Legend Oaks - July 2021 by Peel, Inc.

LEGEND OAKS

July 2021 Volume 14, Issue 07 A Newsletter for the Residents of Legend Oaks II

Legendon Oakspage II - July 2021 Read more 3!

LEGEND OAKS

Legend Oaks II - July 2021

LEGEND OAKS

NEWSLETTER INFO I looked across my living room the other day and noticed a green glob on the wall. I try to keep a fairly clean house so I was a little surprised to see this and wondered what the heck it was. I walked over for a closer look and realized it was a green tree frog! Now how did this little guy get in my house? I guess it doesn’t matter—I just had to get it out. Success. He’s now outside where he belongs. American tree frogs can be found around just about any body of water from Delaware to Florida, in the Gulf states, in Arkansas, eastern Texas, western Tennessee and Kentucky and parts of southern Illinois and Missouri. In Texas, their range is relatively small. They reside east of the I-35 corridor throughout the piney woods and coastal prairies ecoregions. The most interesting thing about the American green tree frog is that they can change color. When it’s resting and is cool, the frog will be gray in color. Once it warms up and is active, it turns vivid green. Male tree frogs are noisy little things. During mating season,

NEWSLETTER Articles..............................................................legendoaks@peelinc.com PUBLISHER Peel, Inc............................................www.PEELinc.com, 512-263-9181 Advertising.............................advertising@PEELinc.com, 512-263-9181 ADVERTISING INFORMATION Please support the businesses that advertise in the Legend Oaks newsletter. Their advertising dollars make it possible for all Legend Oaks II residents to receive the monthly newsletter at no charge. No homeowners association funds are used to produce or mail the newsletters. If you would like to support the newsletter by advertising, please contact our sales office at 512-263-9181 or advertising@PEELinc.com. The advertising deadline is the 8th of each month for the following month's newsletter.

APD REPRESENTATIVES

OFFICER JEFFREY BINDER (covers north of Convict Hill toward William Cannon) Desk 512.974.4415 / email: Jeffrey.Binder@austintexas.gov OFFICER JOSH VISI (covers south of Convict Hill toward Slaughter) Desk 512.974.4260 / email: Joshua.visi@ci.austin.tx.us

ASSOCIATION CONTACTS HOA MANAGEMENT: Jim Smitherman ................. ..... ........jim.smitherman@goodwintx.com

March to October, they produce a nasal honk or bark which they

BOARD OF DIRECTORS:

repeat up to 75 times per minute. Their mating call is distinct

President - Nikki Tate............. ..... ..... ...............................512-799-1795

from their other calls and is used to defend their territory or to

...................................... ..... ..... .........legendoaks2.nikkitate@gmail.com

announce rainfall. Rainfall is especially important to them since breeding takes place after a rain. After a male fertilizes a female’s

Secretary - Maria Bergen..... ..... .......................................919-230-3248 ........................................ ..... .........mariablegendoakshoa2@gmail.com Board Member - Mary Hesch....................................mbhesch@gmail.com

eggs, she deposits the clutch in shallow water among aquatic

Board Member - Brian Ashman .......................................... ..... ..... ..... .....

plants. Depending on the area of the country, a clutch can be

..... ..................................................................ashman.brian@yahoo.com

from 700 eggs to 2100! The eggs hatch in about a week and the tadpoles turn into frogs in about a month. When full-grown, they’ll only be about two and a half inches long. Tree frogs have interesting feet. They have sucker-like adhesive

POOL COMMITTEE: ................................ ..... .......poolcommittee.legendoaks2@gmail.com RECREATION COMMITTEE: Suzanne Johnson........................ ..... ...................stoprope@gmail.com FINANCE COMMITTEE:

disks on the end of their fingers and toes which they need to

Jeffrey Stukuls

aid in climbing and clinging to grasses and floating vegetation.

Maria Cruz

Their diet consists of mosquitoes, flies, crickets, moths and other small insects. Tree frogs live in groups called an army or chorus. They are largely nocturnal and breathe through their skin. Cheryl Conley Copyright © 2021 Peel, Inc.

Cameron Von Noy LANDSCAPE AND TREE COMMITTEE: Craig Powell................... ..... ..........craig@powelllandscapedesign.com Kathleen Robertson • Martha Taylor • Maria Cruz If anyone would like to join a committee, they can contact Legendoaks2.nikkiatate@gmail.com Legend Oaks II - July 2021

LEGEND OAKS by Dena Houston

WISHCYCLING “Wishcycling” is hoping that what you place in the recycling and composting bin is really recyclable. This has greatly contributed to recycling contamination and has led to many recycling markets, like China, no longer accepting recyclables from the United States. Wishcycling has become one of the recycling industry’s greatest challenges to date. When our recycling and compost streams become contaminated, the materials end up in the landfill. We have only one earth and there are only so many places to put our trash. We have to do better. HOW WE CAN DO BETTER • The most important thing is to know your community’s recycling rules. In Austin, we have a great website called “What Do I Do With…..” (http://www.austintexas.gov/what-do-i-do). This website will tell you how to recycle or compost many things. • As a trained Zero Waste Block Leader with The City of Austin, I am always available to answer your recycling and compost collection questions. Please email me at recycling@ hpwbana.org. • WHEN IN DOUBT – THROW IT OUT! – This always seems difficult for serious recyclers to accept, but it is critically important to put questionable items into the trash rather than contaminate the recycling or compost stream. QUESTIONS AND ANSWERS: HOW DO I RECYCLE PVC PIPE? Habitat for Humanity accepts PVC pipe if it is at least three feet long. Shorter pieces must go into the trash cart. CAN I USE COMPOST BAGS AS TRASH BAGS? Compost bags do not compost in a landfill. There is not enough heat in a landfill to make that happen. Also, compost bags are more expensive than trash bags and are not as sturdy. ARE WAX-LINED CUPS AND BOWLS RECYCLABLE? No, they are made of layers of materials that cannot be separated for recycling. These need to go into the trash cart. A R E C O R N S T A R C H PA C K I N G P E A N U T S COMPOSTABLE IN THE GREEN BIN? No, they are not. If they can be reused, that would be best. The official position from the City is that testing to be sure they are in fact compostable is difficult and industry labeling is not always reliable. To be sure the compost is not contaminated, these must go into the trash cart. DO PAPER ENVELOPES WITH PLASTIC WINDOWS AND TISSUE BOXES WITH PLASTIC FILM ON TOP GO INTO THE RECYCLING BIN? Yes, they can go into the blue recycling cart. However, they cannot go into the green compost cart. 4

Legend Oaks II - July 2021

MY CART LABELS HAVE ALL FADED. HOW DO I GET NEW ONES? Austin Resource Recovery has a link for you to make your own cart labels. Go to https://www.austintexas.gov/ page/sign-maker to print the labels you need. Here is a very informative City of Austin recycling website: http://www.austintexas.gov/what-do-i-do. Stay tuned for future tips that will include creative ways to recycle or reuse. If you have any questions, please send them to recycling@hpwbana.org.

Legend Oaks II has the TownSq app to use as our communication tool. Register on TownSq at https:// app.townsq.io/login You will be able to access and/or Download our following community documents: • ByLaws • Notice of Dedicatory Instruments • 2019 Audit Report • Access Pool Waiver Form • 2021 Annual Budget

LEGEND OAKS a killer of a wasp by Jim and Lynne Weber What are those large, solitary wasps we see flying around our yards from late June to September? Often referred to as the Cicada Killer or Cicada Wasp (Sphecius speciosus), this native species occurs in the eastern and midwestern U.S. regions, southwards through Texas into Mexico and Central America. Cicada killers are so named since they prey on cicadas and provision their nests with them. While large and intimidating, they offer a measure of natural control on cicada populations. They benefit our native plants by pollinating flowers and protecting trees from the numerous cicadas that feed on their roots and foliage. Cicada killers are robust wasps up to 2 inches long, with amber wings and black to reddish-brown abdomens with yellow stripes. The females are somewhat larger than the males, and both are among the largest wasps in the U.S. These solitary wasps have a very unusual and interesting lifecycle. Females are commonly seen skimming around areas with sparse vegetation for nesting sites, burrowing a tunnel, 10 to 20 inches deep, in dry or bare soil. In digging a burrow, she will dislodge the soil with her jaws, and using her hind legs that are equipped with special spines, push the loose soil behind her as she backs out of the burrow. The female cicada killer proceeds to capture cicadas, sometimes even in flight, paralyzing them with her venomous sting. She places the cicadas beneath her, grasping them with her legs, and either flies or drags her prey, which is twice her weight, into her burrow. After placing a few cicadas in her nest, she begins to lay her eggs. Females can predetermine the sex of the egg, and she lays multiple male eggs on a single cicada. But each female egg is given 2 or 3 cicadas, as females are larger, require more food, and more females are needed to create new generations. Eggs are always laid under the left or right second leg of the cicada. The female then closes the burrow with dirt, as the eggs hatch in a few days, but the larvae take some time to mature, feeding on cicadas as they overwinter in their burrow, not emerging as adults until the following spring. Adult male cicada killers emerge in spring before the females, defending the territory around their emergence hole and searching Copyright © 2021 Peel, Inc.

Nature Watch Cicada Killer

for females. They typically perch on the ground, flying up to attack any rival males. Once females emerge, mating occurs, and the males die shortly after. Females live long enough to dig and provision their nests, and die after laying all of their eggs. Cicada killer wasps are not aggressive toward humans and rarely sting unless provoked by grasping them roughly, accidentally stepping on them, or if caught in clothing. Only the females have stingers, and while males will actively defend their perching areas against other males near nesting sites, they have no stingers. Both males and females have large jaws, but they are not known to grasp human skin and bite. If swatted at, they will just fly away rather than attack. They are simply focused on cicadas or other cicada killers! Send your nature-related questions to naturewatch@austin. rr.com and we’ll do our best to answer them. If you enjoy reading these articles, check out our books, Nature Watch Austin, Nature Watch Big Bend, and Native Host Plants for Texas Butterflies (all published by Texas A&M University Press), and our blog at naturewatchaustin.blogspot.com. Legend Oaks II - July 2021

LEGEND OAKS The Legend Oaks newlsetter is a private publication published by Peel, Inc. It is not sanctioned by any homeowners association or organization, nor is it subject to the approval of any homeowners association or organization, nor is it intended, nor implied to replace any publication that may be published by or on behalf of any homeowners association or organization. At no time will any source be allowed to use The Legend Oaks newlsetter contents, or loan said contents, to others in anyway, shape or form, nor in any media, website, print, film, e-mail, electrostatic copy, fax, or etc. for the purpose of solicitation, commercial use, or any use for profit, political campaigns, or other self amplification, under penalty of law without written or expressed permission from Peel, Inc. The information in the newsletter is exclusively for the private use of Peel, Inc.

DISCLAIMER: Articles and ads in this newsletter express the opinions of their authors and do not necessarily reflect the opinions of Peel, Inc. or its employees. Peel, Inc. is not responsible for the accuracy of any facts stated in articles submitted by others. The publisher also assumes no responsibility for the advertising content with this publication. All warranties and representations made in the advertising content are solely that of the advertiser and any such claims regarding its content should be taken up with the advertiser. * The publisher assumes no liability with regard to its advertisers for misprints or failure to place advertising in this publication except for the actual cost of such advertising. * Although every effort is taken to avoid mistakes and/or misprints, the publisher assumes no responsibility for any errors of information or typographical mistakes, except as limited to the cost of advertising as stated above or in the case of misinformation, a printed retraction/correction. * Under no circumstances shall the publisher be held liable for incidental or consequential damages, inconvenience, loss of business or services, or any other liabilities from failure to publish, or from failure to publish in a timely manner, except as limited to liabilities stated above.

Legend Oaks II - July 2021

If you ask a tree company, “Are you insured?” the answer is almost always “yes.” That’s because all tree companies carry liability insurance (or at least they should), but very few carry workers’ comp insurance. The team at Good Guys Tree Service carries workers’ comp insurance because they not only protect your trees, but they also protect you. Out of the hundreds of tree companies in Austin, there are only several that carry workers’ comp insurance because Texas is only 1 of 2 states that does not require tree companies to carry worker’s comp insurance (Oklahoma is the other). Since it’s not required, many companies cut corners by not carrying it. So what does this mean for you? Did you know that if you hire a tree trimming company that doesn’t carry workers’ comp insurance, and there is an accident on your property, that the worker can turn around and sue you? This is huge when you are talking about people using chainsaws in trees performing one of the most dangerous jobs in the U.S. Since Good Guys Tree Service carries workers’ comp insurance, you as the homeowner are protected from liability if a worker is injured on your property. The liability insurance that the majority of tree companies carry will cover property damage on your property, but that doesn't cover any of the workers on your property. If a worker is hurt, they can turn around and sue you, the homeowner. When you hire Good Guys Tree Service to perform services on your property you can rest easy because you have zero liability. They insure your property and the workers on your property. Copyright © 2021 Peel, Inc.

LEGEND OAKS

Legend Oaks II - July 2021

LEGEND OAKS PO Box 1148 Round Rock, Texas 78680

Legend Oaks II - July 2021