Houston Greenbelt

8 trees you plant once that produce free food for 30-100+ years:

1. MULBERRY - 200+ lbs of berries per year. Grows in almost any soil. Birds love it too.

2. PERSIMMON (American) - Native. Incredibly sweet when ripe. Survives to Zone 4. Zero maintenance.

3. PAWPAW - America's largest native fruit. Tastes like banana custard. Grows wild from Michigan to Florida. You cannot buy it in stores.

4. PECAN - One mature tree produces 50-100 lbs of nuts per year for over 100 years.

5. ELDERBERRY - Berries and flowers are both edible and medicinal. Makes syrup, wine, and jam. Clinical evidence for immune support.

6. HAZELNUT - Produces in 3-4 years. A single bush yields 20+ lbs. Thrives in partial shade.

7. SERVICEBERRY - Sweet berries in June when nothing else is ripe. Beautiful ornamental tree. Hides food production in plain sight.

8. BLACK WALNUT - Nuts worth $12-15/lb at market. One tree produces for 200+ years.

The best time to plant a food tree was 20 years ago. The second best time is this weekend.

Celebrating 🎉 National Teacher Appreciation Day and Teacher Appreciation Week with a heartfelt thanks to our Texas educators!

The TWDB offers engaging K-12 water-related education activities for the water cycle, watersheds, water conservation, and much more!

Check out our resources at www.twdb.texas.gov/kids. 💻

Did you know that Texas is one of the most important stops in the monarch migration? Each year, monarchs travel up to 3,000 miles - and nearly all Eastern monarchs pass through Texas along the way. That makes our communities a critical "rest stop" for feeding, breeding and continuing their journey. By planting native milkweed and nectar plants, we can help fuel this migration. It's not just a garden - it's part of a global journey. Learn more at https://monarchwatch.org/migration/
Courtesy Dallas County Master Gardeners

Come to the Fort Bend County Master Gardener Butterfly Celebration on May 2: https://l.facebook.com/l.php?u=https%3A%2F%2Ffbmg.org%2F2026-butterfly-celebration%2F%3Ffbclid%3DIwZXh0bgNhZW0CMTAAYnJpZBExYnUyNzdPbXV5T3BxQ0ZiZHNydGMGYXBwX2lkEDIyMjAzOTE3ODgyMDA4OTIAAR5FZJVLvMIgO7RL7sNH3vQjODwBJIIIfY8BBTDZ9aHagJWIROIK6hAvxqeIGA_aem_ZdJz2fIZjcyPckM6i9uUBg&h=AT7aVW3R-4R2KXCJF1dcpQjl3-xnoI8DueBvvx_OnphTEaFHFZWid2pft6nyewxVe2NisWX91g03HZdDBUKZ364C8Kbfbg82WtadkSdLIsW6ukGtV-KqowgV_m_JLyJO4jfCE81U1I636w&__tn__=-UK-R&c[0]=AT5OzsyjQ4cnhkJUWXEe27A0gXEi2tPGXarec5RORz86vPQUIqcu9oIw62WIXJ6ZMC0OrrjtBEUBnF1cEFossLv9QSP5ZMJJPZ6EPNow4MT5toBpSqx3jjx7aC0CSySoh0wkB4t-Mhv9oe77KeCEnfdPOa10fcvQaT2KvL-wvWe4wxgsABVsPoiFEfEFH1lPAn1KqM8o69gUA2c2LS3qlI_V0g

“Texas A&M AgriLife Extension provides equal opportunities in its programs and employment to all persons, regardless of race, color, s*x, religion, national origin, disability, age, genetic information, veteran status, s*xual orientation, or gender identity."

Shifting baseline syndrome (SBS) is what happens when we forget how vibrant the natural world used to be. Each generation grows up with a more depleted environment and calls it “normal,” simply because it’s all they’ve ever known.

Think about walking through a park and thinking, “This seems healthy.” But maybe 30 years ago that same park had twice as many birds, wildflowers, or insects. If you never saw that version, you don’t feel the loss — and that quiet forgetting becomes the new baseline. Over time, we start accepting degraded ecosystems as normal.

Researchers warn that this shift lowers our expectations, increases our tolerance for decline, and reduces our urgency to protect what’s left.

What helps:

Intergenerational conversations that reconnect us with what nature used to be.

Direct experiences with nature that sharpen our awareness of change.

Remembering (knowing) the past is the first step to restoring the future.

Next week, Dr Sarah Fritts will be presenting on her acoustic bat research throughout Texas as part of TPWD's Wildlife Diversity Webinar series! You can register at the link below.

https://tpwdevents.webex.com/webappng/sites/tpwdevents/webinar/webinarSeries/register/fea2a88081134b42a8ed32c44b84655a

Not every caterpillar is a problem. Some will become the butterflies and moths your garden depends on for pollination later in the season.

The key is learning the difference. Once you can recognize which species are worth keeping, your approach shifts. You stop removing everything—and start making space for the right ones to grow.

That doesn’t mean letting all caterpillars stay. Some can quickly damage plants if their numbers get too high. A healthy garden is about balance. Tolerate some feeding, protect vulnerable plants when needed, and step in only when damage becomes excessive.

A thriving garden supports both stages. Caterpillars now. Pollinators later.

Work with that cycle—and your plants, and the ecosystem around them, will be stronger for it.

You can support pollinators by planting host plants in your garden! These plants provide a place for butterflies and moths to lay eggs and for young insects to grow before they transform.

You can read more about starting a pollinator garden here: https://tinyurl.com/z4u4fraz

🚰Most people don't think about where their drinking water comes from.

Before water reaches a treatment plant, forests and soils are already working to help keep it clean.

Trees and other vegetation act as natural filters, reducing the entry of pollutants such as sediment, nitrogen, phosphorus and metals into streams and waterways.

Plants can also absorb nutrients from fertilizers, animal waste and natural decomposition, using them for growth and keeping them out of nearby water sources.

Soil also plays an important role. As water moved through the forest floor, pollutants can be filtered, attached to soil particles or broken down by microbes.

Some water suppliers purchase forested land near their water sources to help protect water quality. This is called source water protection.

Funding for the Water Resources Program is provided through a Clean Water Act Section 319 Nonpoint Source Grant from the Texas State Soil and Water Conservation Board and the U.S Environmental Protection Agency.