April was a busy month for tornadoes across the United States with 373 recorded, bringing the total for the year to 549, the Austin American-Statesman reported. That is nearly double the average at this point in the year, the National Weather Service says.
May is considered late spring, early summer in Central Texas. The spring Bluebonnets have been lovely this year and now we need to wait for the seeds to mature before we can mow down the wildflowers. With Bluebonnets, it is easy to tell when the seeds are mature because you can see when the seed pods have opened to release the seeds. If you mow before the seeds are mature you will not get new plants. Bluebonnets are annuals. That means the individual plants will not come back the following year, but if their seeds were allowed to mature and they fall to the ground, the seeds may germinate in the same general area.
The growth of industrial-scale users of power could strain the Texas power grid, ERCOT’s chief announced last week. The Dallas Morning News reported Pablo Vegas, the agency’s CEO, said bitcoin miners and artificial intelligence data centers going in across the state, as well as industrial growth in the Permian Basin, could create the need for a massive buildup of power transmission lines in the future.
Early voting began Monday, April 22 for municipal, school board and various bond elections. It ends on April 30 with Saturday, May 4 being election day. What is on the ballot depends on where you live.
We recently wrote about the Adopt-a-Highway program. A few sections of our roads have recently lost their “adopters” and there has been a slight increase in roadside trash as a result. First, let us thank those individuals who had looked after these sections for a long time. We do appreciate your caring for the roads as long as you did. To help, KWB held a roadside cleanup effort recently. Unlike a few years ago when a hundred people showed up to help, we had fewer this time, but each made a huge difference to the areas they cleaned. Children showed up to cleanup in safe zones like neighborhoods and schools. I hope they continue to participate, as it will fall to them to organize these events one day.
The Wimberley View accepts Letters of Support for local candidates in the upcoming May election through April 28 for the May 2 issue of the Wimberley View. Letters are limited to 300 words. Letters can support more than one candidate but only one letter per person will be published. Letters of Support are intended to be a free avenue for readers to support candidates. Disparaging letters will not be run. Early voting began April 22.
Colorado State University researchers are calling this year’s hurricane season forecast “the most aggressive” ever, the Texas Standard reported. They say there is a 54% chance a hurricane will strike the Texas coast, and a 25% chance it will be major.
When I was elected to the Wimberley ISD Board of Trustees in 2018, I did so with the aim of helping to provide the optimal learning environment for Wimberley students. I knew there would be a series of “asks” that I would have to make as I joined the Board. I’d have to ask myself for a time and energy commitment to serve. My fellow trustees and I would have to ask each other for a strong level of trust and dedication. I would have to ask our Superintendent for an amount of accountability required to guide our district. However, one request I never anticipated making is to urge the State Legislature to boost funding for public schools.
As you enjoy the roadside site of our beautiful blue bonnets, Indian paintbrush and other Texas wildflowers keep a look out for a less showy but very important native plant. Antelope horn milkweed (Asclepias Asperula) once grew abundantly in fields across Texas. This valuable perennial has decreased in abundance due to loss of habitat in our rapidly growing Texas hill country.
State agencies and regulators were heavily criticized at a Texas legislative hearing for failing to communicate during the deadly Panhandle wildfires, the Texas Tribune reported.
One economist is calling it “the most profitable 22 minutes in Texas history,” according to the Texas Standard. The total solar eclipse on Monday, April 8 is expected to draw up to a million visitors to the Lone Star State, especially in its narrow path of totality.
P.O. Box 49
Wimberley, TX 78676
Phone: 512-847-2202
Fax: 512-847-9054