Author: Anita Westervelt
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Anita’s Blog — Guilt-free Gardening
This past week saw 1,165 Texas Master Naturalists from all 48 chapters across Texas attending the annual conference — virtually. One particular technical session resonated with me because it allowed me to finally be a guilt-free gardener! Yes, I have a guilty secret. I harbor some non-native plants in my gardens. And that’s ok! Doug…
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A night visitor to keep around
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Story and photos by Anita Westervelt, Texas Master Naturalist The Virginia opossum (Didelphis virginiana) is a critter of the night more beneficial to a garden and the urban scene than it is a menace or threat — and they’re just almost cute. Opossums are relatively small — about the size of a cat — ranging…
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A Rabble of Butterflies
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— Bring in the butterflies with just a couple of plants Story and photos by Anita Westervelt, Texas Master Naturalist September’s rains provided a tremendous boost to our fall kaleidoscope of butterflies. What’s rain got to do with it? September rains create a burst of blooms in our native plant communities — in time for…
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Fall caterpillars are on the move
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Story and photos by Anita Westervelt, Texas Master Naturalist Some moths and butterflies are still laying eggs, and in six to 10 days, those eggs will hatch and tiny caterpillars will be on the move. Moth and butterfly caterpillars grow through about five instar stages. After the final stage, moth caterpillars form a cocoon while…
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Anita’s Blog — Changes are Afoot
The temperature is a-changing; we’re promised a drop soon in the humidity levels. The birds in the trees are more diverse — different species passing through with the annual migration. There are more hummingbirds darting around tubular-shaped blooms in the garden, far less dragonflies in the air and more species of butterflies than you can…
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Two Valley frogs
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— Night hunters help control the insect population Story and photos by Anita Westervelt, Texas Master Naturalist The Lower Rio Grande Valley is the northern most range of the common Mexican tree frog, Smilisca baudinii. Their range includes the Sonoran Desert in Arizona, Cameron and Hidalgo counties in Texas and south to Costa Rica. They…