Fall report

If I wait for the time to write a long entry with profound insights, I will be too old to type. My goal is to just write things as they come – so here it comes. It’s been a busy fall, as I basically have a busy life. That’s a good thing as I see it. In September, Will and I vacationed in the Davis Mountains. When I am there, I feel like I’m at home. Being a reasonable driving distance from Odessa, it’s where my family would head out to on a rare family trip. I went to Girl Scout camp every year from when I was 7 until I was around 12 or so at Camp Mitre Peak. So the whole area feels comfortable to me, in a land embracing you kind of way. My friend Gloria and her son Eric were camping in the state park and my friends Beck and Anne were out there at the same time too. One afternoon we all happened to be at Balmorhea State Park at the same time. That was fun – to drive 7 hours and bump into someone you know one picnic table away from you. I took lots of photos on that trip and they can all be found on my Flickr site. But here is one that Gloria took of me showing off Mitre Peak.
Later in September I went to Odessa to meet little Jax and visit with his parents, his grandma (my BFF) and his great grandma. That was a super fun time full of babies, good food, laughter, and lots sweet moments. Those photos are also on Flickr except for this teaser here.
In late October I attended the Texas Master Naturalist state meeting. I was privileged to represent my local chapter by presenting a talk about our relationship with the Austin Nature and Science Center. I had a really fun time at the meeting. I met new people, learned new things, and had lots of laughs with my fellow Capital Area Master Naturalists. I forgot my camera so you’ll have to take my word for it that the trip to Mo Ranch, where the meeting was held, is one of the prettiest drives I’ve ever taken.
Back on the home front, I continue to tackle my yard. I fight back weeds, plant new things, and lately I put up a little plastic greenhouse shown here. Sometimes I take a book or magazine out there and sit. It’s like being a kid again and having a clubhouse. I’ll have to heat it when the temps drop down below 32 this winter but for now it’s quite pleasant out there.

How I spent the summer from Hell

I’m the first to admit that the subject of climate change is interesting, but I would rather read about what’s happening somewhere else than live through it here. We’ve had an entire summer of over 100 degree days. If you’re not familiar with Austin, TX, that’s hot even for here. Yes, it hits a 100 a few times in a typical summer, but this year has been brutal. I had so many summer landscaping plans that were dashed. I lived in denial the entire month of June, thinking, “Any day now, the mornings will be cool and I can get out and work.” By the end of June I was depressed. Yard work is therapy for me. I might not have the best looking yard in the world but I love puttering in it after a long day at the computer. In addition to the heat, the city is improving the street that runs behind my house. I’ve never lived so close to street work. The noise, the noxious fumes, the dust all over everything on the patio as they scooped up the old street and threw it into dump trucks - one after another, all the while beeping as they backed up –made for an unpleasant time. On the mornings it was cool enough to sit outside with the dogs and have my coffee, I couldn’t enjoy it because of the noise, smell, and dust. Late in June, I pulled myself together and turned my attention to indoor tasks – no big projects, mostly just keeping my house cleaner than usual.

I did manage to create this little flower bed out front

I did as much Capital Area Master Naturalist (CAMN) volunteering as I could. We got our new assignment in the Balcones Canyonland preserve . Walking through dense brush, falling on my bum, scrambling up hills by grabbing hold of any kind of plant available, really makes you feel alive. I volunteered for two of the Nature Smart Family events and had fun at both of them. My favorite moment was watching a 3 y/o observe a dragonfly larvae. He called him mom over and said, “Mom, look, a cinnamon-pede.” I enjoyed working with the kids and seeing them light up when they saw the creatures we found in the pond. Getting a fake insect tattoo with Cheryl was fun too. As was the beer and garden burger at Waterloo Ice House after a few hours in the heat with the kids.

CAMNers stalking invasive plants

Back on the home front, I learned to get up early and work in the yard for almost an hour before getting ready for work – at least a couple of days a week. I bought an ugly blue doggie pool. My dogs of course wouldn’t go near it but the birds used it to cool down, in addition to the regular birdbath and the small ones on the ground that the cardinals and the wrens like. I also discovered that the bees and wasps like the shallow water for their fill-ups. The mud daubers were able to make their little mud shelters for their offspring because there was ample water in the yard.
I was able to get a few yard-related things done, mostly hardscaping. Will pulled up 30 of the 2x2 pebble/cement pavers that were in the front yard. We replaced that with a nicer, more natural path from the sidewalk to the front porch by using flagstones and French drain gravel. We scooped up dirt and made a berm in the backyard for the rain garden. The berm is topped with Gulf Coast Muhley. The side near the fence has native cannas that Marie and Jerry gave me and I bought some Greg’s blue mistflower for the base of the rain garden. I’m sprouting some inland sea oats that will also go in the bottom. I got to test it out when we had a nice rain last week. Instead of running out under the gate, the water stays in the yard now, thanks to that project.

Here's the new path that replaced the pebble 2x2 pavers:

And then there’s the pond. I set it up in the early spring just to have some gurgling water on the patio. I used a washtub and plunked it on the patio. No liner, no frills, just gurgling water and 9 cent goldfish. Then came the baking afternoon sun and the algal bloom. Add in some snails and a plecostomus. After trying some unattractive methods of shading the pond from the afternoon sun, I put up a reed screen. That helped. Then the pond started to leak. So I went to Callahan’s General Store and got a 2x1x4 livestock tank. I lined it with pond liner, put in the rocks, set up the pump and filter, then added back in the living things. The big plant was a gift from my son who got it for me one afternoon while running around with my nephew. It still doesn’t look that great but I can see the fish better and everyone survived the move. I think the fish are actually getting bigger.

Original pond

New pond from beginning to end

The new tank

Up on blocks to elevate it

In go the rocks

Add the water, fish, pump, and plant

Put a reed border around it

Cool, clear water


And it wasn’t a total wash for the plant life. Yes, my tomatoes croaked but the prickly pear, the agaves, the yuccas, the flame acanthus, and the standing cypress all thought the hot weather was just fine. As did the avocado that sprang up in the world’s most neglected compost heap. I transplanted the avocado plant and it is putting on new leaves.

So most of us survived the summer, but I for one, am glad to see it come to an end. This morning, as I did my morning yard chores, a cool breeze whipped past me. The road construction crew was off for the day and, for the first time in months I thought “This summer might actually end.”

Where did June go?

June started in Dallas. I drove up to visit friends. Shown here are Mary Ellen and Gail exiting Maryam's condo. Gail is doing the royal wave.

We headed over to the Dallas Arboretum and saw lots of pretty things like this walk thru a crepe myrtle canopy.

...and this fearless bunny that let me walk right up to take this picture.

We tried to beat the heat by choosing some nice shady paths.

We finally found the frog pond. Four giant frogs spray water onto a brass sphere.

Mary Ellen ran thru the water while Gail and I snapped photos of the event.

Back home I visited Marie and Jerry's yard and snapped this little butterfly. Jerry probably knows what kind it is. I however, do not. I guess I need to attend more Austin Butterfly Forum meetings.

I finally got a big tank for holding rainwater. 305 gallons!

The morning glories spang to life in June and are still producing although they're a bit limp in the middle of the day.

I did a little yard work and turned this parched spot into an area for draining overflowing rainwater from the barrel. I put in some drought resistant plants like big muhly and black-eyed susans.

And then the rest of June went like this:

Birds near and far

At dusk last night I was thrilled to see the cardinal parents feeding a fledgling out in my backyard. As mom and dad were seeing to her needs, three adolescent males - likely from an earlier brood - came to check out my flower bed and feast on lantana berries. They were a motley group, not fully red. They squabbled over the berries but they seemed to be evenly matched. Everyone got their share.
While this is happening here in Austin, 2000 miles away my ex-husband is hosting a robin's nest in the ficus tree on his back porch. She's not camera shy as you can see.
Mom picks the perfect spot

And lays her eggs

She patiently broods

The babies are here!

First meal from mom.

The Eyes of Texas

It's Tuesday and that means class number three of the Sustainable Landscaping course I'm taking at the Wildflower Center thru their Go Native U courses. I was running a little late and rushed past the plants and ponds to get to the classroom. I stepped into the Visitor's Gallery and decided to take a couple of seconds and put away my keys and sunglasses. The Visitor's Gallery is a large room that is used for all kinds of things, like gatherings preceding a public speaker or silent auctions, as well as its day to day purpose - a place to display currently blooming flowers, and other functions. But as I stepped in this evening it was completely empty. I went about my busy-ness, mindless to my surroundings. Mindless until I heard The Eyes of Texas coming out of invisible speakers. I put everything down, took in the empty room, and listened to the entire song. When I turned to go down the stairs to the classroom, there was the photo of Ladybird Johnson. I am so, so grateful to her and grateful to be back in Texas.

Slimy Saturday; movie Sunday

Warning, this blogpost contains graphic images!
Yesterday I went to the Natural Gardener and bought plants for my Hell Strip (as Cheryl calls it). I thought I might put them out today but it's looking more like it will happen tomorrow. At the Natural Gardener I bought a new copy of an old book I had years ago - Worms Eat My Garbage. I came home and started flipping thru it and was inspired to sort thru my worm compost bin. I laid out some clear plastic and dumped the contents of the bin on it. Then I separated the black pile of compost into about a dozen piles. The worms wriggled down to the bottom of each pile to escape the light. I sorted thru those piles for about an hour and a half. Here is one (yes, only one) pile of worms I scooped up for a photo op.

Yikes! I took the compost they had created and put some of it in a bed where I put out the three tomato plants that my friend Marie had given me. The rest will have a similar fate in a few days as I make new beds. Then I got the bin ready for the worms to do their work by layering shredded newspaper and topsoil and tossing a fresh pile of peach skins for them to start working on.

And as if that wasn't enough creepy fun for one weekend, I found this when I was digging to prep the bed for tomatoes. This is the second one of these I've found in the yard. I've gotta' find out what they are. But that's for later because my son is taking me to see Star Trek - the new movie. Nature later, movie now.

A day of volunteering

It’s early on a Sunday morning. I went to bed super early last night after an exhausting day of volunteering. I spent three hours in the morning with Theresa and Gloria, climbing up and down some very rugged terrain, searching for invasive plants on one of the BCP tracts. At one point we thought we might have to scale a wall but we found a way around it. At the top of that was a mesa with a little stand of flax amidst a pile of limestone rocks. Small pockets of moss took advantage of the sun. After a short breather, we started our descent. For all that efforts of the morning, we found one 3 ft. tall nandina. We cataloged it and denuded it of blooms and berries. At a point on our descent I saw the most beautiful little spider. It was probably in the Theridiidae family, no more than 3 mm, lying belly up in its tangled web amongst branches. It was green with a shiny copper spot on its belly. It was worth all the pain and discomfort of the day to see that little creature. Here are some photos of our BCP invasive hunt:

Devil's shoestring. Not an invasive plant.

Daddy Longlegs

Gloria trying to scale a rock wall. Ha!

Theresa and Gloria identifying a plant

Orange mushrooms in the leaf litter

Life persists

After we completed our survey, I drove home and had a quick lunch, shower, and 20 min power nap. Then it was off to the Wildflower Center for an afternoon of vegetation surveying on their research plots. The plots we surveyed were quite a distance from the center so we got to ride on “gators”, the motorized Kawasaki 4 wheelers they use to get around out there. The ride to and fro was a delight. Imagine perfect weather, tall stands of purple three awn grasses bent over in the breeze, spots of color everywhere from the blooming wildflowers, all accented with bright yellow prickly pear blooms. There were just a handful of us and we were all ready to start our weekends so we got down to business and surveyed our plots. I’m pretty sure I can now distinguish these grasses: purple three awn, spear grass, love grass, fall witch grass, and side oats gramma. Plus the “bad” grasses like King Ranch Bluestem, Johnson grass, and rescue grass.

My ride out to the research plot - one of the gators

The real experts return from the field - Dick and Jeannine (foreground) work at WFC and seem to know everything - but in a nice way.