Life is expensive. Humans consume considerable amounts of resources daily (especially North Americans). Some of this consumption is necessary for survival, but most is excess, which ultimately ends up in our landfills and junkyards. Much of what we consume and waste can be given a monetary value, but the cost of extracting these materials cannot so easily be assessed. Forests are cleared, water and air polluted, ecosystems spoiled. Can you
Walk the streets of Austin, Texas and you’ll notice an abundance of colorful bushes and flowers, to include Fern Leaf Lavender, Texas Lantana, Mother-of-Thyme, Autumn Sage, Whirling Butterfly Bush, and Fall Aster, all of which are indigenous to the state. The parks are equally lush. River and creek banks are thick with greenery and foliage. All of this is largely the result of a group of volunteers working with an
Growing a garden is one of the best ways to improve your quality of life and support a sustainable, healthy environment. Accordingly, we turned to former US Represented staff writer Sandra Knauf for advice since this is one of her areas of expertise. In a recent conversation, she gave us ten good reasons to grow a garden. Most people know that food taken straight from the garden is of much higher quality.
Fish migration is necessary for the success and prosperity of aquatic life. Before man-made dams, fish migrated only as far as natural barriers allowed. Fresh water fish migrate between their feeding and spawning regions. If fish are unable to reach the spawning area due to natural or man-made obstacles the species cannot carry on. As fish migrate, they produce necessary oxygen for the other aquatic life in the river. The
A gentle rain is falling. It’s evening now and all is quiet. Too quiet! With every passing moment the garden, the malignant garden is growing. We’ve warned friends to watch out, that the squash vines may be growing faster than they can run! Savvy friends visiting our ranch know about our squash problem and lock their cars, lest their back seats somehow mysteriously become filled with zucchini, neatly stacked like
The wildlife migration patterns and tendencies throughout the whole Greater Yellowstone Ecosystem (GYE) are of great importance to residents of Wyoming, let alone to the people who live in the Jackson Hole area. These animals have shaped the memories of Wyoming residents from their early childhood by increasing their personal fascination with each long drive through Yellowstone National Park and the surrounding areas. The grizzly bear is one of the
