Author Archive
June 2009 Winners
Posted by Nick Weynand in Yard of the Month on June 1st, 2009
Story by Judy Jefferson
Becky and Erik Swansiger, with their two sons Holden and Finn, are the June 2009 Westcreek Yard of the Month winners!
The Yard of the Month winners for June are Becky and Erik Swansiger. They live at 6102 Morning Dew with their two sons, Holden age 6 who loves art, maps and swimming, his younger brother, Finn age 2.5 who loves to smile and also loves to swim. This particular address on Morning Dew is where Barton, the 50 pound Tortoise, made his much publicized escape a few years back. Barton had made it all the way to Brush Country before he was captured!
The Swansiger’s have enjoyed living in Westcreek with all the trees and friendly neighbors for the past 10 years. It was one of their neighbors who brought their yard to the attention of the Enhancement Committee. The Buda water feature in front of their porch makes the yard seem very Zen.
Becky and Erik received a $25 gift card from Randalls and a $50 gift card from Emerald Garden. Thanks go to both Randalls and Emerald Garden for continually supporting Westcreek’s Yard of the Month program.
Brush Country Trail Clearing – May 4th, 2009
Posted by Nick Weynand in Brush Country Trail on May 6th, 2009
We had a very successful trail work day last Saturday in Westcreek!
Attached are a few photos of some of our accomplishments and the people who made it happen. OHTA volunteers included Rick, Tom, Cliff, Beki, Ralph, Nancy, David R., David H., and Trudy. Thanks to Westcreek neighbors Chad and Kim Warren for donating the limestone rocks for the stairs that Rick, David, and Beki built.
Please get out and enjoy the trail! Your footsteps will help keep the weeds down.
Trudy Hasan
May 2009 Winners
Posted by Nick Weynand in Yard of the Month on May 1st, 2009
Story by Judy Jefferson
Lisa and Joe Payne, with their daughter Elizabeth ( 4 1/2 years old) are the Westcreek May Yard of the Month winners!
The Yard of the Month winners for May are Lisa and Joe Payne at 4801 Summerset Trail. They have enjoyed living in Westcreek for the past three years. Before deciding on types of plants, design of the pathways around the garden and overall structure, the Payne’s first turned for ideas from a professional gardener. They wanted year ’round interests in their garden — not just in the spring and summer — and also wanted drought-tolerant plants, which was challenging because most of their yard has shaded areas.
Lisa and Joe both enjoy gardening and Joe built the trellis in their own yard with help from his next-door neighbor. He’s also planted vegetables in the Sunshine Community Garden near his work. Lisa told me their garden is still “a work in progress”.
Lisa and Joe were presented with a $25 gift card from Randalls and a $50 gift card from Emerald Garden. Be sure to support Randalls and Emerald Garden in return for their generosity to Westcreek!
Brush Country Trail Clean Up
Posted by Nick Weynand in WNA Events on April 29th, 2009
Oak Hill Trails Association is continuing its efforts to improve the trail connecting the end of Brush Country, Westcreek Drive and Monterey Oaks this Saturday, May 2nd. They plan to work from 9-12. Meet at the large pile of brush in the middle of the trail area. Please bring wheelbarrows, heavy rakes, tree trimmers, gloves, etc.
Rick Perkins of Oak Hill Trails Assoc is looking for some stone paver material. They want to build some steps somewhere at the end of the trail near Monterey Oaks. His email is rperkins8503@att.net.
Please consider showing up, get some exercise and have some fun.
Neighborhood Garage Sale
Posted by Nick Weynand in WNA Events on April 23rd, 2009
Westcreek will hold a neighborhood wide garage sale on Saturday, May 16th.
The normal rules apply: you put up your own signs and have the garage sale on your property. And when the day is over, you take down your signs around the neighborhood.
The WNA will run an ad in the Austin American-Statesman the day before and also in the Oak Hill Gazette the week prior to the sale.
Happy selling!
The Patton Elementary School Carnival
Posted by Nick Weynand in WNA Events on April 8th, 2009
The Patton Elementary School carnival is scheduled for Saturday, April 25
from 1:00 p.m. to 6:00 p.m…rain or shine! Every year the carnival is the
main way that the PTA makes its money to support the school. The community
is invited to come and support the Patton PTA.
In addition to the traditional carnival games and entertainment there will
also be a chance to pick up a great deal at the silent auction. So far the
Patton PTA has received donations from local business such as Alamo
Drafthouse, Austin Pizza Garden, Mad Science, Schlitterbahn with more
donations coming in daily! The silent auction will include baskets made by
our very own Patton classes. The themes this year include “Disney”,
“Camping”, “Picnic for Two”, “Garden”, “Lego’s”, “Go Green”, “Kid’s Summer
Fun”, “Pets”, “Breakfast” and many, many more!
If you or your family knows of a business or would like to support the
Patton Carnival with your sponsorship, please send in donations as soon as
possible. We are in the final stages of planning for the annual Patton
carnival and those sponsorship dollars go directly to providing fun, food,
and entertainment to the Patton children and community. Envelopes and forms
are available in the front office of Patton Elementary School for your
convenience.
Please contact Rebecca Rolan at 517-5361 or jrrolan@yahoo.com for more
information.
Brush Collection
Posted by Nick Weynand in WNA Events on April 8th, 2009
Stacks must be no more than 4′ high and 15′ long. Place cut ends next to curb and piles should be 5′ minimum from other trash/recycle containers.
Douglas Woodworking
Posted by Nick Weynand in Cabinetry on April 7th, 2009
Josh Douglas
Comments from a Westcreek resident:
“A custom cabinet builder. His prices are significantly less than every person I talked to (4 other bids) and the quality is high. Double check the details with him, make sure all measurements are accurate. He made a couple of fixable mistakes on measurements, and he fixed them quickly. I believe he is a highly skilled woodworker who is learning the ins and outs of doing cabinets as a businessperson. I loved working with him, the quality of my all-wood (no particle board) cabinets is comparable to high-end homes, and I got all the bells and whistles I wanted. I would definitely use him again, and I saved at least $5000 on my kitchen alone by using his services.”
G&G Berry Associates
Posted by Nick Weynand in General Home Repair, Remodeling on April 7th, 2009
Jamie Grigar
Comments from Westcreek resident:
“Best [darn] contractor I’ve ever used, by far. On time, under budget, no drama, painstakingly careful and clean. Understands budget constraints, understands upscale, and everything in between. A great man to work with. At this point in our economic times, he is willing to take on projects that are much smaller than normal. He has built entire homes – $million+ homes, and done things as small as replace siding, redo a room, add a sunroom, repair your fence.”
Example home: http://www.gunhollow.com/
Quick Tips to Prevent Oak Wilt
Posted by Nick Weynand in Oak Wilt on April 5th, 2009
- DO NOT TRIM OAK TREES DURING “Leaf Exchange” (when they drop
their leaves- which is occurring now). Trim in late December, January and August. - Make sure that the tree trimmers you hire are THOROUGHLY
disinfecting their cutting tools between EACH & EVERY tree that they trim. Do not let them go from one tree to the next without disinfecting tools completely. - Make sure that they are IMMEDIATELY SEALING EACH CUT AS THEY
CUT IT on the oak tree they are trimming, including sucker cuts. - Watch for color changes if you have Red Oaks. If they look like
they are “turning” (as in Fall leaves) during the summer, you might have a problem. Call a Certified Arborist immediately. - Hire a reputable tree trimming company.
- WATCH the trimmers as they are doing the work.
Although these are fairly elementary steps, many of us have to work and often hire a company to come to do the work during the week. With the spread of Oak Wilt, it is worth your while and the life of your oak trees to be present when the trimming is done. It will be well worth the vacation day you took to be there, and your property values as all of our wonderful oak trees continue to live.
As Oak Wilt spreads, it is likely many of us will need to replace our beautiful trees. Chris recommends replacing large Live Oak and Red Oak varieties with a number of heat and drought resistant Central Texas trees such as the following:
- Bur Oak
- Chinese Elm
- American Elm
- Bald Cypress
- Escarpment Cherry
- Italian Stone Pine
- Montezuma Cypress
- Pecan
- Cedar Elm
- Mexican White Oak
- Mexican Sycamore
- Arizona Cypress
He also has a list of medium sized trees and smaller trees if you are interested. No matter what, his recommendation is to DIVERSIFY your trees.
Contact Chris Dolan, our City of Austin Arborist, about any Oak Wilt or other tree concern at chris.dolan@ci.austin.tx.us or call him at (512) 974-1881.
For more information on Oak Wilt in Texas, visit www.texasoakwilt.org. This site has every possible fact and photo you will need to know about Oak Wilt.
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