Volunteers of the El Camino Real Master Naturalists and the Little River Basin Master Gardeners met together Tuesday to collaborate and fill the card catalog drawers of the Sow & Grow: Milam Seed Library (located in the Cameron Public Library).
Hard working seed sorters
We meet monthly to provide Milam County residents with free access to native seeds. We also stock a free-standing seed library at the Milam Wildscape. We will be expanding and adding a second seed library at the Lucy Hill Patterson Memorial Library (Rockdale) later this month. This allows Millam County residents the opportunity to support pollinators and create their own natural habitat at home.
With fall approaching, it’s a great time to get your seeds in the ground to produce beautiful blooms in the spring. Just like nature does it, flowers drop their seeds onto the ground at the end of their blooming season. The seeds rest in the soil all winter and use a natural chilling process called cold stratification so the seeds sprout easily once spring arrives and the soil warms up. That’s how we get beautiful wildflowers in the spring!
Come get your seeds today! Planting native maximizes wildlife benefit, conserves water, and creates essential pollinator habitat directly sustaining the food supply and our quality of life.
Cameron Public Library hours are Monday – Thursday, 10 am – 5 pm.
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.
On Saturday, May 23, our chapter finally enjoyed our long-delayed field trip to the Muller property on the border of Milam and Burleson Counties. It’s probably a good thing there were delays, because ample rain in the last couple of months prompted the May wildflowers to make up for a lackluster March and April.
In preparation for the field trip, Terri Brickey created rustic signs pointing to trails and other landmarks, and she also made beautiful maps of the property and the trails AD Muller has carved out through the woods, meadows, pastures, and scenic vistas. This undertaking was much appreciated by those who explored the trails. The property has many interesting trees, shrubs, forbs and wildflowers, so it’s a dream for iNaturalist fans. I also heard or saw 25 bird species, which is pretty darned good, too.
The Zombie YrailTerri identifies beesOne of the signs
Some of the chapter members didn’t explore the woods and fields, but that’s okay, because Carolyn’s front porch is a prime nature watching location. We enjoyed watching Rocky the friendly raccoon (no, no one touched him), a mother Phoebe and her nest, a large swamp rabbit, the resident catfish in the pond, and plenty of songbirds. If we’d stayed longer, we could have seen the many armadillos and deer.
RockyPhoebe nestMrs PhoebeSwamp rabbitSquirrel in charge of the trough
Those of us who like insects and reptiles were not disappointed, either. I found many butterflies (including an elusive small sulphur) and various wasps. Terri tried to get photos of native bees, but they were very active!
Can you see the lizard?Ringed paper waspCommon checkered white Common whitetailTed harvester antsPipevine swallowtail Dusky-blue groundstreak
And of course, there were plants! I uploaded 125 or so observations to iNaturalist, with only a few duplicate entries. There were a few rare plants that I’d seen last year and was hoping to find again, and I did see some of them. There was also a new plant for us, the Fourpoint evening primrose (Oenothera rhombipetala). It apparently will grow up to five feet tall! There have been a few observations in the area, and it appears to not be seen west of I-35. Another fairly uncommon plant is Texas Sandmint (Rhododon ciliatus).
Fourpoint evening primrose Sandmint
There was lots and lots of Gaillardia sp. and spotted horsemint (a type of beebalm, Monarda). Plus other beauties.
Maroon blanket flower (Gaillardia amblyodon)Spotted horsemintPrickly poppy in monarda Drummond’s phloxSpiderwortActually not quite sure what this isWinecup mallowRattlebushPurple pleat leaf
We enjoyed some teeny tiny flowers, too. Both Terri and I like those.
One of my favorite sites was all the blossoming American beautyberry. That is one fine plant when it’s not drought conditions.
When we finished walking around (and stepping in lots of mud), Terri fed the resident catfish. Of course, we also took lots of photos of the wetland plants, which were many rushes and sedges.
It was extra pleasant to just hang around on the porch for a while, too. We do get excited about all the natural wonders we encounter, and we love to share!
Screenshot
There were many more sights, but you’ll just have to come on our next field trip to see for yourself!
Stereum
Photos by Sue Ann Kendall and Terri Brickey. Thanks to Carolyn and AD Muller for sharing their property.
While my crew was out putting up the Bat Acoustic device Friday, I stumbled across an iNaturalist’s heaven. The pasture was covered in wildflowers – and all the butterflies, bees and other flying insects in Central Texas, it seemed.
Chad Cryer and Teri Brickey had gone to explore the Little River, while I took pictures. I found two species that I had never seen before Friday. And I found a Texas Vervain that was five feet tall. The height seemed to throw off the identification for it on iNat. I was pretty sure it was a vervain, but iNat was unsure. Luckily, Linda Jo Conn verified it for me.
Texas Vervain – 5 feet tallTexas Indian Mallow – flower has a unique colorMexican Palo Verde – a tree-like plant growing under a larger tree;
Chapter members’ work is paying off with blooms in the new barrels with signage.
The budget approved by H-E-B included funds for last minute strenuous labor which Mitchell Henderson has been doing. He has been shoveling gravel and landscaping the upper pathway for easy access and greatly reduced weeding.
New construction will enable people to get close to Pollinators and native plants they are connected to.
The Pollinators for Texas project is a collaborative effort with H-E-B and the Texas Master Naturalist (TMN) Program focused on enhancing native pollinator conservation across the state by promoting awareness, conservation efforts and creating sustainable pollinator environments. The initiative aims to engage communities in supporting pollinator-friendly practices through funding TMN chapter-led projects and programs.
Nature Along the El Camino Real 