Hill Country Landowner S Guide

In this invaluable new book, Jim Stanley charts a practical course for understanding and handling a variety of problems that both new and established landowners in the Texas Hill Country will confront—from brush control, grazing, and overpopulation of deer to erosion, fire, and management of exotic animals and plants. Filled with advice that landowners can easily absorb and implement, this book conveys basic knowledge Stanley has gained from personal experience and from other experts during his years in the Hill Country.

In this invaluable new book, Jim Stanley charts a practical course for understanding and handling a variety of problems that both new and established landowners in the Texas Hill Country will confront—from brush control, grazing, and overpopulation of deer to erosion, fire, and management of exotic animals and plants. Filled with advice that landowners can easily absorb and implement, this book conveys basic knowledge Stanley has gained from personal experience and from other experts during his years in the Hill Country.

If you imagine the Texas Hill Country solely as dry limestone slopes of cedar and scrub oak, prepare to have your eyes opened. The Edwards Plateau, upon which the Hill Country sits, is also a land of lush cypress-lined streams, diverse thickets, and shady hardwood bottomlands. Edged by canyonlands and intersected by creeks, these rocky hills support an abundance of trees, shrubs, and vines that provide food and cover for wildlife and create a distinct and durable landscape. In this book, Jan Wrede has compiled a field guide to more than 125 species of mostly native, mostly woody plants of the Texas Hill Country. A thoughtful introduction discusses deer, cedar, water, oak wilt, and invasive species—timely issues of increasing importance for a growing number of Texas landowners. Plant descriptions contain information about the leaves, flowers, fruit, and bark of each plant and also give insights into the species’ range and habits. A color photograph accompanies each account. Especially useful is a comprehensive plant chart with tips about color, scent, flowering period, height, site preference, and wildlife and livestock utilization. A recommended reading list, a resource guide, and a glossary round out this information-packed book.

WHAT RURAL TEXAS LANDOWNERS NEED TO KNOW ABOUT THEIR LAND... Living in the country in Texas can be the most enjoyable experience of your life, but managing rural property is not the same as taking care of a half-acre suburban lot. Living in the country and taking care of the land involves issues many new landowners have not experienced before. This book discusses why it is so important that rural land in Texas be well-managed and the native flora and fauna be protected. We are making more Texans every day, but we aren't making any more land or water, so every bit is precious. This point is emphasized using the philosophy and ethics of the great naturalist and conservationist, Aldo Leopold. The major problems encountered by small-acreage landowners include overgrazing, past or present by livestock and exotic ungulates, overbrowsing by deer, goats and exotics, brush encroachment, invasive exotic plants and animals, erosion, and efficient water catchment and management. Each of these issues is discussed in some detail explaining the source of the problem and how to avoid or minimize it. Numerous other issues encountered in living in the country are discussed as well as where landowners can find more detailed advice and information to help them with land management issues. My goal is to help small landowners enjoy their property and to also help them be good stewards of their land.

This photographic guide to grasses gives all who have been frustrated trying to identify these difficult plants an easy-to-use, visually precise, and information-packed field guide to seventy-seven native and introduced species that grow in the Texas Hill Country and beyond. With a blade of grass in hand, open this book and find: Handy thumb guides to seedhead type, the most visible distinguishing characteristic to begin identification. Color photographs of stands of grasses and detailed close-ups. Concise information about economic uses, habitat, range, and flowering season. Quick-reference icons for native status, toxicity, growing season, and grazing response

For fifteen years, the Texas Master Naturalist program has been hugely successful, training more than 9,600 volunteers who have given almost 2.8 million hours to nature education. This dedicated corps of naturalists provides teaching, outreach, and service in their communities, promoting the appreciation and stewardship of natural resources and natural areas around the state. Hundreds of new volunteers are trained every year, and the Texas Master Naturalist Statewide Curriculum serves as the basis of instruction for trainees who complete a certification course taught under the auspices of more than forty program chapters. The curriculum contains twenty-four units of instruction that range from geology to ornithology to wetland ecology—all written by the state’s top scientists and experts. Available as well to educators, interpreters, and others who may not yet be able to commit to the Texas Master Naturalist program, the curriculum offers an authoritative source of information for anyone seeking to learn more about the natural world in Texas.

Virtually every San Antonio citizen over a certain age with any interest in literature will have vivid memories of Rosengren's Books. It was the absolute center of literary culture not only in San Antonio, but in Texas, for decades. Indeed, from the 1930s to the 1980s, Rosengren's Books was considered one of the finest bookstores between New York and San Francisco. It was a mid-continent haven for writers as diverse as Frost, John Dos Pasos, J. Frank Dobie, and Larry McMurtry. Rosengren's Books: An Oasis for Mind and Spirit is the story of a great American family of independent booksellers and the important literary institution they created. Beginning as a rare book store in Chicago, Frank and Florence Rosengren brought the store to San Antonio, Texas, in 1935. Located in various downtown locations, it became most well known as the charming book shop behind the Alamo, where it was visited by hundreds of thousands of tourists from around the world. At the heart of the story is Florence Rosengren, whom former San Antonio mayor Phil Hardberger calls the "Sylvia Beach of South Texas" and Texas Observer founding editor Ronnie Dugger described as "the chief guardian of civilization from here to Mexico City."

Whether the prospective buyer is a farmer or rancher looking to expand operations, a sportsman seeking to preserve habitat for wildlife, or a nature enthusiast trying to conserve native flora and fauna, acquiring rural land can be a rollercoaster of exciting and stressful experiences. In Buying Rural Land in Texas: Taking the Right Risk, Charles E. Gilliland demonstrates that buyers can and should arm themselves with knowledge—of the land-buying process, of the potential problems involved, and of the resources available to them—to ensure a successful and satisfying outcome. In this practical guide, Gilliland outlines four phases of buying rural land: identifying what you want, in terms of both land and property rights; locating a suitable property; valuing the property; and completing the transaction. He then covers everything the potential landowner should know while progressing through these steps: how to identify and manage risk, plan an “exit strategy,” interpret present and future land prices, find the “perfect spot,” evaluate the property’s physical attributes, gauge economic trends, understand legal rights and limitations, protect natural resources, and, finally, close the deal. Incorporating real life examples from a career spent in land sales, Gilliland takes readers step-by-step through the process, also providing checklists, maps, professional tips, and information about how to tap additional sources of information and advice. With the knowledge gained from Buying Rural Land in Texas, new landowners will find themselves not at the end of a journey but at the beginning, as they learn to manage their land and to deliver it intact to future generations.