Wednesday, March 31, 2010

John Bame and Fayetteville High School students look at old rail trestle and discarded rail ties blocking construction of city trail through old tunnel under existing Arkansas & Missouri Railroad

I might not have discovered this for some time had not John Bame brought some FHS students to World Peace Wetland Prairie and then taken them on a walk of the Pinnacle Prairie Trail and the part of Tsa-La-Gi Trail as yet uncompleted from the Hill Place Apartments through the old rail tunnel to the west to Razorback Road and beyond. Thanks to the environmentally aware students for caring and wanting to learn more about the delicate geography and geology of our city. Please click on image to enlarge view of railroad ties over mouth of tunnel and then watch video below the photo to learn reaction of workers when they learned that the ties should not be dumped there.
Rail ties being dumped in mouth of tunnel in Fayetteville AR Aubrey james | MySpace Video The Fayetteville city trail administrator telephoned the railroad manager in Springdale an hour later and the railroad official confirmed that the ties were not to be dumped there but were to be dumped at Cato Springs Road. Rail ties are creosoted and very dangerous to human beings and other living things when the chemicals leach into the watershed.

Sunday, March 28, 2010

Two types of native honeysuckle vine on World Peace Native Prairie deserve active encouragement to stem the tide of overwhelming Japanese honeysuckle

Please click on individual images to ENLARGE view of Lonicera sempervirens in top two photos and Lonicera flava in lower photos on March 27, 20010, at World Peace Wetland Prairie in Fayetteville, Arkansas. See descriptions below: (Lonicera sempervirens)
Please click on images to ENLARGE videw of Loniceera sempervirens and Lonicera flava, Arkansas' two significant species off native honeysuckle.
Common Names: coral honeysuckle, trumpet honeysuckle Family: Caprifoliaceae (honeysuckle Family) 
Plant1 from Floridata: click for Plant Profile Get link to this Profile or click for data record #64ShareThis

Vine Attracts Birds Attracts Hummingbirds Attracts Butterflies Easy to grow - great for beginners! Can be Grown in Containers Flowers
coral honeysuckle vine
A coral honeysuckle vine guards a corner of Steve's vegetable garden where it maintains a nice compact shape and never invades its neighbors' spaces.
Description Coral honeysuckle is a twining or trailing woody vine that is evergreen or tardily deciduous in mild climates. The smooth leaves are 1-3 in (2.5-7.6 cm) long and arranged opposite each other along the stem. The last two leaves at the ends of new growth are joined at their bases, cup-like around the stem and the showy flowers are in terminal clusters just beyond. The flowers are tube shaped, about 2 in (5.1 cm) long, coral red or bright orange on the outside and yellow on the inside. The fruits are orange red berries, about 0.25 in (0.6 cm) diameter. Numerous cultivars are available commercially including one with bright yellow flowers.
coral honeysuckle
Coral honeysuckle flowers seem to be custom designed for hummingbirds both in shape and arrangement - no hummingbird can help but be enchanted with this beautiful vine as will you.Click to download a large version of this image.
Location Coral honeysuckle grows wild in open woodlands, roadsides, fence rows and the edges of clearings, from Connecticut to Nebraska, and south to Texas and Florida. Culture Prune coral honeysuckle back in the winter to increase flowering. Don't over-fertilize. Light: Prefers full sun, but tolerates partial sun. Moisture: Drought tolerant. Hardiness: USDA Zone 4 - 10. Propagation: Usually by seed.
honeysuckle berries
Coral honeysuckle berries appear in late summer and fall to serve as a juicy food source for birds and other wildlife. Click to download a large version (800x600) of this image.
Usage Coral honeysuckle thrives in containers or in the garden. It is easy to grow, and its flashy flowers will attract ruby-throated hummingbirds and butterflies all summer long. Let it clamber over a fence or give it a trellis of its own. Many gardeners allow coral honeysuckle to climb over shrubs. Unlike its weedy relative, Japanese honeysuckle (L. japonica), coral honeysuckle will not spread out of control, and its sparse vines won't strangle your prize shrubs. Features Wherever coral honeysuckle grows, ruby-throated hummingbirds and butterflies will find it. Songbirds relish the juicy fruits. This is a spectacular vine that the local wildlife will enjoy as much as you - plant some!
Lonicera sempervirens above
Lonicera flava below
Please click on images to ENLARGE view of Lonicera flava on March 27, 2010
Lonicera flava information below online at  grownative.org/plants/info.asp?id=154

Plant Details

Yellow Honeysuckle

Lonicera Flava

Common name: Yellow Honeysuckle A twining, deciduous woody vine with tubular yellow flowers in whorls at the ends of stems April-May. Round, fleshy, orange to red berries appear in late summer. Hummingbirds and butterflies are attracted to the nectar produced by the flowers while birds and small mammals eat the fruit. Deer browse the stems and leaves.
Culture: Grow in full sun or partial shade in soil with average moisture.
Use: Grow on a trellis, arbor or fence or along the ground in a natural area. Good vine for a bird garden.
Height: 10 to 20 feet
Spread: 3 to 6 feet
Color: Medium Yellow
USDA Hardiness Zone: 5 - 8

Good Companion Plants

Characteristics and Attributes

Sun Exposure:

Full Sun Medium Sun/Average Shade

Season of Interest:

Mid (May - June)

Soil Moisture:

Average Moderate

Wildlife Benefit:

Food/Small Animals Butterfly Nectar

Special Uses:

Fragrant

Nature Attracting:

Butterfly Hummingbird Songbird
(Lonicera sempervirens)

Monday, March 22, 2010

Restore clean-water act to original strength Now!

Please double-click "view as webpage" link near top right to see full post.
RiverAlert Header
March 22, 2010
keep our nation's waters are protected under the Clean Water Act
Take Action 
Dear Aubrey,
If you think the Clean Water Act protects your drinking water from pollution, think again. Please take action today to ensure fundamental safeguards for clean water in our streams, rivers, and lakes.
A confusing 2006 Supreme Court decision on the Clean Water Act has left the fate of 60 percent of the nation’s stream miles -– that provide drinking water for 117 million Americans –- in legal limbo. As a result, as reported in The New York Times, polluters are now claiming complete exemptions from reporting what they dump into local streams.
Congress can resolve this problem by passing legislation to restore full federal protection for all our waters. Help us ensure that all of our nation’s waters are protected under the Clean Water Act. Urge your representative to support introducing and passing the Clean Water Restoration Act today.
Thank you for your support.
Sincerely, Katherine Baer Signature Katherine Baer Senior Director, Clean Water Program
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American Rivers ©2010
I would like to express grave concern over the loss of protection for many of our small streams that provide clean drinking water for 117 million Americans in communities across the country. Supreme Court decisions in the Rapanos and Carabell cases have made it confusing and burdensome for the U.S. Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) and U.S. Army Corps of Engineers to protect small streams and wetlands under the Clean Water Act. As a result, enforcement actions against polluters have declined sharply the EPA estimates that over 1,000 cases have been shelved or dropped altogether. More recently it has become clear that some polluters are using the decisions as a justification to avoid any permitting and reporting requirements for discharging pollutants into our waters. For the Clean Water Act to fulfill its goal of restoring the chemical, physical, and biological integrity of the nation's waters, all waters must receive protection corresponding with Congress' original intent when passing this landmark law. Upstream waters must be protected from pollution and destruction if we expect downstream waters to be fit for swimming, drinking, and fish and wildlife, and downstream communities to be safe from flooding. I urge you to act in the interest of preserving clean water for healthy communities and wildlife. Please support introduction and passage of the Clean Water Restoration Act, which would clarify the definition of waters to eliminate uncertainty and ensure clean water in accordance with the goals of the Clean Water Act. Thank you for your consideration.

Friday, March 12, 2010

World Peace Wetland Prairie spider milkweed, false indigo bush, dogbane, blue-eyed grass and cottontail rabbit photographed on May 21, 2009

Please click on individual images to ENLARGE view of a sample of what you won't see on Earthday at World Peace Wetland Prairie but may see again if you visit in May. Native wildflowers and tall grass emerge later than the typical nonnative species found in many gardens in Arkansas.
Photo above reveals view northwest with Amorpha fructicosa bush in bloom. Also known as false indigo or indigo bush on May 21, 2009, at World Peace Wetland Prairie. Cottontail rabbit reluctant to leave his grazing area and hoping photographer will back away on May 21, 2009, at World Peace Wetland Prairie.
In photo above, the tiny blue-eyed grass is seen growing near a tall dogbane or Indian Hemp plant.
Above, Asclepias viridis, also known as spider milkweed or antelope horns, is nearing full bloom. Viridis is the earliest of the milkweeds to bloom in Northwest Arkansas. Above is an instance of a tall dogbane or Indian hemp plant with a shorter spider milkweed at right. Dogbane seems always to pop out of the ground before the milkweed and the leaves of the two are similar. Both are plentiful at World Peace Wetland Prairie. For more photos of wildflowers at WPWP, please see WPWP wildflowers

Wednesday, March 3, 2010

Whitaker for Congress campaign headquarters to open formally on Wednesday, March 10, 2010



Please join us for the

Grand Opening

of the

Whitaker for Congress
Campaign Headquarters

Wednesday, March 10,  4-7pm
101 West Mountain, Fayetteville, AR
On the Historic Fayetteville Square

Gold Hosts
Dr. Malcolm Hayward,  Rep. Jim House, Rep. Uvalde Lindsey,
Pulaski County Clerk Pat O’Brien,
Sebastian County Clerk Doris Tate,
& House Candidates Earl Hunton, Greg Leding, Bill Ramsey

Young Democrat Leadership Hosts
Max Deitchler, Jeremiah Wax, Caleb Rose, Kathleen Gonzalez, Sarah Sparkman, Chris Burks, Britton Burnett, John Davis,
Robbie Jones

 Paid for by the Whitaker for Congress Committee. 
Please join us, we'd love to see you.


David Whitaker
Democratic Candidate
U. S. House of Representatives
Arkansas' 3rd District