Drought?

This past winter Mother Nature was very good to us. Lots of slow soaking rains that replenished our “perched aquifer” along with winter weather - cold weather that we haven’t enjoyed for years and even snow. My fireplace consumed three cords of wood! It was so nice that many nights I woke up at 2 a.m. still sitting there. . . .

Snowfall on Selah.
Photograph taken by J. David.

It was a good winter in many ways, especially since we had the driest, hottest summer of the past 60 years. Most of our springs quit flowing, our creeks dried up as well as most stock tanks. We came within days of having to buy water. . . . Now with that wonderful winter behind us, we’re back to normal. . . . But what is normal?

It’s been three years since this scene greeted you as you came into the ranch. This water is collected from many hillsides and seeps for four miles before coming together near here. Photograph taken by J. David.

Just a quarter mile upstream, near the Historical Marker. It’s the same creek as in the previous picture. Photograph taken by J. David.

This tributary is on higher ground. It brings runoff from an entirely different canyon which our neighbor at Walnut Springs provides. It’s been rather dependable in the past. Photograph taken by J. David.

This was the first concrete dam we built, about 1972. The water is eight foot deep. It stopped running for the first time last year, but still had stock water behind the dam. This location, years ago, was named Jacob’s Ladder . . . but that’s another story. Photograph taken by J. David.

Ah, yes ~ Madrone Lake, the Jewel of Selah! Full and going through a draw down tube. The lake is surrounded by the Natural Arboretum and Nature Trail. It will be good swimming for the kids with clear, cool water all summer. Photograph taken by J. David.

So Why Is This Posting’s Title About Drought?

There are still people that do not believe that global warming and climate change are for real. I am not one of them. These last five years I have witnessed the loss of 2,000+ trees from extreme heat and lack of rain. I’m watching certain plants expand their range, Sotol and Twisted Leaf Yucca. Even now, today May 19, after receiving three inches of rain my testimony is that we’re entering a drought!!! It’s beautiful here, wildflowers aplenty, new growth on the trees, birds, butterflies and bees seem happy enough, but, while the rangeland is green, on close examination it’s not all grass and what grass we have is not full and tall. Weeds/forbs fill in the spaces left bare from last year’s heat and lack of rain. Grass that has been stressed is slow to recover. While we’re looking good out the picture window, there are ominous signs out there. . . . First, we have been experiencing temperatures in the low nineties every day this month. We’re still having “March winds,” regularly. Ninety degree temperatures are expected in July and August – not in April and May. The high temperature and wind dry out surface moisture and this is bad for grass.

Our aquifer is full – all eleven springs are producing and as my pictures illustrate – we’re looking good, but summer isn’t here yet. Let’s not forget the fear we had these last few years. Everyone, please stay focused on conservation. It’s a good habit to develop.

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There are so many, many good causes that need financial help. Preserving the earth itself is important. So, if you would like to help us with a donation, we are a 501(c)(3) private operating foundation and gifts are deductible to the extent of the law. You can send your contributions to: Bamberger Ranch Preserve, 2341 Blue Ridge Drive, Johnson City, TX 78636.

Fun Raiser or Fund Raiser?

Any way you look at it our Family Picnic on Sunday, May the 2nd, was just wonderful! This was our fifth year holding the picnic. It began when I asked our Board of Directors to come up with something really worthwhile and different that would not only help us raise money, but would also bring the ranch to the attention of more people. Thanks to the creative thinking of Board member Anne Donovan the idea developed. The concept was to bring grandparents and young parents with children to the ranch for a day that encompassed education, recreation and family. I think when you view these pictures you’ll agree that this mission was truly accomplished.

The day began at 10 a.m. with four trailers taking tours every half hour to see some of the best dinosaur tracks ever discovered, to search for 100 million year old fossils and to see the world’s only chiroptorium and a large herd of scimitar horned oryx, a vanishing antelope species native to Africa.

Scott Gardner with trailer.

Dinosaur tracks. Photograph by Chris W. Johnson.

Picture of Chiroptorium. Photograph by Chris W. Johnson.

Scimitar horned oryx.

Down along the Nature Trail, Mary Kay Sexton was having the kids search and seine for creek critters. Photograph taken by Karen Archer.

Meanwhile, back at the Center, some of the kids looked at snakes and lizards, and a nanny goat with her kid while some were inside doing face painting, building kites and other arts and crafts.

Photograph taken by Karen Archer.

Photograph taken by Lois Sturm.

Photograph taken by Karen Archer.

This was a new addition this year, a zip line. Talk about fun. Some kids rode it five times! The zip line was down was installed near Madrone Lake. Photograph taken by Karen Archer.

Photograph taken by Karen Archer.

Also at Madrone Lake the kids were taught how to fish.
Photograph taken by Karen Archer.

Ernie Sessums has enjoyed teaching this sport all five years and even though it’s not a trophy, Conner Hathaway is proud of his catch. Photograph taken by Karen Archer.

The dam for Madrone Lake was perfect for kite flying. The lake was beautiful and wildflowers enhanced the scene. Photograph taken by Kathleen Marie Wilson.

Photograph by J. David.

The Grass Trail attracted Ernest, Paula and Brian Smith.
Photograph taken by Karen Archer.

It’s lunch time! Clean country air and so much to do added to the appetite of everyone. Chicken and beef fajitas, beans, grilled vegetables, salad – even hot dogs – iced tea, lemonade and a cookie was on the menu. Unbelievably good food prepared by volunteers from the Bexar Grotto, a caving group from San Antonio. They also are the stewards of Bracken Bat Cave.

Photograph taken by Lois Sturm.

Photograph taken by Lois Sturm.

Photograph taken by Karen Archer.

What would a Fund Raiser be without a silent auction? Nell Martin, a volunteer, has organized this since the beginning and with a great deal of success. We try to have only items that are nature, conservation and environment oriented. Photograph taken by Lois Sturm.

Plant sales are always a big hit with the picnicers – Medina Native Nursery donated over $600.00 worth of plants and trees. This year ranch biologist, Steven Fulton, offered many tree species raised right here on Selah - Bur Oaks, Lacey Oaks, Buckeye, Rough Leaf Dogwood, Carolina Buckthorn, Sycamore Leaf Snowbell to name a few. Photograph taken by Karen Archer.

From all the enthusiastic comments received, I’ve got to say that the demonstration and education presented by John Karger, founder of “Last Chance Forever,” was the biggest hit of all. This organization rehabilitates raptors and releases them back into the wild. John’s demonstration and commentary held the attention of both young and old.

Photograph taken by Kathleen Marie Wilson

Photograph taken by Lois Sturm.

Chance Ruder, a protégé of John Karger, shows the gathering a great horned owl. Photograph taken by Lois Sturm.

When the day is done – a small tired, but happy group of volunteers gets to relax. No one does it alone - THANKS to ALL of YOU !!!!!! Photograph taken by Lois Sturm.

What’s it all about? This picture speaks to me: Children today, adults tomorrow. I so admire the young parents who brought these beautiful young kids to our picnic. With experience like this, there will be no nature deficit disorder among these kids. I wish every child could visit Selah. Photograph taken by Karen Archer.

There are so many, many good causes that need financial help. Preserving the earth itself is important. So, if you would like to help us with a donation, we are a 501(c)(3) private operating foundation and gifts are deductible to the extent of the law. You can send your contributions to: Bamberger Ranch Preserve, 2341 Blue Ridge Drive, Johnson City, TX 78636.

Cedar Rebuttal

Recently many conservation oriented people received a press release by a Texas A&M University researcher that alarmed and confused them in regard to the management of cedar on their property. I can understand why as the release that came to me was very poorly written, left out important information needed to make land management decisions and, in my opinion, was very misleading. I did later, however, receive other versions that were much better and I have now had the opportunity to read the entire research paper.

There is a proverb that says only fools and children criticize unfinished work. This is analogous to reading the early press release on the subject and criticizing the work before we got to study the full report.

What I believe is so very important and from what I can see in this work that is omitted is: 1) It leaves out the different ecological site types where cedar has been removed; and 2) It assumes that the land will be bare after cedar removal.

There have been dozens of research papers written on the cedar issue, hundreds of hands-on experiences, such as my own, that report the increase in ground water and return of springs and even creeks that resulted from cedar removal and restoration of grasslands. This, while not pure science, is definitely not anecdotal. Here are numbers given to me years ago by the Texas Agriculture Experiment Station at Sonora, Texas showing the amount of water that reaches the soil from a one inch rain under different woody species:

Influence of Canopy Cover on Amount of Water Reaching Mineral Soil

Type Plant	% Interception Loss	% Litter Interception Loss	%H2O Reaching Mineral Soil
Shortgrass	10.8	0.0	89.2
Bunchgrass	18.1	0.0	81.9
Live Oak	25.4	20.7	53.9
Ashe Juniper	36.7	43.0	20.3

It does not take scientific studies to see or accept the obvious – rainfall on bare ground runs off taking away precious soil with it, creating erosion and leaving gullies behind. But establishing grass after cedar removal on sites promotes more underground water and spring flow and more food and shelter not only for cattle but for all wildlife. So it’s good economics and good for our quality of life.

I do not claim to be a scientist, but I have spent 41 years on this very subject and my experience is well noted. I have never advocated removal of all the cedar and in fact still have four or five hundred acres of it. My experience with the return of springs and creeks is shared by countless other landowners.

This article appeared in Austin American Statesman on October 25. 1995:

Study Indicates Clearing Cedar Increases Water

by Kelly Shannon
Associated Press

HUNT – To Hill Country ranchers Travis and Mary Lee, cedar is simple. Clear the stubby trees from your land, and more desirable grasses and oaks thrive.

“Cedar sucks up all your water,” said Travis Lee.

In slightly more technical language, university and government researchers in the region are saying much the same thing about mountain cedar, a native evergreen formally known as ashe juniper.

A five-year study concluding this month has found clearing cedar yields some additional water, which seeps into the soil or becomes runoff, helping to replenish the underground Edwards Aquifer.

Bill Dugas, who has conducted the study for the Texas Agricultural Experiment Station at the Blackland Research Center in Temple, said for two years, two 40-acre pieces of property in eastern Uvalde County were studied for rainfall and evaporation before any cedar cutting was done.

In September 1992, chain saws were used to clear one of the pieces of land of small cedar trees. Mature cedar and cedar on steep slopes that is considered habitat for the endangered golden-cheeked warbler were not cut.

Then researchers continued to measure rainfall and evaporation.

Scientists expected water loss would be less where the cedar was cleared, and that’s what they found. About 60,000 more gallons of water per acre per year was discharged from the site cleared of cedar.

In the past year, more water has still been yielded by the cedar-cleared land, though the amount has dropped to about 15,000 more gallons per acre per year, Dugas said.



“We’ve had a tremendous flush of growth of grasses and other woody plants. So we’re getting less of a savings,” he said. “It’s why you can’t do this for one year and know the answer.”

Dugas conducted a similar study on mesquite trees in North Texas but did not detect the same water savings. The soil there is different, and grasses grow in place of mesquite almost immediately.

Dugas’ cedar study is one of several within the state-federal Seco Creek Water Quality Demonstration Project.

Phillip Wright, Seco Creek project manager with the U.S. Department of Agriculture’s Natural Resources Conservation Service, said in a study about 1.5 miles from Dugas’ site, researchers have found spring flow has been enhanced by cedar clearing.

On a 7.9-acre site, about 80 percent of the mountain cedars were cleared. Again, larger trees that might be warbler habitat were left. Through 40 months of collecting data after the clearing, spring flow has increased.

“We’ve seen an increase of about 20 percent in the flow with about 30 percent less rainfall,” Wright said, adding that he has seen no decrease in water savings.

These water findings could have important implications for the Edwards Aquifer recharge zone, a boomerang-shaped region stretching from Austin up through the Hill Country to north of Uvalde.

“There is a potential to increase water yield for these cedar-infested rangelands by doing selective ashe juniper control,” Wright said.

Though it is native to the area, the density of ashe juniper has increased over the years possibly be- cause of grazing and a lack of natural wildfires, researchers say.

Grazing is a big reason rancher Travis Lee wants to remove cedar from his land. With cedar growth, one cow can graze per 50-70 acres; without cedar, that figure increases to one cow per 15 acres, he said.

The Lees’ 1,600-acre ranch used to be owned by Mary Lee’s grandfather. In his days, cedar clearing was a routine chore. “He used to burn all the time and keep all the cedar down,” she said.

Last year, as the Lees were clearing a 36-acre patch of property, the U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service recommended they stop so biological surveys could be done to determine if it is warbler habitat.

Their cedar clearing is on hold, they said, because they were warned that continuing with it could violate the Endangered Species Act. The Lees said they’ve never seen warblers on their property and that they were planning to leave the mature cedars—possible warbler habitat—anyway.

Like the researchers with the Seco Creek Project, Travis Lee said he’s seen a difference in water flow when cedar is cleared.

“We’ve got a couple of gullies, the water production is much improved if you’ve cut the cedar,” he said.

This article was printed in the San Antonio Express News of May 4, 1997:

Managing Junipers May Ease Water Use

John Fohn – Agriculture

This probably isn’t going to shock anyone much: Juniper, alias mountain cedar, takes a lot of water out of the ground.

However, researchers working west of San Antonio now know how much water, and they also know that junipers use almost twice as much of it as do oak trees.

Some rather involved measurements, done in northern Uvalde County, indicate that a 15-foot-tall juniper uses about 35 gallons of water per day in a typical Hill Country ranching environment.

According to Keith Owens, range ecology professor at the A&M Research and Extension Center at Uvalde, the research also indicates that a live oak tree of the same size might consume only 19 gallons per day.

In a telephone interview last week, Owens said, “We’re developing a water use simulation model.

The computer model could calculate increased water yields as the plant density were reduced for a particular site, he said.

Owens said follow-up research will examine water use by three grass species: Texas wintergrass, sideoats grama and curlymesquite. It also will look at water-usage changes during regrowth by live oak, persimmon and mountain laurel.

A news release describing the project indicates scientists went to considerable trouble to come up with their water-use numbers. Researchers measured carbon dioxide intake and water loss from individual leaves on six trees – three oaks and three junipers – in each of nine watersheds. After measurements were taken, the leaves were clipped and fed into a meter that determined their exact surface area.

Meanwhile, the nine watershed areas were divided into three groups. All of the juniper and oak canopy was removed from three sites and 70 percent was taken from three more, while the final three were left uncleared.

Finally, runoff was measured for each area, before and after clearing.

The combined data allowed Owens and his colleagues to determine how much water the trees used, how much stayed in the soil and how much ran off into streams, the release stated.

With the information that’s been developed, a landowner might manage juniper trees with water use in mind.

However, Owens added that esthetic concerns, as well as federal regulations on endangered-species habitat destruction, could affect juniper removal decisions.

As for total water recovery, Owens said it may vary with location, soil depth and slope.

Research by others near Sonora indicated a gain of 100,000 gallons of water per acre where all vegetation except grasses was removed. Other research in Medina County involved removal only of juniper, leaving oak and other shrubs. That test indicated 60,000 gallons per acre of water. His own results fell between the two, Owens said.

However, he said he’s unaware of a means to determine exactly how much water gained through juniper removal could be recharged into the Edwards aquifer. New variables would enter that equation, such as how far water has to travel before it reaches fractured limestone that allows recharge, Owens said.

In the meantime, however, economic and environmental considerations for preserving or removing juniper in the Hill Country now can be tied to a pricetag, expressed in gallons of water.


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Joe Fohn covers issues relating to agriculture. Call 250-3245 to leave a message.

The following statements are from a 1994 Juniper Symposium held at the Texas A&M University Research Station at Sonora; chapter 4 written by Thomas L. Thurow and Deirdre H. Charlson. Their full papers could still be available.

In the United States, particularly in the southwest, rangeland watersheds are the source of most of the region’s surface flow and aquifer recharge.

Raindrops striking bare soil are by far the most important mode of soil erosion. Therefore it is very important that the amount of bare soil be minimized through maintenance of vegetation cover.

Water loss per unit area of leaf tissue of herbaceous vegetation such as grass or forbs is usually less than from trees or shrubs.

According to the Texas A&M University Research Station at Sonora about 13 inches of the annual 21 inch precipitation would ever get below the canopy if the site is covered with juniper.

It is no wonder herbaceous vegetation growing under the canopy of juniper trees is so sparse.

Rangeland management practices which affect vegetation cover and composition can affect both on-site and off-site water availability.

The invasion of rangelands by juniper and other brush species can have a major impact on the hydrology of the site. The presence of juniper alters the amount and distribution of water reaching the soil. Junipers are highly competitive with the understory vegetation for water and nutrients, often reducing the productivity of grasses and forbs and increasing the amount of bare soil. The increase in bare soil, particularly in the spaces between trees, typically leads to increased runoff and soil loss as the juniper infestation increases. The method and degree of juniper removal can significantly impact the hydrology and erosion on rangeland watersheds. The effect of removal method depends on degree of elimination of brush and associated vegetation, steepness of slope, soil type, precipitation characteristics and vegetation recovery time.

Below is a summary statement on a research paper presented by Thomas L. Thurow and Justin W. Hester at the 1997 Juniper Symposium held at the Texas A&M Research and Extension Center in San Angelo, Texas:

Juniper increase can have a major impact on rangeland hydrology. The presence of juniper alters the amount and distribution of water reaching the soil. Junipers are highly competitive with the understory vegetation for water and nutrients, often reducing the productivity of grasses and forbs and increasing the amount of bare soil. The increase in bare soil, particularly in the spaces between trees, typically leads to increased runoff and soil loss as the juniper infestation increases. The method and degree of juniper removal can significantly impact the hydrology and erosion on rangeland watersheds. The effect of removal method depends on degree of elimination of brush and associated vegetation, steepness of slope, soil type, precipitation characteristics and vegetation recovery time.

The following statement was taken from the summary of a lengthy paper written by F. E. Smeins, M. K. Owens and S. D. Fuhlendorf. It was titled, “Biology and ecology of Ashe (Blueberry) Juniper” and published by the Texas A&M University Research Station at Sonora - April 14, 1994:

A dense stand of Ashe juniper can use substantial quantities of soil moisture reducing recharges to aquifers and soil water for growth of other plants.

Once again, I do not claim to be an expert on brush management and most certainly not on soil ecology which could alter the results of cedar removal, but when all the science, research and testimony is studied the net result is clear. Properly managed cedar removal followed up with good grass cover is good for water, for livestock, wildlife and people.

Which side of the fence would you prefer?

Should you want to study the reporting of other scientists you will find the following useful:

• Smeins, F.E. 1990. Ashe juniper, consumer of Edwards Plateau rangeland. Texas Agricultural Experiment Station Technical Report, 90-1.


• Blomquist, K.W. 1990. Selected life history and synecological characteristics of Ashe juniper on the Edwards Plateau of Texas. M.S. Thesis, Dep. Rangeland Ecology and Management, Texas A&M Univ., College Station, TX. 108 p.


• Doescher, P.S., L.E. Eddleman and M. R. Vaitkus 1987. Evaluation of soil nutrients, pH, and organic matter in rangelands dominated by western juniper. Northwest Science 61:97-102


• Fuhlendorf, S.D. 1992. Influence of age/size and grazing history on understory relationships of Ashe juniper. M.S. Thesis, Dep. Rangeland Ecology and Management, Texas A&M Univ., College Station, TX. 79 p.


• Holmstead, G.L. 1989. Water-use and growth of three C4 bunchgrasses: Evaluation under field and controlled environment conditions. M.S. Thesis, Dep. Rangeland Ecology and Management 144 pp.


• Texas State Soil and Water Conservation Board 1991. A comprehensive study of Texas watersheds and their impacts on water quality and water quantity. Texas State Soil and water Conservation Board, Temple, TX. 104 p.


• Wright, H.A., F.M. Churchill, and W.C. Stevens 1975. Effects of prescribed burning on sediment, water yield, and water quality from dozed juniper lands in Central Texas. Journal of Range Management 29:294-298.


• Yager, L. Y. 1993. Canopy, litter and allelopatic effects of Ashe juniper (Juniperus ashei, Buchholz) on understory vegetation. M.S. Thesis, Dep. Rangeland Ecology and Management, Texas A&M Univ., College Station, TX. 109 p.

“No One Does it Alone” – Part III

What human characteristic is it that drives one to hold on to power? We witness this so frequently in third world countries when leaders and dictators refuse to step down when someone is duly elected to replace them. We see it frequently in our corporations when CEO’s outlive their usefulness and many times this is detrimental to the stockholders. I can attest that it is detrimental to many in an organization when opportunity to move up is blocked. All organizations whether a civic club, church or business need new blood to stay healthy. Without manpower movement there isn’t room for new blood. There are restraints to manpower movement in a small entity such as Selah, Bamberger Ranch Preserve. Some, of course, are financial, but the bigger is the protection of this land, the habitat for Mother Nature. This is foremost as to why I have given this 5,500 acres away. So, how do you reconcile the two – opportunity for others and preservation?

My personal philosophy is that it is my obligation to mentor, nurture and develop every employee to such knowledge and skills level that they are worth more to some other organization, than I am able to pay them. Thus, they move on and up leaving an opportunity for new blood to move in! Makes sense, doesn’t it? . . There is one problem however, that is the quality of life that comes with living on 5,500 acres of a natural area. A place to raise your kids unlike any in Texas. A place respected for its clean, clear message that it brings to thousands each year. A place that is recognized as a model of land stewardship. . . . So one becomes passionately connected, weighs the values and sticks around. . . . It’s not all about money!

No, I haven’t done it alone – It’s because of the skills, knowledge and above all, the passion for Selah that all these other people have that makes it all possible.

Colleen Gardner, our Executive Director, does not sit in an office. She walks the talk by participating in all education programs. Here she shows and tells the kids about life in the water. Photograph taken by Kathy Wilson.

Scott Grote is Ranch Operations Manager, but here he is with the kids talking about goats and the role they play on the ranch. Photograph taken by Colleen Gardner.

Steven Fulton, Ranch Biologist, is holding a small rough green tree snake which he has captured so that the kids can learn more about snakes. Photograph taken by Colleen Gardner.

Lois Sturm, pictured here in the “Work Room”- (I refuse to call it an office, as I gave that life up long ago). Lois not only handles my personal business affairs, but is a back-up for Colleen with the education programs and communications. Sometimes I think we would fold up without her to find things. Photograph taken by J. David.

“Poncho” Coronado, on the left, has been working here for 28 years. He helps Scott Grote work the cattle and goats. “Poncho” has mended more fence, lifted more hay bales and cut more firewood than the rest of us put together. Photograph taken by Colleen Gardner.

Ann Cook, Anne Donovan, Colleen Gardner and Susan Evans at our Family Picnic, our only fundraiser. Photograph taken by Kathy Wilson.

Susan Sander is an Education Advisor to the BRP. She is, however, more than that as she has volunteered here for years. She is also a most passionate environmentalist. Photograph taken by J. David.

Deborah Mann, one of our Education Advisors, is a Science teacher at Waldorf, a private school in Austin. Every year Deborah takes the entire twelfth grade for a week of living at Selah as part of her Ecology class where the students perform research projects, learn the practices of land restoration, and also do nature writing in conjunction with Waldorf’s Humanities Department. Photograph taken by Colleen Gardner.

Gary McCracken, center, is Science Department Head at the University of Tennessee. He is an Advisory Director of our Preserve and is known nationally for his research on bats. He was very helpful in the design and construction of our chiroptorium. Gary is pictured here with the students from Boston University who spend the summer here doing a census of our bat population. Photograph taken J. David.

Fred Smeins, far right, serves us as a Scientific Advisor. Fred, a professor of Ecology at Texas A&M University is pictured here at the ranch with a small group of graduate students. Photograph taken by J. David.

Nobody Does It Alone – and while these and many other volunteers, donors and foundations are helping to support our Preserve we can’t raise the needed money alone. We need your help. . . . If, before my death, we can build an endowment, those who carry on here will be free to continue the education programs and preserve the habitat for the benefit of all living things.

There are so many, many good causes that need financial help. Preserving the earth itself is important. So, if you would like to help us with a donation, we are a 501(c)(3) private operating foundation and gifts are deductible to the extent of the law. You can send your contributions to: Bamberger Ranch Preserve, 2341 Blue Ridge Drive, Johnson City, TX 78636.

“No One Does it Alone” – Part II

It bothers me somewhat to see leaders, receiving honors and given credit for their success. Whether they be CEO of a corporation, a successful start-up company or the head coach of a winning football team. Folks, they didn’t do it alone! Rare is the one who truly did it alone. To not acknowledge and give credit to those who contribute to their success is to my way of thinking, nothing more than theft. I realize there are different degrees of help that have contributed to one’s success, but the individual being honored, he knows. I have lived with a philosophy that says you can be as successful as you want to if you don’t care who gets the credit.

After forty-one years of long hours and hard work, I can truly say I could never have brought SELAH to where it is today by myself. Although I may have been the “architect,” Leroy Petri was the engineer. He joined me thirty-nine years ago. He is a Jack of All Trades and master of them all.

Leroy Petri holding court at a Water Workshop.
Photograph taken by Lois Sturm.

His marks are everywhere on the ranch. They include Madrone Lake and twenty other ponds and tanks, top quality roads, fences and steel buildings. Also grass covered prairies where cedar once dominated and wonderful spring water piped into all the houses. I could go on and on about Leroy. He has educated and trained many summer interns as well as adults that have attended our workshops. He has gone with us when we were asked to give advice on someone’s new land purchase . . . No, I didn’t do it alone ~ no one does.

Board members gather before a meeting. Seated clockwise from the lower left are: Mary Wallace, Dallas, TX; Ann Cook, Blanco, TX; Helen Ballew, San Antonio, TX; Chap Hutcheson, Houston, TX; Judy Confer, Baltimore, MD; Anne Donovan and M.S. of Austin, TX. Photograph taken by J. David.

At certain times in our lives things happen ~ circumstances change, it’s unplanned, but the opportunity arises for each of us to rearrange our lives ~ not necessarily to get rid of the old, but to adapt new thinking – this happened to me over thirty years ago and it has lead to the creation of SELAH as a permanent foundation, preserved for Mother Nature in perpetuity. With a volunteer Board of Directors we are together building an institution . . . No, I cannot do it alone and I do need your help.

There are so many, many good causes that need financial help. Preserving the earth itself is important. So, if you would like to help us with a donation, we are a 501(c)(3) private operating foundation and gifts are deductible to the extent of the law. You can send your contributions to: Bamberger Ranch Preserve, 2341 Blue Ridge Drive, Johnson City, TX 78636.

Everyone that knows me asks, “When did you learn how to blog?” . . . They all know that I’m not a techy type of guy, that I have trouble with a push button phone! So posting this blog is something I damn sure couldn’t do alone, even if given a month! Thanks to Chris Johnson who does it for me. Chris performed this service for my wife, Margaret, and after she died I was encouraged to keep the blog going. No definitely I couldn’t do it alone . . . A neat thing Chris does in his own world is maintain a screech owl nest box on line ~ So check onto http://gargravarr.cc.utexas.edu/owl/ and see what goes on in the owl world!

No One Does It Alone

I’ve been writing this blog for one year. Telling stories about myself and happenings here from the drought to visiting groups and occasionally a little science. Maybe I made it all sound too easy or like the staff and I did all the great things here that have drawn so much publicity. I know I’ve written about our volunteers ~ “worker bees” I call them, but I haven’t said much about our Board of Directors who are volunteers here also. So with Helen Ballew’s permission, I’m relaying to you a message she has written in regards to her new position as Director of a unique conservation project in San Antonio. I believe you will feel the strength of her convictions and passion for conservation that makes me so lucky to have her as a Board member of our Preserve.

From the Headwaters Newsletter, December 29, 2009, page 1:

Message from the Director

Dear Friends,

Welcome back to the Headwaters! My name is Helen Ballew and I am the new director at the Headwaters Coalition. I am looking forward to meeting you if I haven’t already and inviting you once again to help us create a sanctuary for nature and the spirit that is worthy of this historic place.

I first came to the headwaters in 1986, my very first month in San Antonio. The late Maury Maverick brought me to the Blue Hole in the course of orienting me to my new town. I had come to San Antonio with The Nature Conservancy to help foster a land ethic between Texans and their land. The Blue Hole became for me a kind of spiritual retreat: a place of peace, beauty and quiet reflection in the heart of a bustling city. It stirred in my city-weary spirit a sense of what Wordsworth called “natural piety. ”

I could wish my days/to be bound each to each/in natural piety.
—William Wordsworth, The Intimations Ode

Whether we realize it or not, we need such places in our lives. As recent events in Copenhagen attest, this is truly a critical time in our human history.

Never was there a time when the Earth cried out more for us to wake up, be mindful, have heart, and act accordingly.

Our connection to places like the Headwaters can help us wake up to the harm our civilization has done to the Earth, be mindful of what a right relationship with the Earth looks like, have heart to mend our ways, and act with courage to restore health to the land, waters, and ultimately our selves.

I may be new to this project—this relatively new ministry of the Sisters of Charity of the Incarnate Word—but I am not new to the nature lover’s cause. Already I see so many rich and powerful symbols and stories and lessons emanating from this home of the “Spirit Waters.” I look forward to sharing what I’m learning with you and learning from your own deep engagement with the Headwaters.

We have our work cut out for us in doing honor to the Blue Hole and the “spring field” around it, the last remaining undeveloped parcel of land first purchased by the Sisters of Charity over 100 years ago. We must befriend the neighbors, restore and safeguard the springs, heal the land, listen to the elders, make and mark the trails, find the tools and recruit the helpers, raise the money, learn the history, teach the children, share the stories – all in the spirit of Earth stewardship.

I am grateful to the Sisters for setting aside this last 53 acres including the Blue Hole to become a sanctuary. Humans have had a relationship with this land and its former “fountain spring” for over 11,000 years and while much of the land has already been put to other uses, it is possible that in time this sanctuary will become the most significant use of all.

It’s going to be a wild, difficult and wonderful ride, and I can’t wait to welcome you—as you welcome me—along the way.

Gratefully,

Helen Ballew

P.S. Please consider making a year-end contribution to the Headwaters Coalition as an expression of your recommitment to this place and this project. Your contribution will go directly into restoration and education.

Visit our website to make your donation online: http://www.headwaterscoalition.org/getinvolved.html.

Helen brought the Board of Directors to the ranch and wrote this story. It was a very cold day as you can tell by the way the sisters are bundled up. Helen also brought lunch for a picnic which was held in my house. It was a great day ~ a Selah moment!

From the Headwaters Newsletter, December 29, 2009, page 3:

Selah: Pause & Reflect

On Tuesday, December 16, 2009 several members of the Headwaters board of directors and core committee made a pilgrimage to Selah, Bamberger Ranch Preserve, the 5,500-acre ecological restoration success story of J. David Bamberger, Texas’s 2009 Aldo Leopold Conservation Award winner. With his keen wit, unconventional mind, caring heart and fire in the belly, J. David led the Headwaters group tour sharing stories of his life, work, family history, and love of the land. J. David’s passion for Mother Nature inspired him some forty years ago to want to assume the challenge of restoring ecological health to what was once “the sorriest piece of land in Blanco County.” Indicators of his success at Selah include grasslands reclaimed from cedar breaks, perennial springs flowing where once there were none, a five-fold increase in the number of bird species, an increase to hundreds of species of native trees and over thirty species of native grasses, and white-tailed deer weighing in at several times the average weight for Hill Country deer, among other things. If our intent was in part to gain inspiration for our own challenge of ecological restoration at the Headwaters, we succeeded. Our thanks to J. David Bamberger and Justin Duke, a Selah staffer, for their hospitality!

Left to right: Adela Gott, UIW staff; Dr. Sally Said, UIW faculty; Dr. Sara Tallarovic, UIW faculty; Sister Cindy Stacy, Headwaters board member; Sister Yolanda Tarango, Headwaters board chair and General Councilor of the Congregation of Sisters of Charity of the Incarnate Word; and Sister Feliciana Mejia, Council member of the Congregation of Sisters of Charity of the Incarnate Word.

There are so many, many good causes that need financial help. Preserving the earth itself is important. So, if you would like to help us with a donation, we are a 501(c)(3) private operating foundation and gifts are deductible to the extent of the law. You can send your contributions to: Bamberger Ranch Preserve, 2341 Blue Ridge Drive, Johnson City, TX 78636.

A Record Breaking Snowbell Trip – Feb. 1, 2010

These snowbell plants are ready to be planted. We have 1600 of them. It takes three years of careful nurturing to reach this size. 1600 is more than four times the known wild population. Photograph taken by J. David.

The plan was to leave by 7 a.m. and head out to the Devils River in Val Verde County. We left on time ~ I had planned well ~ the day was cold and a heavy fog followed us until we got to Sonora ~ The plan included taking food and gear for an overnight at Dolan Falls. Since we no longer had any financial support at all, Steven brought a big package of homemade sausage sticks – damn good – and I packed 3 dozen left over tamales from yesterday’s Trail Tamer Volunteer Day as well as left over chips, beans, picante sauce and 10 cans of Dr. Pepper – we also took bananas – cereal, milk, etc. . . . So where’s the record? This trip is always 700+ miles and requires overnight camping or housing. We have 36 snowbells to replace on three different ranches. – On I-10 Steven puts his foot to the gas pedal as the speed limit is 80 mph ~ usually we stop in Fredrericksburg for groceries, batteries, coffee and donuts, but not today. I just know we’ll break the record of 4 ½ hours to get to our 3 planting sites - Ruthie Russell’s is on the Devils River, The Nature Conservancy at Dolan Falls and Yellow Bluff on Dolan Creek. I never dreamed we could do all of this in one day and be home in bed that night.

Steven said our ranch gas tank was empty so we had to stop in Sonora to fill our tank . . . This was also my coffee and donut stop and for Steven another Dr. Pepper. We arrived here nonstop in 3 hours.

It required another 1½ hours down Route 277 and onto Dolan Falls Road to make our first stop – Ruthie Russell’s ranch on the Devils River. Before this, we have one combination locked gate to get through and CRAP, I can’t get the lock to open! Steven has to get out and do it. I believe it’s my eyesight that I’m unable to see the little tumbler numbers . . . Steven doesn’t miss the opportunity to chide me . . .

To get to Ruthie’s ranch you must drive a mile, or it seems like a mile, on a very narrow ledge between a very high cliff and the river. We have to drive through tree limbs, large potholes, fantastic springs and deep water. Brush scrapes the side of the truck making permanent scratches. This is an adventure to remember, one in which you must have four wheel drive. We finally get to another locked combo gate to Ruthie’s 8,000 acres and once again I try my hand at the combination only to fail again! “Getting old is hell,” I say to myself. And again, I have to hear those same words from Steven!

My records show that we have 14 snowbells to replace here. The drought and heat have taken a toll on our 2008 plantings. Ruthie is so enthused about the project that she has laid out hundreds of feet of garden hose. We learned from a guest there visitors are asked to water our plants as part of the privilege of being here. It is rugged beauty. The river here is wide, perhaps 100 yards. The water is shallow and crystal clear with a limestone bottom. Voluminous springs pour water into the river. Fish can be easily seen and ducks come and go. Dry brush covered mountains surround you in every direction. It’s a tough environment and yet, it’s beautiful.

It’s our policy and commitment to finish our project with four live plants in every corral (cage). Each corral is 6 foot in diameter. This is large enough to protect any seedling that may, at some point in the future, develop from a seed that one of our plants would drop. The corral is 5 foot high supported by 6 steel posts. It’s strong enough to protect our plants from all animals except mice and I believe the corral will easily have a 50 year lifespan. Most certainly long enough for our snowbell to grow and with this size corral, eliminate any browsing. Deer won’t jump in as they can see there isn’t enough space for them.

One plant was replaced here. We used the weed barrier to not only protect it from weeds, but more so the extreme heat. Originally, this corral had no weed barrier. We then cover the weed barrier with leaves and grass. Photograph taken by Mary Candee.

Steven and I work well together. He wants to protect me from the heaviest lifting, which is the carrying of water from the river. He lifts our recycled ladder over the corral and holds it firmly while I climb over and into the corral. We had placed flagging tape near the dead plants when we were here in October, but some have been pulled off. Steven has me break a small twig, a very small one, from each plant. He examines it closely to determine life. I begin digging the holes, while he goes to the river for water. Steven returns to hand me the plants, weed barrier and water. We have learned how much cooler the soil is when we use weed barrier . . . We’re so efficient that Steven calculates we can break the record today by getting all our plantings accomplished and return to the ranch by 9 p.m.! ~ I’m game for that as it’s rather cold to be overnighting in the summer cabins at Dolan Falls, our next stop . . . We elect to eat while driving, Steven’s venison sausages make this rather easy. So we’re eating, drinking the Dr. Peppers and talking excitedly for which we’ll pay for shortly. Read on –

Next stop is Dolan Falls, which is under the ownership of The Nature Conservancy. It’s here where all of our Devils River Val Verde County seed was collected. This is also one of the locations for Steven’s research equipment. I no longer know how many acres they still own as some has been sold off to conversation buyers. I’m pretty sure they still hold over 10,000 acres . . . To get in, we have another combination lock to open. As our new mission is to get the job done today, Steven jumps out to unlock the gate rather than have this old man fiddle around with it!

Steven checks his equipment which has been in place at Dolan Falls for over a year. It’s part of his research project toward his Master’s Degree at Texas State University. (Photograph taken by J. David.)

We go straight to our next planting site crossing Dolan Creek, but not the river. You must have 4 wheel drive for this. I’ve been unsuccessful every time I make this crossing in my personal truck even though it has a posi-traction rear end. Even with Steven’s big wheel Ford we churn, spin and falter over the smooth slippery water covered small stones. It’s another mile to our planting site, but we pull up, begin to unload only to discover that our vital recycled ladder is missing! A short bout of cussing and a plan ~ “Steven, get me into that big corral and I’ll dig and plant while you backtrack to find the ladder.” Steven grabs a pair of fence pliers and opens this largest corral we’ve ever built. It’s big, like 12’ long and 8 foot wide. There’s ten snowbells in there and my records show them all as dead. Steven backtracks saying, “I’ll be right back, it can’t be far.” ~ Oh, yeah ~ He’s gone forty-five minutes and found the ladder way back on that risky river trail to Ruthie Russell’s – where we excitedly ate sausage, drank Dr. Pepper and talked of getting home tonight and didn’t hear the ladder crash from the truck!

By the time he’s back, I’ve planted the ten snowbells, carried water to all corrals and distributed plants to each corral. So we lost very little time replanting here and moved onto Yellow Bluff, our last planting site for the day. Now time and daylight are working against us. We have only six plants to replace here. Yellow Bluff was where I met my Waterloo in December of 2008 - having fallen into a sharp boulder while carrying steel posts across Dolan Creek severely tearing my right shoulder rotator cuff. It required two surgical procedures and even with this, I am not the same and never will regain the full unimpaired use of my right arm . . . but Steven makes sure I don’t do a repeat of 2009 by driving across the creek and its tributary. We quickly replant the six snowbells and add three more plants protected by what we call “natural corrals” which are nothing more than piling brush over the plant. These locations are GPS’ed and noted by tying bright orange flagging tape over head.

What a day! There is still daylight and we’re on our way back home. I’m just hoping we get there alive! Steven pushes our truck to the limit. The first twenty miles are on a narrow gravel road where in the past we’ve lost some expensive wheel covers from off the truck. I pull my seat belt a little tighter . . . We’re back at the ranch by 10 p.m. 758 miles, 36 snowbells planted in a 15 hour day. Only my laundress will know how scared I was!!