Texas Master Naturalist Statewide Annual Meeting

The 11th Texas Master Naturalist Statewide Annual Meeting and Advanced Training will be held October 22-24, 2010 at T bar M Ranch in New Braunfels. Members may begin reserving accommodations now! The Lindheimer Chapter of the Texas Master Naturalist program will be assisting as hosts of this years conference and together we have already planned many exciting trainings and features for the conference. This year, the overnight accommodations will be separate from the conference registration expense. While, the conference registration is not yet available, members may begin reserving their rooms at T bar M.

A block of rooms is available to reserve at the special rate of $85.00 per room per night (plus tax, where applicable). The rooms are extremely nice hotel-style rooms. There are also a limited number of 2 and 3 bedroom condos available at $85 per bedroom as well. The more people you care to have in your room, the less of a per person cost there will be to you. The majority of the rooms are double/doubles that may sleep up to 4 individuals. If you are planning to share a room with someone, only one person needs to make the reservation. However, once the conference registration becomes available each person attending the conference will need to register for that. Continue reading Texas Master Naturalist Statewide Annual Meeting

Texas Wildscapes: Gardening for Wildlife

Wildscapes in Texas

An updated and revised version of the book “Texas Wildscapes: Gardening for Wildlife” will be available through Texas A&M Press and fine booksellers everywhere beginning on November 14, 2009. Author Kelly Conrad Bender of the Texas Parks and Wildlife Department’s (TPWD) Urban Wildlife Program worked with many partners to create the update, which comes with a new companion DVD. As Bender says, “No more long, confusing tables in the back of the book–all that has been replaced by a convenient, easy-to-use DVD that will help you look for just the right grouping of plants for your Wildscape.”

She credits “a huge debt of gratitude” to the Capital Area Chapter, Texas Master Naturalists, who were instrumental in completing the DVD. For those who want to manage small acreage properties, there’s even new a “Virtual Biologist” in the Planning section of the DVD that asks questions about the landowner’s goals and property, then produces a habitat management plan consistent with 1-d-1 tax valuation, wildlife option. Continue reading Texas Wildscapes: Gardening for Wildlife