Sun Shines on the Karst at Prospect Park

SMGA crews, with help from Texas State students, removed enough ligustrum from around the main karst feature at Prospect Park to let the sun shine in. Ligustrum is a non-native, invasive species that dominates parts of local natural areas. Its removal allows native grasses and plants to reclaim the understory below live oaks and cedar elm. Encouraging native plants improves the rainwater catchment that karst features (limestone openings in the ground) are known to empty directly into the aquifer.

Texas State students lend a big hand early Saturday morning

Work began July 23 with Donna Browning and myself cutting the ligustrum. Three hours later the results were impressive but messy. Saturday July 30, six students from TXState Volunteer Services and trail crew members, Dick McBride and Mike Baugh, moved the cut ligustrum to the access road. There the branches and limbs will decompose and become habitat for birds and small animals, offering a refuge from predators.

Future plans include continuing the process of invasive removal and planting native grasses in the fall.

- Lance Jones