It’s tree planting time in the Valleyby Anita Westervelt, Texas Master Naturalist November through February is optimal tree-planting time in the Valley. Cooler months allow trees a dormant period when roots can grow without heat and drought stress. Trees will be more established and flourish with spring rains. Criteria for planting anything should be: “what…

Common Pauraque – Master of Camouflage by Linda Butcher, Texas Master Naturalist Have you ever been walking through your favorite nature park on a brushy trail with abundant leaf litter on the ground and wondered what might be lurking nearby? If so, you may have passed right by a Common Pauraque — a tropical bird…

Myths and facts about the beneficial bat by Jolaine Lanehart, Texas Master Naturalist Many people think bats are dirty, rabies-infested, and evil. Bats are very clean, grooming themselves constantly. They do not carry rabies but, like most mammals, they can become infected. Bats will not attack humans nor get tangled in your hair. As members…

To mow or not to mow; discovering native plants in urban lawns Story by Robert Gaitan, Texas Master Naturalist Ever wonder where this American idea that we ‘ought’ to have a large well-kept lawn came from? In the early 1840’s, Andrew Jackson Downing, landscape designer, wrote, “No expenditure in ornamental gardening is, to our mind,…

Hat’s Off to the Historic Texas Ebony Tree by Anita Westervelt, Texas Master Naturalist If ever a tree speaks of Deep South Texas heritage, it’s the Texas ebony, Chloroleucon ebano. One of the more historic trees in the Valley, it’s steeped in tradition and considered the most valuable. These massive trees can reach to 50…