If you’ve noticed a wiry, unfamiliar grass growing along Texas roadsides—especially in the Edwards Plateau—you might be looking at Jointed Goatgrass (Aegilops cylindrica). This invasive cool-season annual, part of the Poaceae (Grass) family, is becoming an increasing concern for landowners, farmers, and rangeland managers across the Concho Valley region.
[Read more…] about Beware of a New Invader in the Concho Valley: Jointed Goatgrass
Cheatgrass (Bromus tectorum) concerns in Texas may sound impossible, unfortunately, it is growing into a real concern in the Upper and Lower Rolling Plains. As an invasive annual grass, cheatgrass poses a serious threat to native ecosystems, forage quality, and wildfire risk— dominating landscapes into potential future monocultures.
[Read more…] about Managing Cheatgrass on Texas Rangelands: Practical Strategies for Landowners
The Prescribed Burn Alliance of Texas (PBAT) (https://www.pbatexas.org/) announced the results of the 2024–2025 dormant season for prescribed fire. During this period, 18 Texas-based Prescribed Burn Associations (PBAs), covering 175 counties, assisted private landowners in conducting 73 prescribed burns, safely treating approximately 25,000 acres across the state.
[Read more…] about Texas Landowners Successfully Implement Prescribed Fire on 25,000-acres!!
Prescribed fire is a critical process for grassland and savanna function, management of invasive species, and wildfire mitigation. It’s a practice that requires careful coordination and collaboration among various organizations. The overall effectiveness and success of prescribed fire is heavily influenced by social networks.
In the USDA-USFS Angelina National Forest, a prescribed burn was in progress when a wildfire was detected approximately two miles north of the burn. The burn manager released one of the one site dozers and an incident commander to contain the wildfire and secure it before launching the helicopter for continued aerial ignitions for the prescribed fire. Shortly after, another fire was detected adjacent from the prescribed burn on private land outside of the burn unit. With the fire burning aggressively, the burn manager requested contingency resources to be in route for support and to backfill onsite contingencies as they were being utilized.
Photo Credit: USDA Forest Service
[Read more…] about Shearwood Creek Prescribed Fire After Action Review
Depending on where you are in the United States, you might have noticed the warmer temperatures this year. The first day of Spring was March 20, 2023. But, according to Harry Stevens from The Washington Post, nature does not know what month of the calendar we are in but instead responds to the gradual accumulation of heat at the beginning of each year. When the daily average temperatures rise above freezing, this sends a signal to the plants and animals that life is again preparing to grow. On average this year, phenology stages of bud break were the earliest it has been in 40 years!
Happy New Year from the Prairie Project! The Prairie Project has released their Winter 2023 newsletter. Inside includes research highlights and excerpts, upcoming awards, and important dates to mark on your schedule. Keep up to date by downloading the newsletter in PDF format: Winter 2023 Prairie Project Newsletter
For more information on the Prairie Project, visit https://www.theprairieproject.org/
Join us at DeLeon City Auditorium in DeLeon, Texas on February 24th, 2023 for a day of Texas Department of Agriculture CEUs! Click here for the tentative agenda in PDF format.
Coming up April 13-14, 2023 is the 7th Hill Country Land Stewardship Conference! This year’s conference will be held at the YO Ranch Hotel and Conference Center in Kerrville, Texas. The event will include talks on economics, law, wildlife management, and changes in perspective on ranching. Day two will feature tours of the Hillingdon Ranch and Flagler Ranch.
Click here for more information.
Click here to download the tentative agenda (current to 01/25/2023).
AgriLife Extension and Bennett Trust hope to see you there!
Check out our new YouTube Channel featuring videos and handouts dedicated to increasing County Extension Agent knowledge and enhancing landowner’s understanding of tools, resources, techniques, and strategies on rangelands!
Our latest post features application and utility of Web Soil Survey, an online free resource for understanding soil mapping and tools. Nearly all farmers, ranchers, and forest landowners across the country rely on one common resource for production: their soil. If you’re interested in learning more about this medium that grows our nation’s food, fuel, and fiber, here is a advantageous tool to help! Get the Web Soil Survey Handout here and watch the YouTube video here!