Tyler Chapter
Newsletter April
2005
Ruth Loper, Director Lynn Sherrod, Director Jim Showen, President 3312 Gail Tyler, TX 75701 jimshowen@aol.com Sonnia Hill, Secretary/Treasurer Elizabeth Parks, VP Field Trips Kay Fleming, Newsletter Editor
Directors &
Officers
APRIL
PROGRAM
Our April 4th program will be a presentation by Bill Lamar
titled “A Naturalist in Tropical America.”
It will be a joint meeting of the
Native Plant Society and the Audubon Society and promises to be of interest to
just about everyone.
Bill Lamar has spent nearly half his life
in the tropics and is a gifted field naturalist and great traveling companion.
After graduating from Rhodes College with a double major in anthropology and
biology, He was offered a post with the Smithsonian Environmental Program in
Colombia where he spent nearly five years working as a herpetologist at the
National University conducting research on crocodiles and turtles, under
renowned authority Federico Medem.
Returning to the US to complete graduate
studies, Bill has been a zoo curator and is an adjunct Professor of Biology at
the University of Texas at Tyler. He is a research associate at two museums: UT
Arlington and University of Kansas, and Associate Herpetologist at the National
Serpentarium in San Jose, Costa Rica. He is the co-author of the widely
acclaimed Cornell University Press book, “The Venomous Reptiles of Latin America” and author of the
award-winning book “The World's Most Spectacular Reptiles & Amphibians.” He
is also co-author of the recently published two-volume set: “The Venomous
Reptiles of the Western Hemisphere.”
In addition to introducing the
eco-tourist to the tropics, Bill's expertise has been sought by the media. He
has provided location management, fixing services, interpretation and logistics
expertise, and animal procurement and wrangling in Peru and Costa Rica for the
following Animal Planet and Discovery Channel productions: Nigel Marvin; Austin Stevens: Snake master; and The Jeff Corwin Experience.
He has provided similar services for National Geographic's Snake Hunter Series featuring Rom Whitaker, and has worked with the
Canadian Broadcasting Corporation and the BBC in these same capacities.
Currently, Bill can be seen on the Wild Discovery specials "Anaconda" and "Lethal and Dangerous. Latin America's most
venomous snakes."
He is also an accomplished wildlife
photographer whose images have graced book and magazine covers.
Whether you are interested in birds, plants,
reptiles, bugs, or fish - Bill’s presentation will introduce you to the
wonderful world of the tropical rainforest. Lynn
Sherrod
FIELD
TRIPS
April 9th, 10:00 AM, Camp Tyler – Camp Tyler is located near Whitehouse and is an
educational facility used by Tyler schools. Many fifth graders attend
camp every year as part of their curriculum to learn science, biology, and
history. Alan Byboth, Camp Ranger, is trying to establish a prairie on
twenty acres using controlled burns, eradication of invasive plants, and
planting native species. Alan is interested in any input the NPSOT might
provide. The camp also has a network of nature trails.
To get to Camp Tyler, Take Hwy 110 off Loop 323 in Tyler to
Whitehouse. At the Main Street intersection, turn left (east) on Main St.
(FM 346) and go to the first stoplight. Turn left on FM 848 (also known
as Bascom Road). About 3 miles down FM 848, turn right on CR 2127 (McElroy Rd)
at the sign for Camp Tyler. Camp Tyler is about a mile up CR 2127 and on the
left. Turn in to the left on Camp Tyler Rd. We will meet at 10 am and
park behind the implement barn - the second barn on the right after you enter
the camp.
An
alternate route is to take Spur 248 (also known as University Drive) east off
Loop 323 (Spur 248 runs along the south side of UT Tyler). Travel past the
university and turn right at the 4-way stop sign onto FM 848 (also known as
Bascom Road). Travel about 5 or 6 miles and turn left on CR 2127 (McElroy Rd)
at the sign for Camp Tyler. Again, Camp Tyler is about a mile up CR 2127 and on
the left. Turn in on Camp Tyler Rd. Bring a sack lunch and we can snack
after our walk. Let me know if you want to carpool. Elizabeth Parks
903/876-3497
April 22 – 23, Briarwood (near
Nachitoches, Louisiana) – This field trip is an overnight stay. We like
to stay in the Holiday Inn Express near Nachitoches, LA. (Travelocity's
price for a double is $59 plus taxes.) That way, we can gather for dinner
together on Friday night and after breakfast the next morning, caravan out to
Briarwood. Briarwood is a preserve featuring native plants that have been
gathered from the southeastern United States by naturalist Caroline
Dorman. This trip is always worth the extra effort to get there and the
food is not bad either!
Elizabeth Parks
NEW MEMBERS
We
want to welcome new members to the Tyler Chapter of the Native Plant Society of
Texas. Its great to have you with us! If you haven’t come to one of our
meetings or our field trips you are missing out. Also if you have recently
joined our chapter and not listed below, let Tyler Chapter President Jim Showen
know. Sometimes our State office is slow in getting the word to us.
RECENTLY JOINED MEMBERS
Glenna Lifsey Jane Washburn Liz
& Bart Soutendijk
ANNOUNCEMENTS AND EVENTS
Trees For Sale - At our last chapter meeting, I told you about the offer of
Schobel’s Nursery to give away container-grown, native Texas trees to chapters
of the Native Plant Society of Texas. Elizabeth Parks volunteered to go fetch
some in time for the East Texas Spring Landscape & Garden Conference.
Laquita and I tagged along for the
trip on Friday. Lynn Sherrod and Elizabeth Parks met over at my house to
discuss the varieties we wanted and the prices we should charge. The nursery's
generosity exceeded all expectations! They gave us some really nice trees. We
had decided to get all 5-gallon trees, but they threw in some 15-gallon red
maples. We brought back 5 or 6 of the following: eastern redbud, Texas
redbud, river birch, cedar elm, Live oak, Monterrey oak, bald cypress, and some
other oak that I think we will be able to distinguish once it leafs out.
We didn't mean to get Texas Redbuds, but they had the trees stacked by the road
and the only real limit on what we got turned out to be the capacity of the
trailer. We brought the trees to the East Texas Spring Landscape & Garden
Conference and sold all of the red maples plus 4 other trees for a total of
$200. We have been given assurance that we will be able to sell trees during
the Spring Fling Plant Sale in April. If any club member wants shade trees, we
are selling them for $15 each, a real bargain for container grown trees. They
are neatly stacked in my back yard, so get in touch with me if you want any.
The earlier they are planted, the better. I think this will take care of
our budgetary needs if we sell just a few more. Jim Showen
MORE ON INVASIVE PLANTS
By Lynn
Sherrod
My last
article was about purple knapweed, an unquestioned invasive plant. This time, I would like to discuss another
well-known plant, which is used widely in landscaping yet, is considered among
the 100 most serious invasive plants.
That plant is Lantana camera.
Almost everyone is familiar with this woody shrub, which is a
dependable summer bloomer and thrives in hot, open sun. It produces numerous colorful flowers that
attract butterflies. It is promoted
here in East Texas and elsewhere as an ideal plant for a butterfly garden.
Lantana camera is native to Mexico and Central
America and is only one species of as many as 100 Lantanas in the vervain
(Verbenaceae) family. All of the
species are
native to the New World tropics. In their native habitat, they are
evergreen and may grow to 6 ft. high and spread to 8 ft. in diameter. When planted as far north as Tyler, they die
back each winter. Their leaves are 2-5
in. long with rounded toothed edges and covered with rough hairs. When crushed, the leaves emit a foul, musky
odor. Lantana camera has an inflorescence consisting of a number of
variously colored flowers. Color ranges
from white to red to yellow and may change with age.
At least
20 different varieties of Lantana are
available which vary in growth form and flower color. Most of these varieties are hybrids of two species. Not only does Lantana thrive in hot, dry conditions, it is relatively free of
insect and disease problems. The major
pests are whiteflies and lace bugs.
With all
these apparent advantages, it is clear why Lantana has become a widely used and
popular landscape plant. However, it
does have an evil side. In areas that
lack enough cold weather to freeze the tops back completely, it can become
invasive and eventually crowd out existing plants. Fortunately, here in East Texas, our winters are usually
sufficient to kill the tops. The plant
then re-grows in the spring. Under
these conditions, Lantana retains its
manners. From about San Antonio south,
however, it doesn’t always freeze back and in the south Texas region, it has
escaped cultivation and became an invasive nuisance. Along the southern Gulf Coast to Florida, it is considered to be
a noxious weed.
Therefore,
the nature of Lantana is determined
by the nuances of the weather. There is
the possibility that a winter hardy strain may appear someday and then, we will
have a problem with Lantana, even as
they do now further south. While I
would not discourage anyone from planting Lantana,
I hope you will be aware of its dark side and be observant that it doesn’t
escape cultivation.
Contributions to Newsletter
Members
are encouraged to submit articles for publication in the newsletter. Contributions will be considered on the
basis of interest, suitability, and available space. Grammar and spelling corrections will be made at the discretion
of the editor. Send your articles and announcements to the editor at
kfleming@mycvc.net or mail to Kay Fleming at 809 E. Clinton, Athens, TX 75751. If you are able to receive your newsletter by
Email, please send Kay your Email address. This will save the Chapter mailing
expenses.
If you have never attended one of our meetings, and
you are interested in learning more about native plants and their habitats, we
invite you to give us a visit. We have a good time! Our meetings are normally
held at the Walter Fair United Methodist Church in Tyler on the first Monday of
each month, September through May.
Walter Fair United Methodist Church is located just off 5th
Street (Highway 64) at 1712 Old Omen
Road, east of Loop 323.
NPSOT, Tyler Chapter
c/o: Kay Fleming
809 E. Clinton
Athens, TX 75751