Hello, friends. This blog is where the El Camino Real Chapter, Texas Master Naturalists shares news, articles, and reflections. You’ll find our posts right under this introduction. We encourage your comments and likes, and of course, shares!
Our chapter meets monthly on the second Thursday of the month in the fellowship hall at All Saints Episcopal Church, 200 North Travis Avenue, Cameron, Texas. Presentations begin at 6 pm, after a potluck meal. All are welcome to attend.
Our Mission: To develop a corps of well-informed volunteers to provide education, outreach, and service dedicated to the beneficial management of natural resources and natural areas within their communities for the State of Texas.
We are excited to announce our participation in the Pollinators for Texas Initiative! Our chapter’s project was selected to receive financial support to enhance native pollinator conservation in our area! Our project, Sow & Grow: Milam Seed Library, aims to expand by adding two additional locations to provide Milam County residents with free access to native seeds and to teach about the importance of pollinators through educational programming. By providing free access to native seeds in various locations, all residents of Milam County will have the opportunity to support pollinators and create their own natural habitat at home, making a lasting impact on pollinator conservation.
A big thank you to H-E-B for their generous support in this initiative and their continued partnership with the Texas Master Naturalist program. Together, we’re working to safeguard and enhance native pollinator populations across Texas. For more information about the Pollinators for Texas Initiative, visit https://txmn.tamu.edu/pollinators-for-texas/.
Our announcement
The two new locations for expansion will be a seed library inside the Lucy Hill Patterson Memorial Library (Rockdale, TX) and a free-standing seed library to be placed outside at the El Camino Real City Wildscape ( All Saints’ Episcopal Church, Cameron, TX).
Our project wants to raise awareness of pollinator decline and its threat to one-third of the U.S. food supply, offer educational programs on native pollinators and ecosystem services, and launch a Native Wildscape Yard of the Month (April – September 2027, county-wide) to inspire residents to create beautiful native landscapes, dispel the “messy garden” stigma and encourage seed donation back to our libraries and sustaining our seed stock while building lasting habitat improvements throughout the community.
I’d like to recognize Catherine Johnson and Patsy Coombs for all their knowledge, encouragement and expertise as they supported me. Also, Elena Berkes, the head Librarian at the Cameron Pubic Library, totally embraced our Chapter’s installation of the seed library and has continued to support our efforts. Also, many thanks to the Little River Basin Master Gardeners who have partnered with us in supplying and packaging seeds for our project.
And of course, many thanks to our El Camino Real Chapter members for supporting my idea and continuing to come monthly to package seeds!
A breezy afternoon was enjoyed at the Wildscape in the shade, making sure the garden will survive until cool weather. All focus is keeping treasured natives alive.
No worries about weeds only about finding yellow jackets and killing with non-toxic liquid.
We had a great turnout today for our Sow & Grow: Milam Seed Library seed packaging event. There were 12 volunteers, comprised of Master Naturalists and Master Gardeners……thank you all so much!
We had lots of native wildflower seeds to package, and we are able to keep the Library very well stocked. We also provide seeds for our free-standing seed library located at the Milam Wildscape at the Bird and Bee Farm. Soon we will be installing another free-standing seed library to be placed at our El Camino Real Wildscape at the All Saints’ Episcopal Church. And in the near future, we will be expanding and adding yet another seed library at the Lucy Hill Patterson Library in Rockdale.
We are thankful to Cameron’s head librarian, Elena Berkes and her staff, for all their support since January 2025. And we look forward to working with Elizabeth Kelley at the library in Rockdale. We are so appreciative of the Master Gardener volunteers. Thank you to Monica Schiller and Lynne Yarbrough for making this such a successful partnership.
Surprisingly, as summer winds down, it’s not too late to add new plants to your garden. Late summer and early fall are excellent times to plant perennials, as the cooler temperatures and warm soil help new roots become established which helps them survive the harsh winter and come back in the spring. Many perennials will grow and thrive this fall. Here are a few suggestions: Black-Eyed Susan, Echinacea Purpurea (Purple Coneflower), Salvia, Coreopsis, Asters, Goldenrod, and Hostas.
Many native flower seeds need cold stratification to germinate: a chilling process that occurs naturally over winter that breaks seed dormancy. Exposure to cold, moist conditions naturally breaks seed dormancy, allowing the seeds to sprout when temperatures warm in spring. Simply scatter the seeds over prepared soil, gently press them into the surface, and let winter provide the cold period they need. This natural process can lead to beautiful, healthy wildflowers the following spring and summer.
So fall is a good time to get these seeds in the ground. Take advantage of Milam County’s free seed library and go by the Cameron Public Library to get some seed packets that will support our pollinators and beautify your yard and garden.
It was a peaceful Sunday morning and I’m watering my plants to beat the summer heat when something unusual caught my eye. I wasn’t sure what it was from a distance….just a brown mass on some weeds. But on careful inspection, I got a couple of close up pictures and discovered it was a Rabid Wolf Spider, with her newly hatched babies covering her back!
Contrary to the name, the Rabid Wolf Spider does not have rabies and it is not dangerous to humans ….. as Eric Neubauer, our member and Wolf Spider expert, has already educated our Chapter. It is famous for exceptional maternal care. The photos I captured show hundreds of newly hatched babies (spiderlings) that the mother is carrying and protecting. They ride there for a few weeks until they are ready to live on their on.
I sent my picture to a few friends. One said, “OMGOODNESS! Do not send that picture to people who don’t like spiders. That’s like a nightmare!” But you, my Master Naturalist friends, are not terrified and I’m sure you’ll find this observance quite interesting.
Nature Along the El Camino Real 