Tag Archives: Prairie

April 1, 2023 · 4:57 pm

Wild onion and the Great Plains Restoration Council

Wild Onions (Photograph by Jack Matthews)

Three thousand acres of old-growth prairie is at the backdoor of Fort Worth near Lake Benbrook.

I put the last acres of Flying Hat Ranch up for sale last week. The location for 29.15 acres is 38295 N SH 108, Mingus, TX. The posts of Sage to Meadow since 2009 have been centered on that ranchito, which had started out at fifty-three acres. Ranch Realty Pro, the broker being J. Bryan Davis, of Stephenville is handling the sale the land.

Yes, I am sad, even grieving, that we had to sell. But the traffic to and from Fort Worth on Interstate 20 has become risky, even dangerous. (From my home in Fort Worth to the Far Field is seventy-two miles.)

So this morning, I searched for public places near me that I could go out and trek and commune with nature. I found just a few miles away, the Fort Worth Prairie Park that is under the purview of the Great Plains Restoration Council.

3,000 acres of old-growth prairie

I never knew the prairie was so close, so protected from development.

I took my Nikon camera and hiked three-quarters of mile into the prairie. I could see the flags of Fort Worth development and hear the planes overhead, but no matter, I wandered with the prairie and found wild onion and spring blossoms. I came across an old campsite (historic) that had not been used for several years. Here are some of the photos of my afternoon.

Pink and yellow blossoms

Blue blossoms
A family of onions
Fire ring

Look closely at the red ants busy tending their home

I will go back to the prairie. The link to the Fort Worth Prairie Park site and Great Plains Restoration Council is https://gprc.org/our-work/fort-worth-prairie-park/.

I am connected to all things. There is no “other.”

All photographs by Jack Matthews.

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January 23, 2010 · 5:12 pm

Hay, Rain, Fire

My horses were short of hay and I had to go to Stephenville today to purchase alfalfa and Bermuda.  I took a chance that it would not rain heavily and drench the eight bales that the feed store  stacked in the F-150.  Fortunately, it did not rain heavily and I returned after lunch with wet hay, but not soggy.

The rain has taken away the threat of grass fires.  I have seen prairie fires at night up on the ridge line towards Stephenville several years ago during the month of January.  That night I drove out in the pickup to check the fires.  Whirlwinds of fire looped like little devils through pastures.  The scene was hideous.  I hitched the trailers to our trucks and prepared to load livestock if the wind shifted in our direction.  The fires stayed south of us and did not move closer than five miles from our place.  I drove up with our stock trailer to see if I could assist my neighbors in Huckabay and Hannibal.   The next day after the fires had died out, I saw homes destroyed, livestock scattered, and smoke from large trees still burning.

I am glad for this day of rain and cool temperatures, wet hay or not.

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