Thank you to our chapter members who work on our Nature Center!
By: Peggy Tolboom —
The native plant garden of the Bosque River Nature Center is an integral project of our Prairie Oaks Master Naturalist chapter. It requires many hours of maintenance. It is an everyday outreach to the community, especially to the many walkers of the Bosque River Trail.
There was a great turnout for a February 24 workday from current members and members of training class. The trainees came with their own tools and experience ready to get to work. Lots of brome grass areas were removed. There was a decomposing pile of mulch at the far end of the prairie which was brought to the garden. Hopefully those areas will stay clean or least is smaller going forward.
Another a good turnout for volunteers was on Thursday, March 21, when Tarleton students came as part of a community service day. More grass was cleared, the tree circles were weeded and a TON of mulch was spread. The whole garden is covered with new mulch. I especially appreciate those who filled wheelbarrows with heavy mulch and transport it to areas of the garden.
Lovell Landscaping has brought us free mulch over the years. It has taken us over two years before to put it to use. There are a handful of core members who prefer sweat equity hours instead of direct outreach. They come to scheduled workdays when they can. They also come on unscheduled days when they can spare a few hours. This option is open to all members. If more information is needed, contact Peggy T. at: [email protected]
This spring and early summer has brought steady rain to our garden. Many plants are flourishing. Then came the rainfall that closed Long Street and flooded the garden. Still have our fingers crossed about plant survival. The flood left the garden filled with flotsam and jetsam. The fake rock covering the plumbing disappeared (but has been returned). Thank you to the volunteers who cleaned up that mess. Our tree rings in the future bird viewing area need soil replaced within the rings. And many plants need to be pulled back upright.
In summary, the Bosque River Nature Center is educational, for us and the community. The Fourth Saturday has been designated as a workday. This can be changed, please take the following survey to determine what would work best.