8 Texas Master Naturalist collect and press plant samples for the S.M. Tracy Herbarium

On the first and second of April, 2022 Charlene Davis, Nancy Haubert, Dagmar Higgins, Gary Hinds, Susan Reece, Alan Robertson, Valerie Taber, and Robert Walker gathered at Little L Ranch in search of herbarium material.

Objective determined and battle plan drawn, we charged the confines of Little L Ranch. With the purpose of accumulating as many species as possible, we permeated the landscape in search of biota. But alas the weather Gods had not shared our plan, and the fruits of our labor (as well as the fruits of plants), were stymied by lack of spring rain.

Although our hopes of discovering a plant cornucopia had been dampened, our spirit was not! A quick change of battle plans, and into the juniper groves and seeps we slide in search of bryophytes (Dale would be so proud of his fledged neophytes).😂

At the end of the day our labors had not been totally unrewarded. A quick count of bags yielded 38 sacks of bryophytes for the A&M crew to labor over through the lens of their microscopes. Unfortunately, the forb count wasn't quite as lucrative. Final count approximately 25 forbs and one shrub tightly nestled and warming in a plant press.

Soooo, plan is for a secondary attack on those little forbs as they stick their heads out of the foxholes in the coming days. Battle plan update pending!

Posted on April 4, 2022 04:39 PM by robertjwalker