Tag: Landscape

06/11/10 3:27pm

Comment of the Day: Public Median Fruit-for-All

Landscape, Quicklink, Streetscapes, Trees

No Comments

COMMENT OF THE DAY: PUBLIC MEDIAN FRUIT-FOR-ALL “Private property should be respected, but I was really happy the time I saw a person gathering the fruit from a Mexican plum tree on the median near the Judiway post office.” [mary t., commenting on The High-Security Fruits of West University]

Comments, Landscape, Public Space, Streetscapes, Trees

Crime

06/09/10 2:36pm

The High-Security Fruits of West University

Landscape, Signage, West University

48 Comments

And here we have perhaps the best-monitored fig tree on Tangley, west of Buffalo Speedway in West University. Practicing for the thorough investigation that is sure to follow, the reader who sent us the tip claims to have been “in the middle of a public street when I took the photo.” Fig poachers, you have been warned! Says our reader:

who knew these figs were so valuable theyâ€™re worth the sign, netting, security camera, and wiring installed to protect them?

Oh, but have you ever tasted a West U fig?

Late Update: The fig tree has been outed by several commenters. C’mon — fess up! You’re really a peach, aren’t you?

Photo: Swamplot inbox

77005, Crime, Landscape, Security, Signs, Trees, West University

Landscape

04/12/10 12:43pm

Where To Pick Up a Free Bite To Eat in Montrose

Montrose, Quicklink

5 Comments

WHERE TO PICK UP A FREE BITE TO EAT IN MONTROSE Looking for a little pony’s foot for your salad? You won’t find any in Montrose grocery stores, but you should have no problem picking some up in any number of nearby vacant lots: “. . . in just a three-block radius, [petroleum chemist and urban foraging teacher Mark Vorderbruggen] identifies 34 different edibles. Things like mallows, which have rough leaves with toothed edges, and wild radishes which have long, symmetrical leaves, four yellow or white petals and tastes like horseradish. But urban foraging isnâ€™t only about finding tasty things to munch on. ‘Thereâ€™s a lot of things you can use for skin irritation. In fact I see some right over here. . . . This is plantain and itâ€™s real good. You just crush it up and make a mash. Itâ€™s good against insect bites, mosquito bites, bee stings.” [Houston Public Radio News] Photo: KUHF

77006, Gardening, Landscape, Montrose, Restaurants

Lancaster Place

04/09/10 5:07pm

Why We Do What We Do

Landscape, Neighborhood Disputes, Quicklink, Redevelopment

3 Comments

WHY WE DO WHAT WE DO From Michael Reed, the River Oaks/Bellaire/West University/Memorial Examiner newspaper reporter who’s been covering the long, strange tale of the Wilshire Village Apartments all the way from the evictions last year to the recent mysterious weed-tag flare-up: “You know, I figure if all the Wilshire stories combined have caused just one person to rent ‘Blow Up’ my work is complete.” [Swamplot inbox] Photo: Michael Reed, River Oaks Examiner

77098, Lancaster Place, Landscape, Neighborhood Disputes, Redevelopment, Wilshire Village

04/08/10 2:41pm

Comment of the Day: All We Are Is Mulch in the Wind

Gardening, Landscape, Quicklink

COMMENT OF THE DAY: ALL WE ARE IS MULCH IN THE WIND “. . . On the other hand, in the framework of geologic time, all things will be turned over, smashed or similarly annihilated, so, No Worries! In the short term everybody, do like the landscapers do: Drive your yard waste around town in a trailer or pick-up truck. It will vanish quickly â€“ directly relative to your driving speed.” [movocelot, commenting on New Rules for Yard Waste]

Comments, Gardening, Landscape

04/07/10 2:56pm

Comment of the Day: The Best Kind of Neighbor for Your Lawn

Gardening, Houston Heights, Landscape, Quicklink, Trees

COMMENT OF THE DAY: THE BEST KIND OF NEIGHBOR FOR YOUR LAWN “I live on a large lot in the heights with a couple of mature trees. I havenâ€™t bagged one leaf, actually I have picked up lawn clippings and leaves from neighbors that have been set out, and put both into my compost. Iâ€™ve filled 2 5â€²x25â€² raised beds with the compost in the last 2 years. I now have a 3 pile/annual rotation taking up a 4â€²x12â€² area. I doubt I will ever run out of capacity for waste generated by my property. Sorry but this arguement about not enough space is not a logical one.” [SaintCyr, commenting on New Rules for Yard Waste]

77008, Comments, Gardening, Houston Heights, Landscape, Trees

Gardening

04/06/10 10:28am

New Rules for Yard Waste

Landscape, Quicklink

45 Comments

NEW RULES FOR YARD WASTE After several delays, Houston’s new yard waste regime finally goes into effect this week. From now on, if you want city trucks to pick up your leaves and lawn goodies, you’ll need to put them in city-approved compostable bags. The 39-gallon bags cost 50 to 80 cents each — as much as 8 times the price of conventional plastic bags — but city officials claim the change will save $1.5 million a year in waste-disposal fees and divert 60,000 tons of material from local landfills. The money saved will be used to expand the city’s automated curbside recycling program, but nobody’s reporting how we’re possibly going to make up the landfill gap. Don’t feel like shelling out for the bags? The Solid Waste Management Dept. is encouraging thrifty homeowners and yard crews to adopt the complicated technique of “grasscycling” — leaving grass clippings on lawns — and to start their own composting programs. In a few weeks, the city will begin doling out fines of up to $2,000 to residents who put leaves and clipping into city garbage containers. [Houston Chronicle; where to buy]

Gardening, Landfills, Landscape, Recycling

Demolitions

04/01/10 1:50pm

Remembering Mt. Houston

Houston History, Landscape, West Mount Houston

Video: Jason Witmer

77038, 77088, Demolitions, Houston History, Landscape, West Mount Houston

03/29/10 3:10pm

Comment of the Day: Your Lovely New Home in Tallowood

Landscape, Quicklink, Real Estate Marketing, Trees

COMMENT OF THE DAY: YOUR LOVELY NEW HOME IN TALLOWOOD “. . . I was in Dallas this weekend and while flipping through channels in the hotel room, I came across one of those Sunday morning suburban real estate infomercials where they showcase a single builder in one neighborhood that is under construction. During a testimonial from a recent homebuyer, the guy lauded the ‘acres of beautiful forests’ surrounding his new home. As the camera panned the landscape, I saw nothing but 10 foot tall invasive mesquite trees as far as the eye could see. Seems like our Houston realtors should start cashing in on the ‘aesthetic value’ of the ‘tallow forests’ – especially emphasizing the ‘fall color’ and its function as an ‘environmentally friendly privacy screen.’ Most homebuyers would have no idea what theyâ€™re looking at. Carefully rewording reality is usually what realtors do on HAR, anyway!” [Superdave, commenting on What Happens If You Donâ€™t Garden the Wild]

Comments, Invasive Plants, Landscape, Real Estate Marketing, Trees

Buying and Selling

03/29/10 10:23am

Trying to Preserve Preserve Land

Financing, Galveston, Landscape, Proposed Developments, Quicklink

TRYING TO PRESERVE PRESERVE LAND A year and a half after Hurricane Ike, what’s going on with Marquette Investments’ “The Preserve at West Beach” development plan for a huge chunk of Galveston’s West End? Here’s an update on a piece of it: “Last year, the environmental group Artist Boat applied for $11 million in federal Hazard Mitigation Grant Program money to buy 343 acres of bay-front land from developer Marquette Land Investments. Gov. Rick Perry rejected the application, even though island leaders and environmentalists flooded his office with e-mails, letters and faxes urging him to save one of the islandâ€™s most ecologically diverse tracts. . . . Now, Artist Boat and the city of Galveston are working together to secure a $3 million Coastal and Estuarine Land Conservation Program grant, administered by the National Oceanic and Atmospheric Association. The grant application was submitted Thursday. . . . [Artist Boat Executive Director Karla]Klay said the National Oceanic and Atmospheric Association will announce the winners of the grant within six to nine months. Darren Sloniger and his partners at Marquette agreed to provide $3 million in matching land value if Klay and the city get the grant. If that happens, the city would hold the title to one-third of the 343-acre site, which sits east of 11 Mile Road and north of Settegast Road. Marquette intended to turn the site into a 35-acre marina and residential subdivision. The property is part of a 1,058-acre development that will include a 15-story resort hotel, 4,000 condominiums and houses and an 18-hole golf course.” [Galveston County Daily News]

77554, Buying and Selling, Financing, Galveston, Landscape, Proposed Developments, Wetlands

Landscape

03/26/10 5:17pm

What Happens If You Don’t Garden the Wild

Quicklink, Trees

16 Comments

WHAT HAPPENS IF YOU DON’T GARDEN THE WILD Starting from her own back yard, Lisa Gray tracks the local Chinese tallow invasion: “They breed explosively â€” one tree pumps out around 10,000 seeds â€” and they grow much faster than trees native to Texas. In China, moths and other predators keep them in check. But here, native animals and insects don’t eat them, and neither will cattle. Grasslands, wetlands, established forests: Tallows devour them all. Forget the Piney Woods. More likely, you’re in the Tallow Woods. Around here, if you leave a piece of land alone â€” don’t mow it, don’t burn it, just let it go â€” tallows will probably blanket it within 10 years. Within 20, you’ll have what ecologists call a ‘closed-canopy tallow forest,’ a single-species ecodisaster unfriendly to birds, bugs and animals. Drive from Houston to Galveston, and most of the woody areas you’ll see are covered in tallows. Around the Addicks and Barker reservoirs, the woods are almost all tallow. According to the Texas Forest Service, Chinese tallows account for an astounding 23 percent of all trees in the eight-county Houston area.” [Houston Chronicle; previously on Swamplot]

Chinese Tallow, Invasive Plants, Landscape, Trees

Furniture

03/12/10 11:02am

How Much Is That Chaise on the North Freeway?

CONTINUE READING THIS STORY

Hidden Valley, Landscape

8 Comments

So much vacant freewayside selling space, there for the taking! At least temporarily. Alas, no pieces were sold in last weekend’s guerrilla furniture sale — an all-day event staged on the abandoned concrete campus of Landmark Chevrolet at 9111 North Freeway near West Gulf Bank. But wacdesignstudio‘s Scott Cartwright and Jenny Lynn Weitz-AmarÃ© Cartwright came prepared for their Sunday digs:

Because the space was not rented, Scott and Jenny brought an envelope full of cash to pay off potential security guards (there were none), as well as food for any wandering homeless people. The crowd was a mix of architecture students, writers, and curious locals from the adjacent Hidden Valley ranch-style development located behind the dealership.

Well, you know those kinda folks are just showing up for the ambience and cheese anyway. Did you really think they’d be buying up the prototypes in your new furniture line? But hey — marketing is marketing! And look at some of the pix you’ve got to show for it:

77037, Auto Dealerships, Furniture, Hidden Valley, Landscape, Vacant Buildings

03/11/10 12:39pm

Comment of the Day: The River Oaks Middle Age Spread

Demolitions, Home Design, Landscape, Quicklink, River Oaks

No Comments

COMMENT OF THE DAY: THE RIVER OAKS MIDDLE AGE SPREAD “Whatâ€™s sad is that River Oaks is losing the land versus house battle . . . What made River Oaks so elegant, really, was the amount of land on each lot which was probably 1/3 house to 2/3 land in most cases. Now itâ€™s more like 2/3 house to 1/3 land. Many are nothing more than enormous townhouses with front yards.” [Matt Mystery, commenting on Down and Out in River Oaks]

77019, Comments, Demolitions, Home Design, Landscape, River Oaks

Art

02/15/10 10:00am

Land Art: All Your Favorite Local Petrochemical Plants

Houston Ship Channel, Industrial Properties, Landscape