014	The Big Four Grasses of the Tall Grass Prairie	Little bluestem, big bluestem, yellow indiangrass, switchgrass
10/17/2014	Understanding Aquifers	Porosity, permeability, recharge
10/10/2014	How Much Rain Did You Keep?	Impervious surfaces, rainwater infiltration
10/3/2014	More Time Spent on the Nature Trail. Plant Sale	Rocks, Plant Sale
9/26/2014	We Have Nice Wildflowers in the Fall Too	Tall Goldenrod, gayfeather, maximilian sunflower
9/19/2014	How Much Brush is Too Much Brush?	Diversity, moderation
9/12/2014	What Happened to Our Horney Toads?	Horned lizards, box turtles, quail
9/5/2014	How to Make Your Garden Look Natural	Plant randomly
8/29/2014	Just-In-Time Rain	Wilting, dropping leaves
8/22/2014	What Our Common Native Critters Eat	Herbivores, omnivores, carnivores
8/15/2014	What a Difference a Fence Makes	Volunteer plants
8/8/2014	Dead Plant Material is Valuable.  Don't Throw it Away	Nutrient recycling, erosion prevention
8/1/2014	Sitting Around the Nature Trail in Mid-July	Feral cats, dung beetles
7/25/2014	When is a Bug Not an Insect?	Daddy-long-legs, spiders, scorpions
7/18/2014	What Should We Do When There is Not Enough Water?	Allocation of Water Resources
7/11/2014	Is It a Weed or a Wildflower?	Bluebonnet, mexican hat
7/4/2014	Invasive Exotic Grasses are Reducing the Diversity of our Native Habitat	Invasive, exotic grasses
6/27/2014	If You Love Nature, You Should Become a Master Naturalist	Texas Master Naturalist
6/20/2014	Rainwater Harvesting: The Basics of Why and How	Tanks, pumps, gallons/rain
6/13/2014	A Fun Morning Sitting and Watching Nature	Jackrabbits, squirrels
6/6/2014	Our Oak Population is Declining	Blackjack oaks, no young sprouts
5/30/2014	Can the World Continue to Feed Everyone?	Agriculture, population increase, food demand.
5/23/2014	Coyotes: Rural and Urban	Urban habitat
5/16/2014	The Chemistry of Photosynthesis and The Carbon Cycle	chlorophyll, renewable and non-renewable energy
5/9/2014	Have You Ever Seen a Biological Soil Crust?	soil crust, cyanobacteria
5/2/2014	March and April Walks along the Nature Trail	agarita, turkeys, birds nesting
4/25/2014	Of Bees and Butterflies and Other Sad Tales	bee colony collapse, loss of larval plants
4/18/2014	Humans Make Life Tough for Wildlife	habitat destruction, pollution
4/11/2014	Random Observations on a Sunny Early Spring Day	jays, leaf exchange
4/4/2014	World Water Day--It Should be Everyday	Severe drought, landscape watering, native lawns and shrubs
3/28/2014	Oh! The Joys of Early Spring	Plums, redbuds, wrnes, chickadees, hummingbirds
3/21/2014	New Public Land for the Hill Country	New State Natural Area, ABK
3/14/2014	First Observations Along the Nature Walk	Blackbuck, hypoxylon, dead trees
3/7/2014	Bees, Butterflies and Blooms in Winter?	elbowbush, honeybees, overwintering insects
2/21/2014	Animal Society is Varied, Complex and Mysterious	Flocks, herds, packs, pairs, families
2/18/2014	A Nature Walk to Observe Changes Around Us	Nature walk
2/14/2014	Where to Find Our Most Common Native Trees Growing	Hillsides, alluvial soil
2/7/2014	Nature is Not Neat	Mother Nature, non-native landscapes
1/31/2014	Native Hill Country Plants That Need Our Help	Spanish Oak, Blackjack oak, Blanco crabapple, Big red sage
1/24/2014	Where Do Our Wildlife Find Their Food?	browse, forbs, grass, acorns, berries, beans
1/17/2014	Non-Native Plants and Animals: A Real Problem	Invasive grasses, KR bluestem, Guinea grass, buffelgrass
1/10/2014	Bacteria and Fungi: Essential to Life as we Know it	Nitrogen, nitrates, proteins, root hairs
1/3/2014	Watching Whooping Cranes in Texas	Endangered species, environmental flows, bluecrabs
12/27/2013	The Organization of All Life on Earth	Monera, Protista, Plantae, Fungi, Anamalia
12/20/2013	Water: Conserve it, Capture it, Keep it Clean	Water culture, conserve, capture, pollutants
12/13/2013	It's Not Winter Yet	December butterflies, blooming shrubs, different leaf colors
12/6/2013	Holiday Gifts to Spread the Love of Nature	Nature Books
11/29/2013	Some Less-Common Trees and Shrubs of the Texas Hill Country Part II	Bigtooth maple, Eve's necklace, silktassel, buckeyes, toothache, spicebush, barberry
11/22/2013	Deer Hunting in the Hill Country	Deer overpopulation, hunting
11/15/2013	Some Less-Common Trees and Shrubs of the Texas Hill Country	Basswood, maple, crabapple, madrone, goldenball leadtree, buckeye
11/8/2013	Nature's Response to Rain and a Change of Seasons	Bare ground, litter dams, erosion, changes
11/1/2013	Lessons from the Old Timers	Cedar, Erosion, springs
10/25/2013	My Favorite Fall Flowers	Maximilian sunflower, goldenrod, Gregg's mistflower, cowpen daisy
10/18/2013	Landscapes Like Mother Nature Grows	species diversity, random growth, monocultures
10/11/2013	Americans Before Columbus	hunter-gatherers, European livestock and foods
10/4/2013	And Then The Rains Came!	Grass greening up, new leaves, gray grass, brown grass
9/27/2013	The Lightning Tree Fell Down	Lightning, post oak, blackjack oak
9/20/2013	Watching Nature from my Window	Titmice, hummingbirds, raccoon
9/13/2013	Guide to Tree and Shrub Identification: Part IX	Twice pinnately compound, bipinnate, trifoleate
9/6/2013	Guide to Tree and Shrub Identification: Part VIII	Compound alternate leaves
8/30/2013	Guide to Tree and Shrub Identification: Part VII	Simple, opposite, entire and toothed
8/23/2013	Are Our Trees Dying? What Can We Do?	Drought, stress, watering
8/16/2013	Guide to Tree and Shrub Identification: Part VI	Simple, alternate, lobed, oaks
8/9/2013	Surviving Another Hot, Dry Summer	Save water, water wisely, mulch, drip irrigation
8/2/2013	Guide to Tree and Shrub Identification: Part V	Simple, alternate toothed margins
7/26/2013	Guide to Tree and Shrub Identification: part IV	Simple, alternate, entire margins
7/19/2013	Guide to Tree and Shrub identification: Part III	Vines, grape, greenbrier, Virginia creeper, trumpet creeper
7/12/2013	Guide to Tree and Shrub Identification: Part II	Leaf type, arrangement, margin, shape size
7/5/2013	Guide to Tree and Shrub Identification: Part I	Tree Key, leaf characteristics
6/28/2013	Are We Polluting our Water?	Pollution, point source and non-point source pollution
6/21/2013	The Carbon Cycle: Another way Mother Nature Recycles Everything	Photosynthesis, burning
6/14/2013	Natures Clean-Up Crew: Vultures Help Mother Nature Recycle	Nutrient recycling, bald & turkey vultures, caracara
6/7/2013	The Nitrogen Cycle: Essential, Complicated and Altered by Man	Nitrogen Cycle, Legumes, Fertilizer
5/31/2013	Where to go to Enjoy and Learn about Nature	Hill Country State Parks, Master Naturalists
5/24/2013	Woody Plants in the Rose and Elm Families	Crabapple, plum, cherry, hackberries, elms
5/17/2013	Are We Smart Enough to "Improve" Mother Nature?	Unintended consequences, invasive exotics
5/10/2013	Changes Observed as Winter Turns into Spring	New leaves and blooms
5/3/2013	The Most Detrimental Invasive Exotic Plants	Chinaberry, ligustrum, giant reed
4/26/2013	"Saving the Water and the Soil Must Start Where the First Raindrop Falls"	Erosion, rainwater capture
4/19/2013	Why the Condition of Hill Country Rangeland Matters to All of Us	Healthy habitat, rainwater capture
4/12/2013	How to Best Manage Hill Country Rangeland	Overgrazing, overbrowsing, cedar encroachment
4/5/2013	How do Trees Make New Leaves in the Spring?	Photosynthesis, carbohydrates, sugars
3/29/2013	The Big Three Problems in Managing for Better Habitat	Overgrazing, overbrowsing, cedar encroachment
3/22/2013	The Amazing Monarch Butterfly	Monarchs, migration, milkweeds
3/14/2013	What is the Ideal Hill Country Habitat?	Habitat functions
3/7/2013	Some Hill Country Trees and Shrubs of the Legume Family	Pea pods, mesquite
2/28/2013	Legumes: An Interesting, Important, Diverse Family of Plants	Pea family, "fixing" nitrogen, legumes
2/21/2013	Habitat Changes in the Hill Country	European settlers, habitat change
2/14/2013	The Sumac Family of Native Shrubs	Aromatic, Prairie Flameleaf, Evergreen, Littleleaf sumacs
2/7/2013	A Glimpse of the Hill Country in 1846	Ferdinand Roemer, Lindheimer, prairie fires
1/31/2013	Some Thoughts on Our Water Future	Drought, Conservation
1/24/2013	Wildlife Have to Survive Year Round	Animals need year-round food, shelter
1/17/2013	Plants with Prickles are Not All Bad	Prickly pear, Agarita, nurse plants
1/10/2013	Books for Winter Reading about Nature and Texas	Aldo Leopold, Roy Bedichek, John Graves
1/3/2013	Hill Country Winters are Semi-Green	Tx. mountain laurel, Cenizo, Evergreen sumac
12/27/2012	The Other Common Oaks in the Hill Country	Red, White, Spanish, Post, Blackjack, Shin, Lacey, Chinquapin
12/20/2012	Lessons Learned from the Dust Bowl	Overgrazing, overplowing, wind erosion, how not to treat the land
12/13/2012	Cochineal Bugs	Cochineal, cactus bugs
12/6/2012	Leaves: Don't Throw Away Nature's Resources	mulch, compost, soil insulation
11/22/2012	Native Yellow Flowers in Fall	Maximilian sunflower, Engelmann daisy, cowpen daisy
11/15/2012	Fall Leaf Drop	Evergreen, deciduous, chlorophyll, DNA
11/8/2012	The Joy of Watching Nature	ants, dragonflies, lizards
11/1/2012	Aldo Leopold	Aldo Leopold, Land Ethic, A Sand County Almanac
10/25/2012	Life Around the Backyard Creek	water feature, frogs, toads
10/18/2012	Fall in the Hill Country	Fall color, natural areas
10/04/2012	Feral Hogs: A Growing Problem in Texas	Feral hogs, diseases
9/20/2012	Red Harvester Ants: A Lesson About Man and Nature	Red harvester ants, fire ants, horned toads
9/13/2012	Cedar: A Bad Thing or Too Much of a Good Thing?	Managing cedar, juniper
9/6/2012	Mowing: Time to Rethink Old Habits?	Mowing, stolons, non-native lawn grasses
8/30/2012	The Ubiquitous Live Oak	Live oak, Quercus fusiformis
8/23/2012	Galls: Strange Growths on Trees and Other Plants	Galls
8/16/2012	Fears of Nature Greatly Exaggerated	Nature safer than home, snakes uncommon
8/9/2012	Browselines	Browers, woody plant leaves, habitat destruction
8/2/2012	Drip Irrigation	Conserving water, soaker hoses, inline emitter tubing
7/26/2012	Tips for Growing Native Plants	Keep native volunteers, dappled shade, no pesticides
7/19/2012	Tree Families of the Hill Country	Plant families, gymnosperm, angiosperm
7/12/2012	Life and Changes on a One Acre Piece of The Hill Country Part II	Root sprouts, saplings, replacement hardwoods
7/5/2012	Life and Changes on a One Acre Piece of The Hill Country Part I	Exclosures, root sprouts, hypoxylon
6/28/2012	Energy and the Natural World	Food Chain, photosynthesis, herbivores
6/21/2012	How Does a Tree Work?	Xylem, phloem, evapotranspiration, sugar
6/14/2012	The Joy of Watching Nature	Nature in you backyard, watching nature
6/7/2012	Why Native Plants?	Natives evolved here, Exotics, invasives
5/31/2012	Animals and Their Food Choices	Favorite foods, deer resistant
5/24/2012	What Has Happened to Our Land?	Development, impervious surfaces, loss of agricultural land
5/17/2012	What Happened to All the Critters I Used to See?	Horned toads, box turtles, quail, mourning dove
5/10/2012	How to Learn to Identify Native Plants	Grasses, forbs, trees & shrubs,
5/3/2012	Seeds: The Most Important Part of the Plant	Germination, pollination
4/26/2012	FREE: Advice and Help for Landowners From the Experts	AgriLife Extension, Tx Parks and Wildlife, USDA/NRCS, Tx Forest Service
4/19/2012	Small Changes in the Environment Can Have Large, Unexpected Consequences	Chaos theory, tinkering with nature unintended consequences
4/12/2012	Bugs: We Couldn't Live Without Them	Insects, pollinators, food for animals, insecticides
4/5/2012	This is a Good year For Weeds--Or Wildflowers	Forbs, early succession plants
3/29/2012	It's Not how Much Rain You Get, But How Much You Keep	Runoff, erosion, bare dirt
3/22/2012	Hypoxylon: The OTHER Tree Disease	Oak wilt, drought stress
3/15/2012	Lichens and Other Things That Grow on Trees	Fungi, algae, ball moss, mistletoe, epiphyte
3/8/2012	Water, Our Most Precious Resource. What We Have is All We Will Ever Have	Aquifer, precious resource, conservation
3/01/2012	Bare Dirt: What You Don't Want on Your Land	Raindrops, erosion, bare ground
2/23/2012	Do We Really Have Any "Natural Areas" Anymore?	Wilderness, diverse, sustainability, healthy
2/16/2012	Predators and Prey	Coyotes, predators, prey, healthy sustainable ecosystems
2/9/2012	Bamberger Ranch Preserve	Examples of Good Land Stewardship
2/2/2012	Nature is Interesting Even in Winter	Texas wintergrass, goldfinches, robins, roadrunners, bats
1/26/2012	What Landowners can do to Help Save our Native Texas	Create an Oasis, Do no Harm, Share Your Space
1/19/2012	Parks, Natural Areas and Wildlife Refuges	National Wildlife refuges, parks, natural areas
1/12/2012	Demonstration of the Properties of Native Grasses	Soil organisms, soil porosity, rainwater infiltration
1/5/2012	Native Animals are Tougher Than We Are	Native animals, shelter
12/29/2011	Deer are Picky Eaters	Deer food preferences
12/22/2011	We are Lucky to Live in the Hill Country	Hill Country, Edwards Plateau
12/15/2011	Which is More Important, Plants or Animals?	Native plants, native animals, native habitat
12/8/2011	Helping Native Plants Through the Winter Drought	Water, Mimic Mother Nature, Don't rake leaves
12/1/2011	Nurse Plants. How Young Plants Survive the Deer	Prickly pear, Agarita, Nurse plant
11/29/2011	Animal Behavior Studies	instinct, innate behavior, triggers, learned behavior
11/24/2011	What Makes the Leave Change Color	Chlorophyll, Fall color
11/17/2011	What You Can do to Help Conserve Our Native Texas	Volunteer activities, Nature education
11/10/2011	What is so Important About Native Plants	Native plnts, invasives, exotics
11/3/2011	Prickly Weeds of the Hill Country	Buffalo bur, Western horse-nettle, Silver-leaf nightshade, White prickly poppy
10/27/2011	A Plea to Hunters: Take More Does	Overpopulation of Deer
10/20/2011	A Naturalist's Walk Around the Yard	Flora and Fauna inside a fence
10/13/2011	More Drought Talk	Drought, Reduce Stocking Rates
10/6/2011	The Natural Food Web	Food web, diversity
9/29/2011	Nature Festival at Riverside	Native Plant Sale
9/22/2011	Mighty Oaks From Little Acorns Grow	Red oaks, white oaks
9/15/2011	The Odyssey of Atom X	Aldo Leopold, A Sand County Almanac
9/8/2011	Native Succulents of the Hill Country	Succulents, yucca, sotol, nolina
9/1/2011	What it the Drought Doing to Our Native Trees and Grasses	Drought, Native Trees, Grasses, soaker hose
8/25/2011	The Earth Is Full	Carrying capacity, population
8/18/2011	Erosion	Soil, sheet erosion, bare ground, grasses prevent erosion
8/11/2011	How the Drought is Affecting Our Native Wildlife	Effects of drought on insects, birds and other animals
8/4/2011	Three More Native Hill Country Small Mammals	Porcupine, Beaver, Ringtail
7/28/2011	Where You Can Go For Help and To Learn More About the Natural World	AgriLife Extension, TPWD, TFS, NRCS, TMN, NPSOT
7/21/2011	Some Nature and Texas Natural History Books Recommended	Aldo Leopold, Roy Bedichek, Elmer Kelton, John Graves
7/14/2011	The Water Cycle	Evaporation, evapotranspiration, hydrologic cycle
7/7/2011	The Myths and Reality of Hill Country Cedar	Cedar, Juniper, rainwater interception, cedar encroachment, cedar management
6/30/2011	Native Hill Country Vines	Grape, Virginia creeper, greenbrier, dewberry
6/23/2011	Riparian Areas	Riparian, reduce erosion, hold soil, stabilizer
6/16/2011	Exotic Ungulates of The Hill Country	Axis, Fallow, Sika, Blackbuck, Aoudad
6/9/2011	How to Conserve Water AND Save Your Plants	Drought, Conserve water, drip irrigation, mulch
6/2/2011	Plants are Pretty Amazing Too	Energy and Chemicals stored in seeds
5/26/2011	The Blackjack Oak and the Squirrel Family	Blackjack Oak, Hollow Tree, Hypoxylon, Squirrels
5/19/2011	How Fast Are We Losing Hardwoods in the Hill Country?	Losing Hardwoods, no replacement trees
5/12/2011	Is it a Drought Yet? Part 2	Drought, Native plants, expect drought
5/5/2011	How to Protect your home from a Wildfire	Wildfire preparedness, fire ladder, Ready Set Go
4/28/2011	Is it a Drought Yet?	Drought, water conservation, mulch, drip
4/21/2011	Native Grasses, Most important Thing in the Landscape	Little bluestem, big bluestem, indiangrass, switchgrass, sideoats grama, KR bluestem
4/14/2011	Native Plants You Can Grow in Your Garden	big red sage, Maximilian Sunflower, mealy blue sage, Englemann daisy Damianita
4/7/2011	Invasive Plants in the Hill Country	Exotic plants, Chinaberry, Chinese tallow
3/31/2011	Cottontails and Jackrabbits	cottontails, jackrabbits
3/24/2011	Still More Native Hill Country Shrubs and Small Trees	Native shrubs, native trees
3/17/2011	Water, Water Everywhere	rainwater, rainwater harvesting
3/10/2011	Fire in the Hill Country	wildfire, prescribed burn, burn ban
3/3/2011	Common Hill Country Cacti	Cactus, succulents, Tobusch
2/24/2011	Common Hill country Forbs Seldom Eaten by Deer	Forb, Forbs not eaten
2/17/2011	Native Hill Country Squirrels	Rock Squirrel, Eastern fox squirrel
2/10/11	Land Fragmentation:  What we are Doing to the Hill Country	Breaking up ranches, carrying capacity, land stewardship inexperienced owners
2/3/2011	Harmless Hill Country Snakes	garter snake, coachwhip, Texas rat snake, rough green, water snakes, hognose
1/27/2011	More Common Hill Country Shrubs	Sumac, possumhaw, desert willow, dogwood,redbuds,kidneywood
1/20/2011	Animal Behavior	Ethology, instinct, animal behavior
1/13/2011	Local State Parks Are Great Places To Go	State Parks, Wildlife Management Areas
1/6/2011	Hill Country Foxes	Foxes
12/30/2010	Soil: It's More than Dirt and More Valuable Than You Think	Sand, silt, clay, soil
12/23/2010	Native Shrubs That Grow in Wet, Shady Areas	False Indigo, buckeye, Carolina buckthorn, creek plum, buttonbush, American beautyberry, wafer ash, spicebush
12/16/2010	Hill Country Venomous Snakes	venomous snakes, rattlesnakes, copperhead, coral snake, water moccasin, snake bites
12/9/2010	Winter is Coming	Winter gardening like Mother Nature, bird feeding, water sources
12/2/2010	Two Common, But Unusual Hill Country Mammals	Armadillo, opossum
11/25/2010	Native Evergreen Shrubs of the Hill Country	Mountain laurel, cenizo, sumac, agrita, madrone, cedar, persimmon, poverty weed
11/18/2010	Understanding Our Furry Friends and Neighbors	Raccoon, skunks
11/11/2010	Nature up Close--Observing Little Things of Wonder	Nature up close, Aldo Leopold, nature-deficit disorder
11/4/2010	Common Hill Country Trees Other Than Oaks	Cypress, elm, cherry, hackberry, pecan, sycamore, walnut, mesquite
10/28/2010	Effects of Modern Man on the Hill Country	Effects of modern man on HC, Native Americans, settlers, continuous grazing, livestock
10/21/2010	What the Hill Country Was Like Before We Got Here	Hill Country before Europeans, grasslands, bison, prairie fires
10/14/2010	Ahhh..Fall	Fall, acorns, color changes
10/7/2010	How to Tend Our Gardens More Like Mother Nature Would	Garden like Mother Nature, mowing, fertilizer, leaf raking
9/30/2010	How to Plant a Tree--There's More to it Than You Think	How to plant a tree
9/23/2010	The Why, What, When and Where of Tree Planting	why, what , when, where of tree planting
9/16/2010	Screwworm Fly Eradication: Local Lab Played Major Role in Eliminating the Pest from Texas	Screwworm fly eradication
9/9/2010	What Are Those Critters Eating Out There	What animals eat, browse, forbs, grass
9/2/2010	Saving Water and Work at the Same Time	Saving water, mowing, mulch, drip irrigation
8/26/2010	Raindrops--Why Their Fate Matters to Us ALL	Raindrops, seeps, springs, aquifer
8/19/2010	Oak Wilt--the Basics	Oak Wilt
8/12/2010	Watching Grass Grow--It's More Interesting than You think	Native grass characteristics, bunch grass
8/5/2010	Hill Country Oaks--More than Just Live Oaks	Hill Country oaks, oaks
7/29/2010	Habitats. It's Where We All Live	Habitat, diversity
7/22/2010	Some Plants That Might Not Be Eaten by Deer	less-favored deer foods,
7/15/2010	What Can I Plant that the Deer Won't eat?	Deer food preference, deer proof
7/8/2010	Plant Succession: How Mother Nature Rearranges Her Landscape and How We Are Involved	Plant succession, prescribed burning
7/1/2010	The Experts that Can Help You	Gov't experts, AgriLife, TPWD, NRCS, TFS
6/24/2010	Where Are All the Little Trees?	Browse damage, hardwoods
6/17/2010	Native Plants Instead of Common Exotics	Native plants, exotics, invasive
6/10/2010	It Ain't Like It Used To Be	Myths
6/3/2010	What is a Naturalist Anyway	naturalist
.
.

 

 

 

Website by Hilcadia Computer c/o charles@hilcadia.com