August Service Project - Indian Creek Nature Area

Washington County Libertarians - 7, Invasive Ligustrum - 0

August Service Project - Indian Creek Nature Area

Crew selfie - Indian Creek - 2019-08-24.jpegLast weekend, a small but motivated crew of Washington County Libertarians volunteered  to remove invasive wax leaf ligustrum from the Indian Creek Nature Area in beautiful Burton, Texas, near the historic Burton Cotton Gin and Museum. Our first ever WC Work Day was a huge success!

In partnership with Texas Roots, a local eco-restoration service, our crew showed up in spite of the summer heat with trucks and trailers, chainsaws, loppers, and a positive attitude, ready to remove the invasive species. According to the Native Plant Society of Texas, though the wax leaf ligustrum is known for many positive qualities (fast-growing, evergreen, very drought tolerant, doesn’t require fertilizers), it has a major flaw: It is not compatible with our native vegetation. It is prone to escaping into the wild and dramatically changing the native habitats—replacing native vegetation and thereby changing the whole ecosystem as it invades.

Well-meaning engineers planted shrubs in front of the local sewage treatment plant as a screen, but over the years the invasive ligustrum has caused considerable damage to the trails and trees nestled in the Indian Creek Nature Area.

As liberty-lovers, we care about the big picture and believe in the value of taking action in the present to preserve the future for our children and for their children. Small steps like these make a big difference in the long run. All we have to do is keep showing up and showing Washington County that we care.

Many thanks to Texas Roots and the Gideon Lincecum Chaper of The Texas Master Naturalists for helping to make this happen. We are honored to be a part of what you are doing to keep our part of Texas beautiful for generations to come.

See you next week for our quarterly business meeting at Guadalajara Mexican Restaurant in Brenham!

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