NATIVE PLANT SOCIETY OF TEXAS

Kerrville Chapter
Website:  www.npsot.org/kerrville

 November, 2006 Newsletter

 NATIVES ON THE GROW

Dedicated to the understanding, preservation and enjoyment of the native flora of the Hill Country

The Kerrville Chapter of the Native Plant Society of Texas holds monthly meetings on the first Tuesday of the month (September through June) at Riverside Nature Center, 150 Francisco Lemos St. in Kerrville.  These meetings are free and open to the public

 November 7, 2006

The Winter Garden: Beauty in All Seasons at Nov. 7 meeting

The Native Plant Society of Texas, Kerrville Chapter, meeting will be held Tuesday, November 7 at 2:00 pm at Riverside Nature Center. Susan Sander will discuss winter gardens emphasizing native evergreen species and other plants that provide seasonal interest in terms of structure, color, texture and wildlife habitat.  The program will also include a walk through Riverside Nature Center to look and identify some of the unique qualities of these plants and the opportunities to use them in your own landscaping. 

Susan Sander is a Resource Specialist with the Texas Forest Service, a private consultant on a river project in Kerrville and an environmental educator.  Susan is also the visionary founder behind the initial development of Riverside Nature Center. In 1987, she was so inspired by a field of wildflowers that she initiated the drive to develop a showcase for plants and a habitat for wildlife that became the Riverside Nature Center.

Susan is the author of A Treasury of Texas Flora: The Botanical Watercolors of Marie C. Wesby.  She is also an education advisor for Bamberger Ranch.  Plants are her life’s work.  She is especially interested in plant communities (who lives with whom and where) and the role of non-native species in the ecosystem. 

 “So many plants, so little time!”

 We hope to see all members, their guests and other interested people at this meeting.

Important reminder: Please bring native plants for the drawing. Thus is really fun when we have a large number of plants.

Refreshments :  Special thanks to Marie Brown & Diane Mc Mahon

Looking ahead

 Other Kerrville Chapter Programs Planned for 2006-07

 December 5      Flo Oxley with Lady Bird Johnson Wildflower Center in Austin
 January 2          Speaker not determined
 February 6        Suzanne Young with N.I.C.E. (Natives Instead of Exotics)
 March 6             Bill Carr, senior botanist, with Texas Nature Conservancy

Additional Opportunities

The Library Garden

 The Kerrville Chapter of the Native Plant Society has accepted the responsibility for its development and maintenance.  Members meet the 2nd Wednesday of the month at 9:00 to spend an hour or two to keep this garden looking great. 

Date:  Second Wednesday of each month
Time: 9:00-1:00 depending upon amount of work to be done
Place: Meet at Library Gardens

 Special Notes 

Field Trip to Magees …Fall Delight

On October 3, approximately 12 native plant enthusiastists made the journey to the home of Scott and Sandra Magee where they found abundant native plants and plenty of warm sunshine. Proving that nature seldom fails to delight, the group was surprised to find an entirely white mealy blue sage in the midst of a thick stand of deep purple mealy blues. What better way to spend a fall afternoon in the Hill Country. Thanks so much, Sandra and Scott!

 Still available

Attendees at the Novemer 7 meeting may pick up a free copy of the 1991 Symposium Proceedings: The Edwards Plateau and Its Many Ecosystems. We have 10 copies available.

 Madrones Along Lamb’s Creek, Fall Arrives at Natives of Texas Nursery

Hope all of you have read the article in the new, November, 2006 Southern Living.  

The words capture the beauty of this place and the spell that holds us here in the Hill Country of Texas.

 Helpful hints about membership dues

 Membership dues cannot be accepted locally.  They must be sent to the State Office which is now in Fredericksburg at the following address.

Native Plant Society of Texas
P.O. Box 3017
Fredericksburg, TX 78624

 The membership form is available at chapter meetings and the NPSOT website www.npsot.org.

When completing the form please indicate the Kerrville chapter name because our chapter gets refunded a portion of the dues for our chapter expenses.

If you are renewing your membership, please send your renewal to the address above and include your membership ID to ensure we credit the correct account.
Also include any address, phone or email changes.
(You will find your membership ID printed on the mailing label of the state newsletter.)

 Membership Categories and Annual Dues:

 Benefits of Joining the Native Plant Society of Texas

Goals:

    To educate both its members and the general public and to foster a greater awareness and understanding of our native flora;
    To preserve rare and endangered species and their habitats;
    To encourage landscaping with appropriate native plants, for their beauty, ease of maintenance, and water-conserving qualities;
    To protect, conserve and restore native plants threatened by development;
    To encourage the responsible propagation of native plants;
    To promote an appreciation and understanding of current, historical and potential uses of native plants.

 WELCOME TO OUR NEW MEMBERS

Virginia Sams

Mary Ellen Belmont

Thanks to all those that renewed their memberships.

See membership information above.

 Please support our sponsors!