Category: Chapter Meetings

Chapter Meetings

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On February 13: Wildlife in Your Garden with Kelly Simon

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Join us for the next NPSOT-Wilco chapter meeting on Thursday, February 13, 2020, for “Wildlife in Your Garden” presented by Kelly Simon.  We’ll meet at the Georgetown Public Library (time and location details at the bottom of this post).

image of person

Texas Wildscapes was developed by Texas Parks and Wildlife in 1995 to assist Texans in creating landscapes that are both visually appealing and attractive to appropriate wildlife.  By providing the elements of habitat (food, shelter, and water) in their gardens, Texans can attract an exciting variety of birds, butterflies, frogs, and lizards and bring the beauty and vitality of nature home.

Kelly Conrad Simon has been with Texas Parks and Wildlife since 1995 and currently serves as the Urban Wildlife Biologist for the Central Texas area.  Her projects generally involve the topics of native planting and wildlife habitat, exotic invasive plants, native wildlife including songbirds and woodrats, and engaging urban students of all ages in the study of nature. Kelly has coordinated the Texas Wildscapes Backyard Wildlife Habitat program and the Texas Hummingbird Round-up with Texas Parks and Wildlife, and is the author of Texas Wildscapes: Gardening for Wildlife.  Her MS degree was earned in 1995 at Emporia State University (Kansas) and her BA was earned in 1992 at Southwestern University (Georgetown, Texas).

NPSOT-Williamson County meetings are free and open to the public.

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Program Summary for January 9: Oak Trees for Williamson County, a Wildlife Buffet

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— by Nancy Pumphrey

Live oak at Garey Park
Live oak at Garey Park

Beth Erwin was very informative on Thursday evening when she presented Oak Trees for Williamson County, a Wildlife Buffet.  Beth has given  presentations to elementary school kids and she used some of the same hands-on techniques and materials to engage the audience tonight.   Especially effective were the long ropes Beth had audience members stretching out to demonstrate the size of the trunk of the National Champion, and the height of the canopy of that tree.

Beth also demonstrated how to identify a red oak from a white oak by looking at the leaves. The red oak, which is more susceptible to the deadly oak wilt, has sharp edges on the lobes of the leaves. The white oak has more rounded edges on the lobes. She did a great job identifying different kinds of oaks for us and giving us information on the Texas Champion and the National Champions.

Thanks, Beth, for your willingness to step in for the meeting’s presentation.

View Beth’s presentation at this link.

You can see the January 9, 2020 business presentation slides here.

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Speaker Change for January 9: “Oak Trees for Williamson County, a Wildlife Buffet” with Beth Erwin

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— by Randy Pensabene

Due to a family emergency, we have a change of speaker for our January 9  meeting. Carol Clark, “Bring Back the Monarchs,” will be rescheduled for a future date.

We are pleased to have Beth Erwin present “Oak Trees for Williamson County, a Wildlife Buffet.” Beth will talk about the differences between Red Oaks and White Oaks, the many forms of wildlife that oaks support and which varieties of oaks will do well in Williamson County.

Beth Erwin and her husband moved to Texas from Louisiana in 2017. She managed a private nature preserve there from 1993-2017. She has a B.S. in horticulture and is a charter member of the Louisiana Native Plant Society. Here in the Native Plant Society of Texas, she is a current member of the Williamson County chapter, a NPSOT NLCP instructor and our Wilco Chapter Plant Sale Coordinator. She has been actively engaged in promoting the use and preservation of native plants and habitats to the general public for the past 40 years.

IMPORTANT:  OnJanuary 9, we meet at Georgetown Parks & Recreation Administration Offices, 1101 N College St, Georgetown, TX 78626 ( map),  NOT at the Georgetown Public Library.

NPSOT-Williamson County meetings are free and open to the public.

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