Homestead mailing list

[<eureka AT hctc.net>]

That's a very good question. The Wildflower Center puts on 
a conference "Managing Roadsides Naturally" every few 
years and it is well attended by DOTs from all over the 
nation (and Mrs. Johnson when she was alive). I was often 
consulted by TXDOT on wildflowers for roadside mixes...but 
then I'd be driving around and see California poppies 
coming up in the middle of the bluebonnets. This means 
they either got their seed from growers I did not 
recommend or whatever I suggested just went in one ear and 
out the other. Or worse, they just scraped all the topsoil 
off in a project, taking the seedbed who knows where, and 
brought in topsoil from who knows where full of invasive 
grass. Nothing like losing your wildflowers to Johnson 
grass or KR.

TXDOT has their own regional landscape architects, but if 
you recall my story on fighting them to keep our ROW trees 
from being cut down "for safety purposes" they seem to be 
all about contracting mowers (and designing roadside 
welcome signs to cities), just like our extension agents 
are all about managing for deer. Our LA is headquartered 
in the desert about four hours away, where there are no 
trees.

Here's some possible clues from a good abstract I've heard 
presented on the subject:
http://repositories.cdlib.org/cgi/viewcontent.cgi?article=1089&context=jmie/roadeco

"A key issue is the skill level of managers responsible 
for overseeing the project. In this regard, DOTs are 
usually
woefully lacking. Vegetation management is an important 
department of DOTs whose focus is usually limited to
controlling vegetation height and weed control. These 
activities are well codified and training is widely 
available.
Their functions can easily be contracted and are sometimes 
performed by fairly low-wage employees."

"Because most native plant advocates speak from a specific 
area of concern such as wildflowers, prairies, or
simply the broad category of native plants, it is often 
difficult for these advocates and roadside managers to
understand each other. This derives from the manager and 
advocate having an incomplete understanding of
each other perspective, language, and goals. Advocates 
frequently have a poor understanding of the goals and
priorities of highway design and management, or of the 
political and budgetary constraints involved."

The problem I see here is the local employees don't know 
how to tell when the wildflowers have set seed, and they 
mow too early. Bluebonnets look pretty scrappy when they 
are setting seed, and the engineers are in a hurry to make 
it look tidy and use the fear of fire during burn bans as 
an excuse to mow whenever they want.

--Sage

On Wed, 5 Nov 2008 09:35:26 -0800 (PST)
 bob ford <bobford79 AT yahoo.com> wrote:
> I'm not being a smart aleck, I'm being serious when I 
> ask: If you know this, then why don't the botanists at 
> Tex DOT know this, and stop?
>
> p.s.  Your initial message, below, came to me rather 
> than the list
>
>
> --------------------------------------------------------------------------
>
>
> --- On Wed, 11/5/08, eureka AT hctc.net <eureka AT hctc.net> 
> wrote:
>
> > From: eureka AT hctc.net <eureka AT hctc.net>
> > Subject: Re: [Homestead] Beetle Invasion in N.E.
> > To: bobford79 AT yahoo.com
> > Date: Wednesday, November 5, 2008, 10:30 AM
> > http://www.texasinvasives.org/Invasives_Database/Results/Detail.asp?Symbol=BOISS
> >
> > It's just as bad as bermuda, an aggressive spreader. It
> > comes from Africa, and was introduced by the King Ranch 
> > of
> > Texas for erosion control in the 1930's because of
> > it's drought tolerance, but oddly it has little value as
> > forage or hay. King Ranch Bluestem (or KR for short) is
> > perennial bunchgrass, not even a true bluestem. It's
> > considered invasive by many noteworthy national agencies 
> > but
> > is still being seeded by the TXDOT and pushed by 
> > agencies
> > with holes in their heads. The best way to get rid of it 
> > is
> > tillage, but good luck tilling our gravel soil. Fire
> > suppression is helpful, but you must burn in the summer 
> > and
> > most of the time we are under a burn ban then. BTW, it's
> > in your state too, and throughout the south.
> >
> > --Sage
> >
> >
> >
> > On Wed, 5 Nov 2008 09:05:11 -0800 (PST)
> >  bob ford <bobford79 AT yahoo.com> wrote:
> > > What is KR, is it like bermuda in the city, growing
> > everywhere you don't want?  I don't know how things
> > are nowadays, I just remember different people making
> > suggestions to my father and his friends.  Some they
> > trusted, some not.  Building trust is essential. 
> > Someone, at
> > some time, convinced people to bulldoze their yards.  I
> > don't understand it either .....bobford
> > > 
> > >
> > -------------------------------------------------------------------------
> > > 
> > > 
> > > --- On Wed, 11/5/08, eureka AT hctc.net
> > <eureka AT hctc.net> wrote:
> > > 
> > >> From: eureka AT hctc.net <eureka AT hctc.net>
> > >> Subject: Re: [Homestead] Beetle Invasion in N.E.
> > >> To: bobford79 AT yahoo.com,
> > homestead AT lists.ibiblio.org
> > >> Date: Wednesday, November 5, 2008, 9:53 AM
> > >> The problem here is nobody--not even the
> > government--is
> > >> telling them not to clear everything. In fact, as
> > far as I
> > >> can tell the extension agents and soil
> > conservation
> > >> districts are the ones actually encouraging this,
> > and there
> > >> are financial incentives for land owners to do so.
> > I
> > >> don't understand why these agencies don't
> > see the
> > >> impact this has on erosion and water quality. The
> > only
> > >> agency I know that is very concerned is the river
> > authority
> > >> and their hands are tied, as the majority of their
> > funding
> > >> is for cleaning up messes rather than educating
> > and
> > >> pre-empting them.
> > >> 
> > >> My neighbor and I have had many good conversations
> > about
> > >> ecology over the years, and I do so admire his
> > ability as an
> > >> alternative builder to think outside the box, so I
> > was (as
> > >> you recall) extremely floored when he cleared the
> > land
> > >> around us, including bull dozing the creeks,
> > destroying a
> > >> lot more than just our privacy. Although he
> > bounces a lot of
> > >> ideas off us about future projects, he did not
> > once ask what
> > >> we thought of this idea before he began, and
> > continued the
> > >> destruction well after we let him know our
> > thoughts and gave
> > >> him oak wilt information. As an afterthough he
> > asked me what
> > >> kind of grass he should plant along the denuded
> > creek, and I
> > >> gave him some native suggestions, and begged him
> > not to use
> > >> invasive KR. He swears he did not plant KR, but it
> > is
> > >> suddenly all over our property and his. It's
> > heavily
> > >> promoted by the aforementioned agencies.
> > >> 
> > >> He recently asked my husband if we have forgiven
> > yet, and
> > >> my husband said no. We all remain friends. But I
> > will not
> > >> hesitate to sue him if his erosion causes my land
> > to erode,
> > >> or if my oaks contract oak wilt from his mistakes.
> > And I
> > >> have never been a litigious person.
> > >> 
> > >> --Sage
> > >> 
> > >> On Wed, 5 Nov 2008 08:26:59 -0800 (PST)
> > >>  bob ford <bobford79 AT yahoo.com> wrote:
> > >> > I forgot to add in my first reply.  Where I
> > grew up ,
> > >> most of the country people would have listened to
> > you and
> > >> followed much of your instructions, IF :  You
> > didn't
> > >> tell them the gov't was making them do it. 
> > And, you did
> > >> not condescend to them  (and having a southern
> > accent would
> > >> be helpful) :-) ....bobford
> > >> > > > >
> > >>
> > -----------------------------------------------------------------------
> > >> > > > --- On Wed, 11/5/08,
> > eureka AT hctc.net
> > >> <eureka AT hctc.net> wrote:
> > >> > >> From: eureka AT hctc.net
> > <eureka AT hctc.net>
> > >> >> Subject: Re: [Homestead] Beetle Invasion
> > in N.E.
> > >> >> To: bobford79 AT yahoo.com,
> > >> homestead AT lists.ibiblio.org
> > >> >> Date: Wednesday, November 5, 2008, 9:06
> > AM
> > >> >> We have Oak Wilt, carried by a beetle
> > dangerously
> > >> close to
> > >> >> us, about 15 minutes away. It is also
> > often spread
> > >> through
> > >> >> firewood, some idiot cutting down an oak
> > >> that's died
> > >> >> from it and selling the wood, or using
> > the same
> > >> chain saw
> > >> >> afterwards without cleaing it. If
> > you've
> > >> visited my blog
> > >> >> you understand the size of our oaks and
> > concern
> > >> around here.
> > >> >> >> Another thing the article brings
> > up is the loss of
> > >> property
> > >> >> values in the area where the destruction,
> > and
> > >> preventative
> > >> >> destruction is taking place. One thing I
> > am big on
> > >> as a
> > >> >> botanist is encouraging people to have
> > trees of
> > >> all ages,
> > >> >> including babies and teenagers, so to
> > speak since
> > >> landscapes
> > >> >> are dynamic. This helps in maintaining
> > property
> > >> value. I am
> > >> >> so often amazed that people's
> > landscapes
> > >> include only
> > >> >> the mature (because everything else has
> > been
> > >> cleared away,
> > >> >> such as my neighbor's place) or in
> > new
> > >> subdivision built
> > >> >> on scraped ground, young trees of the
> > same
> > >> relative age
> > >> >> brought in for landscaping. Diversity
> > isn't
> > >> just limited
> > >> >> to species, but should involve life
> > stages as
> > >> well.
> > >> >> >> Maybe those of you managing
> > woodlots have an
> > >> understanding
> > >> >> of this, but in Texas very few do. Large
> > ranches
> > >> go to great
> > >> >> lengths to take out what they see as
> > undesirable
> > >> underbrush
> > >> >> through controlled burns. I understand
> > they want
> > >> grass and
> > >> >> have little need of firewood, but they
> > don't
> > >> even
> > >> >> protect their riparian areas. We make
> > sure on our
> > >> property
> > >> >> we have trees of all ages.
> > >> >> >> --Sage
> > >> >> >> On Wed, 5 Nov 2008 05:15:53
> > -0800 (PST)
> > >> >>  bob ford <bobford79 AT yahoo.com>
> > wrote:
> > >> >> >> From this am Wash Post.  This
> > sounds like
> > >> a
> > >> >> significant pestilence in Susan
> > Jane's neck of
> > >> the woods
> > >> >> ....bobf
> > >> >> > > >
> > >> >>
> > >>
> > ------------------------------------------------------------------
> > >> >> > > > Authorities Hope Beetle
> > Invasion
> > >> Can Be Ground to a
> > >> >> Halt
> > >> >> >  Crystal Franciosi, a U.S.
> > Department of
> > >> Agriculture
> > >> >> tree climber, records her findings after
> > checking
> > >> for Asian
> > >> >> longhorned beetles in Worcester, Mass.
> > (Stephan
> > >> Savoia - AP)
> > >> >> >> > > WORCESTER, Mass. -- A
> > wood-devouring
> > >> beetle has gained
> > >> >> a foothold in New England, and
> > authorities plan to
> > >> cut down
> > >> >> large numbers of infested trees and grind
> > them up
> > >> to stop
> > >> >> the pest from spreading to the
> > region's
> > >> celebrated
> > >> >> forests and ravaging the timber, tourism
> > and
> > >> maple-syrup
> > >> >> industries
> > >> >> > > > > >
> > >> >>
> > >>
> > http://www.washingtonpost.com/wp-dyn/content/article/2008/11/04/AR2008110403574.html?hpid=sec-nation
> > >> >> > > >    
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> > >> > > >     
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