Leave the Leaves for Fireflies

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The overriding goal of the team is to encourage #MoreKidsOnBikes! Lead by a volunteer coaching staff certified by NICA, the team conducts structured practices 3 times each week, primarily utilizing the 20+ miles of trails in Steiner Ranch and occasionally nearby trails in the Austin area. Steiner Ranch practices begin and end at John Simpson Park. Training is comprised of various skill level groups designed to promote individual development without regard to age or gender. For example, the entry-level group includes students with zero to minimal mountain biking experience. In this group, instruction is focused on building foundational techniques and skills with a goal of fostering confidence and speed. The most advanced group consists primarily of high school students who follow a more rigorous training program designed to optimize their individual performance while preparing them for competitive racing. All groups have at least two certified coaches to ensure safety while providing instruction. The team is open to any student-athlete grades 6-12 in our area! Registration for riders is open and can be accessed at www.srmtb.org. More information about the team, practices and the coaching staff can also be found on the website. Further questions can be sent via email to Team Director Rob Lowe at rob@srmtb.org.

by Johanna Arendt and Jeremy Hull, Travis County Balcones Canyonlands Preserve One of the most magical sights of summer is the warm glow of fireflies blinking across the landscape. Many of us have fond memories of catching them and putting them in jars to create living lanterns for the evening. Unfortunately, over the years, they have become more and more scarce. But the good news is we can help bring them back. Here are some tips to attract fireflies to your yard. Not only will you get to see their beautiful lights on early summer evenings, but they can actually help your gardens. They eat many pests like snails, slugs, and smaller insects. You can also save time and money by reducing the need to rake leaves, buy mulch, and use fertilizer: - Leave the leaves: Fireflies spend 95% of their lives as larvae in leaf litter and soil, so it’s important not to remove all the fallen leaves. You can set aside part of your property to leave looking natural, leaving the leaves where they fall. According to the Xerces Society, research has

shown that lawns actually benefit from a thin layer of leaves, and the rest of the leaves can be spread around trees, shrubs, and perennial plants. Avoid shredding the leaves, since this can harm the firefly larvae. - Use leaves as mulch on garden beds: Leaves suppress weeds and retain moisture like shredded wood mulch does, and they add nutrients back to the soil. They also have the added benefit of being a free resource, which you then don’t need to bag up and drag to the curb. - While it’s best to leave the leaves permanently to break down into soil, if you want to clean up the garden and remove leaves in the spring, try to wait as long as possible before doing so. The longer the leaves stay, the more benefits they provide. - Don’t use pesticides or herbicides (weed killers), since these can kill fireflies and the insects they eat. - Plant native trees and native grasses in your landscape. Firefly.org has a list of native Texas plants that are good for fireflies, from asters to oaks. - Keep non-essential lights off at night, including spotlights on trees. Light pollution is a major factor in the decline of fireflies because it disrupts their mating rituals that rely on females seeing the flashing light patterns of nearby males. For necessary lights, use dark-sky friendly fixtures that focus the light only where it is needed. - Include water features in your landscape. Fireflies eat the small insects, grubs, and snails that live in ponds and streams (but not chlorinated pools). - Be patient, and repeat these steps each year. While fireflies may show up the first year you start, it can sometimes take up to five years. In addition to helping fireflies, leaving the leaves is essential for important pollinators that help keep our entire ecosystem going. The majority of butterflies and moths overwinter in the landscape as eggs, caterpillars, chrysalides, or adults, and leaves provide important cover for them. They also provide a layer of protection for native bees that overwinter in solitary burrows just an inch or two underground. Firefly on a leaf of grass; Rather than being something to rake or blow away, leaves are a valuable photo by Radim Schreiber resource that will help build soil in your garden and support wildlife, including the magical glowing firefly. Fireflies are also a good indicator of the health of the environment, so seeing their little lights is a sign that your yard is in good shape. If you’d like to learn more about gardening for fireflies, there are lots of great tips at https://www.firefly.org/. For more on the benefits of leaving the leaves, check out the Xerces Society’s website: https://xerces.org/blog/ leave-the-leaves. And for information about the Balcones Canyonlands Preserve, visit our website at https://www.traviscountytx.gov/tnr/nr/.

Fireflies on a summer evening. Photo courtesy of Firefly.org

It’s not artificial intelligence, electric vehicles, or 5G that will keep you active and healthy. It’s women's competitive and social tennis leagues here in Steiner Ranch! Do you like tennis? Do you want to start playing tennis? Do you want to join a team? If you answered “Yes” then come join Steiner’s social and competitive leagues. For over 15 years, Steiner women have dominated the usage of tennis courts for competitive leagues during weekday mornings - one is Women’s Team Tennis of Austin (WTTA) and another league is USTA Texas. Steiner Ranch had more than 10 WTTA plus three USTA teams. This is a GOOD problem to have! Prior to COVID, families with older children and seasoned players who were empty nesters moved out and some returned back to the workforce. For this reason, the women's competitive league has declined to four teams for WTTA and two for USTA leagues. The community has evolved and more young families have moved into the community within the past six years. All three community centers have 2-4 tennis courts, highly maintained and in fantastic condition unlike many master-plan communities in the Austin area. So, what are you waiting for? It’s time for tennis ladies! Come join one of the teams or sign up to play socially. If you LOVE to learn and play tennis, contact HOA’s office and we’ll connect you with Steiner League Coordinators: WTTA - Rebekka Handings <rhanding@msn.com> and USTA - Chanda Lor <chanda.b.lor@gmail.com>