Homeowners Associations powers have to be exercised more realistically

 Starting Sept. 1, Homeowners Associations (HOAs) in Texas can no longer prevent residents from installing native plants or drought-tolerant ones – a recognition of the severe drought that continues, and of common sense. 

Although homeowners may still need to submit design plans for approval, a bill passed by the Texas Legislature specifies that a design cannot be denied simply because it uses native plants, which help conserve water. This would include many varieties of native prairie grass, which are extremely drought-tolerant and don't require cutting. Also, there are hundreds of other native Texas plants and wildflowers which often offended HOAs because they aren't "customary" or "typical'.

"Water resources are going to get more and more stressed. It's good to get used to conserving resources by using native plants well adapted to the climate, says Andrea Delong-Amaya, horticulture director of the Lady Bird Johnson Wildflower Center. Most plants, especially lawns, on the market require a lot of water and may be native to places like Japan, Argentina, Italy, England etc.

Estimates suggest about one third of the water used byTexas homeowners goes to landscaping. And much of that just evaporates in our heat or runs off, instead of watering the plant. Nationally, landscape irrigation accounts for more than 7 billion gallons of potable (drinking) water used daily. 

 

 

OWEN YOST, in addition to being a blogger, is a licensed Landscape Architect emeritus who has lived and worked in north Texas for over 30 years. He is a member of the American Society of Landscape Architects (ASLA), International Federation of Landscape Architects, National Wildlife Federation and the Audubon Society. His office is at Yost87@charter.net in Denton.

Red-tail Hawks breathtaking mid-air courting ritual

Red-tailed Hawk

Red-tailed Hawk

You may have seen Red-tailed Hawks doing this, and wondered if they flew into each other by mistake.  No mistake!  Courting Red-tailed Hawks form pair bonds by clinching their talons together, high in the sky. Once they’re locked together, they start dancing and falling. This aerial show includes swirls, dips, recoveries, and several near-crashes,while still locked together.  But they know exactly what they’re doing. Finally the two Red-tails swoop from harm’s way unscathed, but with a new relationship.

 

 

Art project for kids and birds     Every year, tons of birds collide with windows (they have no understanding of “glass”). Many die. If you have children they may want to paint designs on the outside of your windows using removable water-colors such as Tempera paint. It's particularly important during fall migration - NOW.  It washes off easily with water, and serves as a warning to birds that something’s in front of them. This could be effective at schools with windows, too. 

Know of any?

 

OWEN YOST, in addition to being a blogger, is a licensed Landscape Architect emeritus who has lived and worked in north Texas for over 30 years. He is a member of the American Society of Landscape Architects (ASLA), International Federation of Landscape Architects, National Wildlife Federation and the Audubon Society. His office is at Yost87@charter.net in Denton.

Don't waste your money on automatic, whole-lot mosquito spraying

Scissor-tailed Flycatcher

Eastern Kingbird

     They’re almost always an irresponsible waste of your money! They'll repel and kill birds too. Almost all these whole-lot systems use the bug-killer pyrethrum. It negatively affects all natural life that dares to visit, or pass through, your yard. Yes – it will rid your yard of mosquitoes, and may also harm birds and larger organisms such as pets and children.

    Pyrethrum is very toxic. It’s toxic to birds, dragonflies, butterflies, frogs, fireflies, lizards, cats, dogs and you. Use it and nothing will get pollinated and birds will go hungry, since all bugs (and maybe your neighbors’ bugs) are dead. Keep in mind that over 97% of all birds raise their young on insects. Yes, pyrethrum is natural - so are arsenic, hemlock, lead and rattlesnake venom. Experts who have closely examined the research don’t accept pyrethrum as a safe organic product.



Blue-grey Gnatcatcher

It'll discourage all birds that depend on insects for food. If they can't find insects nearby they'll simply starve to death. The list of these birds is too long to include here, but includes our official state bird (Mockingbird) and Texas' champion bug-eater, the Nighthawk (which isn't a hawk, and doesn't fly at night).

 

 

OWEN YOST, in addition to being a blogger, is a licensed Landscape Architect emeritus who has lived and worked in north Texas for over 30 years. He is a member of the American Society of Landscape Architects (ASLA), International Federation of Landscape Architects, National Wildlife Federation and the Audubon Society. His office is at Yost87@charter.net in Denton.

Hummingbirds need more than nectar, especially for migration.

Feeding clear nectar to hummingbirds is a given. It mimics the sugary nectar they'd naturally get from flowers. But diets of pure nectar lack much-needed protein, and most species regularly consume small insects in addition to nectar. So a yard with several nectar feeders, but no insects, might be avoided. It could lack the protein-rich insects that hummingbirds need to consume with nectar.

Sometimes, insects are feed to nestlings, which need the protein to grow. Now however, just prior to the long, arduous migratory flight, is when all hummers crave insects the most. It gives them the long-lasting energy they need.

Our hummingbirds eat various insects, from tiny mites and gnats, to small

spiders. They use many foraging techniques, including gleaning them from surfaces of the feeders themselves. Mostly, however, insects are plucked from the air, mid-flight by the agile, speedy birds.

 

 

Don’t look for one in Europe       Hummingbirds are found only in the western hemisphere; basically North, Central and South America. It excludes Europe, Africa, Asia and Australia (and Antarctica). They’ll leave here, migrating to Central America, about early September. When they’ve left, clean your nectar feeders thoroughly and put them away for next year. (One species, the Rufous Hummingbird, which migrates south from the Alaska area, could stay here all winter.) Just to be safe we leave one nectar feeder up for a few weeks, for any migrators from up north that may be passing through.

 

 

    OWEN YOST, in addition to being a blogger, is a licensed Landscape Architect emeritus living and practicing in north Texas. He is a member of the American Society of Landscape Architects (ASLA), National Wildlife Federation and the Audubon Society. His office is at Yost87@charter.net in Denton.

Aug.21;Attracting birds to your yard at little or no cost

 Birdwatching costs a bit – but not anywhere near as much as golf, sailing, skiing, French cooking, mountain climbing or almost any other hobby you can name. In recognition of our turbulent economy, however, we’re going to discuss ways you can attract birds, economically.

Prothonotary Warbler

By far, the most effective thing you can do is reduce the size of your lawn. Shrinking your lawn down to what you actually use attracts birds amazingly well. The lawn at our house is just big enough for playing catch, barbecues, and stargazing on clear nights.   That’s all the lawn we need; and that’s all the lawn we maintain. The rest is “birdscape”, which attracts birds magnificently.



Catbird

Less lawn means less mowing, fertilizing, pulling weeds, watering and so on. Curiously, running a gas lawn mower for an hour releases the same amount of hydrocarbons as driving a car for almost 12 hours. So the less you run a mower (or edger) the better it is for the environment, including birds. 

To a bird a big, grassy lawn is like a desert – it has nothing to eat, no water, and no place to hide or nest. This item overlaps with the one below, since the result is more places in which to plant birdscape plants.

     In a birdscaped yard, native Texas plants supply plenty of food for our native birds. Plants provide safe cover too – places for them to find shade, nest, or hide from predators. Many plants native to north Texas are “birdscape” plants. However, plants whose descendants are from other parts of the world are a mystery to birds whose ancestors have lived here for ages. Remember - centuries ago wild birds had nothing BUT native plants for their diet. They did just fine !

 To my clients, I always recommend planting at least one large mass (100 sq.ft. or more) of nativre, flowering plants or prairie grasses. That way, birds have a nearby food source in case your feeders are empty.

Birds love suet, but constantly buying it takes money. And putting it in the metal suet cage can be messy. Nevertheless, we feed suet to our birds because it’s good for them - all year ‘round. But when we run out we give them the next best thing.  We slather some chunky peanut butter on some old slices of bread (usually the “heels”) and put it in the suet cage.  Birds love it! And as long as you don’t do it all the time, it doesn’t affect their health.

Summer Tanager

Every bird in the world needs water; both to drink and to bathe in. Particularly in a Texas summer! A full, clean birdbath will attract all the species that don’t ever eat seed - like Mockingbirds, Robins, Buntings and Bluebirds. In fact, a birdbath owner is likely to see the parents lead a group of awkward fledglings to a birdbath, and teach them how to bathe! Birdbaths come in a wide variety of styles – you may have something in your garage that’d work in a pinch. On super-hot days, we’ve put out just about anything that‘ll hold water.

At my home, one of the birdbaths is equipped with a ”dripper” attachment that drips into the basin about every half second.  Birds love it! Just be sure the birdbath in your yard is shallow enough for birds to use (2 or 2½ inches at most). If so, and it’s made well, birds will use a birdbath 12 months of the year.

          Brushpiles attract birds phenomenally, and costs you nothing!  We have four on our one-acre lot. A brushpile is, basically, just a random pile of branches. Ideally, the first foot or so should be made of woody branches 3” to 6” in diameter, criss-crossed to leave lots of empty spaces. Above this, pile woody trimmings randomly leaving plenty of nooks and crannies for birds to find. It works best if you exclude small stuff like leaves and grass clippings.  Every yard should have a brushpile; it’ll prove to be a mini bird-sanctuary and is essential to a birdscaped yard.

 

Red-eyed Vireo

Clearly, if a feeder is full of fresh seed, it attracts birds. But if it's empty more than three or four days, it may never be looked at again. If a feeder is just temporarily empty, however, birds will come back often to see if there’s any of that good, fresh seed!   You decide when to fill a feeder, not the birds. Just because a feeder is empty it doesn't mean you have to fill it.

A wild bird receives, on average, only ten percent of its dietary intake from birdfeeders. So a feeder that goes empty for a few days isn’t critical, as long as there are other reasons for birds to be in your yard.

 

 

 

                 

 OWEN YOST is a Landscape Architect emeritus and a member of the American Society of Landscape Architects (ASLA),  National Wildlife Federation and the Audubon Society. His office is Yost87@charter.net in Denton.

 

 

Ugly, desheviled birds? Nothing to worry about at this time of year.

Boy is that bird ugly!

About this time of year, many people see bald or scruffy-headed birds. It's  most obvious on Cardinals. They aren’t seriously sick, and it’s only temporary, so don't get worried. Since birds live outdoors they pick up tiny “feather mites”. Their normal beak-preening gets rid of almost all of them, but they can’t preen the mites from their own heads. Don’t worry - colder weather gets rid of the mites, and the feathers grow back just fine.

 

birds like a lawn that’s cut high    During our extremely hot, sunny weather, birds appreciate a lawn that’s mowed high (about 3” or more). It keeps the soil cooler and plants healthier. To paraphrase a friend, when Robins pull worms from the ground, they won’t need potholders.

As a licensed Landscape Architect I can also recommend mowing lawns high in hot weather because the grass will be healthier.  Reason: all those tall grass blades shade the soil, slowing evaporation, and cooling the roots of the grass plants. It also encourages the grass roots to go deeper into the soil, where there's probably ample moisture. Result; - less water usage.

 

 

Are Texas birds different from birds that live somewhere else?

 They live in Texas, just like we do. And our geography, to a degree, influences birds' preferences, behavior, needs and so on. They must like it here, because our state can boast more species than any other state -- more than 600.

Crested Caracara

Orchard Oriole 

 Despite having the same Latin name, birds here in Texas can be a little different than birds in Illinois, New England, Geoirgia or California, etc. The differences are usually slight, but they make a world of difference to the bird in question. Example: Most of the country has wrens, and the vast majority of the time that means the "House Wren." Books recommend appropriately sized birdhouses, so most wren houses have an entrance hole of 1 1/4 inches in diameter. But the species of wren most often seen here is slightly stouter and chunkier. In spite of some interesting guesses, nobody knows for sure why. But in north Texas, our Bewick's and Carolina Wrens need an entrance hole 1 1/2 inches in diameter. They may not like a house bought at a "big-box" store.

 Texas birds often have different preferences in food. Just like you or I might like or hate grits, lutefisk or mayonnaise on our French fries, birds here often like things their relatives up north won't touch, and vice-versa. For example, no bird here likes milo. In the upper Midwest, they might. Some birds up north will eat corn even if it's old, but here, any birdseed blend containing corn is a waste of your money, and could just attract rodents.

Nesting and nestling-raising are different in Texas. Thanks to our mild-to-hot climate, and the length of the warm season, many bird species that live here may have three "clutches," which is a group of young, per year. The same species in the north, however, may only have two. Keep this in mind if you provide nest material or nest sites for our birds.

 

You'll spot birds at different times in north Texas. When birds migrate from "up north," it takes them some time before they get here. It can be even more regional -- some birds, such as hummingbirds, leave north Texas at a certain time and pass through south Texas a week or so later. Other species, like bluebirds and robins, live in north Texas all year long in spite of their la berl as seasonal birds. So look at any reference book you use; note the residence of the book's author, and take the references with a grain or two of salt.

The plants in your yard also are subject to birds' preferences. For centuries, Texas birds have become accustomed to seeing native Texas plants. Over the eons they've learned how to seek shelter in them, how to eat them, how to build nests in or from them. They've learned what's blooming or going to seed at what time of year; and where predators like to hide. Birds have passed this information on to succeeding generations. If they see a plant whose ancestors came from Madagascar, China, Italy or California, they get confused, and may move on to another yard.

 That's why, if you're serious about attracting birds here, your landscape plants should be native to Texas, or a genetic improvement of a native plant. After all, those are the plants the bird (and all his ancestors) is familiar with.

 I'm not saying that non-Texas plants will repel birds. Anything is better than nothing. Any plant will attract a few birds. But a plant that a Texas bird has learned to recognize will do a far better job of attracting birds. Native plants are used to our hot, dry summers, too. And our poor soil. They've adapted to them over the centuries. They'll still be attracting birds well into September -- when other plants may have died.

 So, if you're serious about attracting birds to your yard, adjust for the fact that you -- and the birds -- are Texans.