Story and photos by Anita Westervelt, Texas Master Naturalist A Texas cicada, the Superb Dog-days cicada, Neotibicen superbus, is so named because it makes its annual appearance during the dog days of summer — those hot, sultry days when it is most hot and humid. Historically, the dog days followed the heliacal rising of the…

By Anita Westervelt, Texas Master Naturalist The air will soon be aflutter with masses of colorful butterflies searching for colorful flowers and rich nectar sources. One popular Valley shrub coming into its showiest season is Esperanza (Tecoma stans). This prolific bloomer sports attention-getting, bright yellow clusters of bell-shaped flowers. The eye-catching blooms aren’t just for…

By Anita Westervelt, Texas Master Naturalist Programs. There are two Texas Master Naturalist chapters in the Rio Grande Valley. Both chapters offer monthly meetings with guest speaker programs and social time that are free and open to the public. The Texas Master Naturalist organization is a unique educational volunteer program sponsored by Texas A&M AgriLife…

Story and photos by Anita Westervelt, Texas Master Naturalist Believe it or not, April is a good time to think about October. The October butterfly season, that is, when the Rio Grande Valley is a kaleidoscope of colorful butterflies Now is the time to set about making sure your garden will have plenty of nectar…

By Anita Westervelt, Texas Master Naturalist At dusk, white flowers glow with their own special drama. Some seem to float like tiny alien spaceships in a dark, terrestrial sea. During the day, white-flowering plants suspended among a diversity of green leaves generate a cool, peaceful visage in the summer’s heat. In descending order of height,…

By Anita Westervelt, Texas Master Naturalist A wet year in the Rio Grande Valley brings more native plants to flower. The more flowering plants, the more butterflies. Unlike birds, butterflies don’t mind flying close to humans, sometimes landing on a person standing still and often zipping around while one works in the yard, oblivious to…