June 2005
Vol. III No. 1
Ruth Loper, Director Lynn Sherrod, Director Jim Showen, President 3312 Gail Tyler, TX 75701 jimshowen@aol.com Roberta Gustafson, VP Programs Sonnia Hill, Secretary/Treasurer Elizabeth Parks, VP Field Trips Jane Washburn, VP Membership Kay Fleming, Newsletter Editor
Directors &
Officers
FROM
THE PRESIDENT
BOOK DONATION - At the last Native Plant Society of Texas board meeting, the board
was selling at half price all its inventory of books. They had previously voted to get out of the book selling
business. Ruth Loper had suggested that I pick up 2 books (since our
chapter had the money) and donate them to a local library. I
subsequently purchased 2 excellent books. At our May 2nd,
Tyler Chapter meeting, I asked those in attendance which library would be a
good choice for the books to be donated. Ideas were dallied around and Boo
Eubanks spoke up and said, “Chapel Hill High School Library would love to have
them.” Boo is the school librarian.
Someone made the motion and so it went. The books will be marked
as to who donated them and placed in their library.
Our Chapter recently received a card
of appreciation from Boo and the Chapel Hill High School Library. Jim Showen
SEPTEMBER
PROGRAM
We
will not have a Tyler Chapter of NPSOT Meeting and subsequent program until
September 5th. Previous
experience has proven we normally have poor attendance due factors such as kids
being out of school, vacations, and the summer heat. Information on our
September program will be provided by new Program Director, Roberta Gustafson
in our September Newsletter.
FIELD
TRIPS
A
field trip has been scheduled for 10:00 A.M. on May 28th to the Natural Area
Preservation Association’s (NAPA) property called the "Glades."
We'll meet at the entrance to Mill Creek Farms and drive together through the
property to the easement. David had said that we should bring sack
lunches and drinks if we want because there aren't many places around there to
eat.
David
has also invited the group to go down to Ivy Payne's Preserve that afternoon
after the Glades walk. NAPA is having a campout and guided tours at Ivy's
for anyone interested.
To
get to the “Glades” at Mill Creek Farms:
From Tyler, go north on FM 14 (Tyler State Park Highway), across I-20
through the city of Hawkins, all the way to the town of Pine Mills. In Pine Mills, turn right (East) on FM 49,
go 0.3 miles east and turn left (north) on FM 312. Go north about 2 miles to
the Mill Creek Farm gate on the right.
Information
about Ivy Payne’s Preserve and directions on how to get there will follow in
another Email. Elizabeth
Parks
NEW MEMBERS
We
want to welcome our 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 you’re not listed below, let Tyler Chapter President Jim
Showen know. Sometimes our State office is slow in getting the word to us.
RECENTLY JOINED MEMBER
Barbra Vogl
f PONDERERINGS f
ALIEN ALERT! ALIEN ALERT!
By Jim Showen
It's just
an ordinary looking weed, green all year long in rounded mounds 8 to 10 inches
high. The leaves are opposite, simple,
and oblong with acute apex and obtuse base. The leaf margins are serrate.
It blooms in the late spring with spikes of pale lavender flowers. It is
in the mint family, but it sure doesn't smell like mint. The plant has square stems like the
other mints and stark white rhizomes able to withstand most any drought. This is Florida Betany and it's here in
Tyler - and probably here to stay.
The root system is not only
extensive, but contains white tubers that store the food energy needed to keep
coming back after the plant and most roots are pulled up or poisoned with herbicide. These tubers look kind of like white peanuts
to me but others call them rattlesnake rattlers.
How do we rid our yards and
gardens of it? Perhaps a broad leaf
herbicide will control it in lawns. I
have had good control in garden patches by removing all of the roots, rhizomes,
and tubers that I can see when spading up the garden. I then cover the garden with landscape fabric and several inches
of mulch. For the fencerows, I apply
glyphosate until it stops coming back. An application of glyphosate in
late winter can also take it out of dormant yard grasses without harming
them.
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
Kay Fleming, Editor
809 E. Clinton
Athens, TX 75751