Wetland Team Blog Everyone continued worked on their respective tasks of sprigging and counting (Glenn, Diane and Lana), collecting and planting (James, Chatt, Danny, Courtney, Jim S., and Joe) and seed collecting (Ray). Thank you to the Team for being patient in my absence while I care for my Mom. (Thank you Diane for making a great pie for the Team; I know everyone appreciated it!!) Plant of the Week Broadleaf arrowhead, Sagittaria latifolia Last week, Danny and I had the opportunity to go out to Brazoria County and… Read More →

Wetland Team Blog Unfortunately our school group from YES Prep 5th Ward cancelled their workday with us. However, that did leave plenty of material for the planters to get installed in some deep ponds. Spriggers were busy counting the 1000 sprigs of Sagittaria platyphylla. Thanks to all for your patience and commitment. Plant of the Week Water Fern, Azolla caroliniana Similar to duckweed in appearance, Azolla is a free floating aquatic fern with fronds that will turn red in strong sunlight. Its velvety appearance comes from tiny fine hairs… Read More →

Wetland Team Blog The Sprigging crew potted up the material from Mary’s nursery. These were plants we collected from CE King Parkway a couple months past, but had stayed at Mary’s nursery to recoup from transplant shock. After all the plants were potted, the crew moved over to the grow out ponds to work on cleaning up at least one of the ponds. It’s a slow process, but getting there…. Meanwhile, our planters were furiously planting away in Pond 21. Thanks to all the crew for coming out… Read More →

Wetland Team Blog This past week we were prepared to host students from YES Prep North Central. Unfortunately, due to unknown circumstances, the students did not attend the workday. This meant that our diggers were busy putting plants into Pond 23 (Sagittaria and Pontedaria). Meanwhile our Spriggers were hard at work transplanting 202 baby spider lilies into one-gallon pots. Thanks to all for helping out and welcome to James who joined us for the first time this week! Plant of the Week Pondweed, Potamogeton nodosus Every time I see… Read More →

Wetland Team Blog Thanks to our diggers last week, (Chatt and Danny and Courtney) for getting so many buckets of material for the spriggers to divide and count. We ended up with 1300 plants that we were able to count, and several more buckets that still need to be counted. (A much more appropriate picture of Danny, right, y’all?) Plant of the Week Fall Panicum, Panicum dichotomiflorum Right now, we are lucky enough to have the Fall Panicum blooming in most of ponds where they have recruited. The seedheads… Read More →

Wetland Team Blog The crew was divided into specific tasks this past week. We needed to continue with the planting in Pond 22, as we had buckets of material. But we also needed to get the seed cleaned so that it could be bagged for the workday on Saturday with the kids. We had a great turnout: Lana, Diane, Ahlene, John H, John E., Joe, Andrew, Glenn, Becca and Chatt. Thanks y’all for your great work! Plant of the Week Watershield, Brasenia schreberi This floating emergent plant can easily… Read More →

Wetland Team Blog We were Ok’d to plant in Pond 21—yes, that’s correct. The last of the ponds for the south side of the restoration have been completed and we can now descend on it with a plethora of plants!!! Chatt, John H, Andrew C., and Ahlene were the first to get some pickerel weed, maidencane, soft rush and spikerush into the ground. Gail, Diane and Becca were madly cutting through the clumps to sprig and count. Thanks to all for your help! Plant of the Week Egyptian… Read More →

Wetland Team Blog We hosted our YES Prep North Central kids this past week and WOW what a workday! It was pretty hot and the work was kind of intense for this group, but they pulled it off and planted all 250 pots of wetland grasses and miscellaneous grass-like plants. Special thanks go out to Chatt, Lana, Rebecca, and Joe for helping with the students, and to Ray for plugging away at the seeds. Plant of the Week Spider Lily, Hymenocalis liriosme Spider lilies have been a part of… Read More →

Wetland Team Blog A big thank you to David Hanson for all his spider lilies which were planted in their new home at Sheldon Lake SP. And again, thanks to the crew (John Egan, Chatt, Diane, Lana, Ray, Gail, Rebecca and David) for all the hard work on the south side!! Plant of the Week Black Needle Rush, Juncus roemarianus One of my favorite brackish marsh plants…black needle rush is definitely lovely, distinctive and worth remembering when you are restoring brackish marshes. It gets its name from the very… Read More →

Wetland Team Blog The Team, as always, worked hard to multiple fronts. Our diggers, John Egan and Chatt, planted several buckets of material out at P1. Meanwhile, our planters (Lana, Gail, Diane, Ray and Rebecca) were busy sprigging the remaining collected material. Thank you guys for doing such an awesome job! Plant of the Week Soft Rush, Juncus effusus In honor of our class this week, we will spotlight Juncus effusus or Soft Rush. This perennial rush can be evergreen throughout the year. The dark green culms “bud”… Read More →