Bayport, FL--On June 16, 2020 Hernando County Government published a notice stating that the Hernando County Department of Public Works (DPW) has begun work on the reconstruction of Bayou Drive, located near Hernando Beach, for a 90-day work period. Bayou Drive will reopen for public access on September 15, 2020.
As a continuation of the series of articles on Meeting the People that Manage the Withlacoochee State Forest, I would like to introduce you to Sarah Stewart who is currently a Duty Officer with the Florida Forest Service.
“I am a fire dispatcher. We handle all the burn authorizations for the five-county area. We also respond crews out to wildfires in that area, and any properties state, federal or private,” Stewart explained.
Since the beginning of January 2020, over 1000 reported wildfire cases have burned over 16,000 acres. The two recent wildfires located in Santa Rosa county in the western portion of the Florida panhandle, and one in Collier County have been the largest to date.
In 1990, Susan Tellem and Marshall Thompson co-founded American Tortoise Rescue located in Malibu California. They also created World Turtle Day as a way to bring awareness to the public about turtles and tortoises. Turtle Day was celebrated last week on May 23.
“I have always been an animal person and always had a strong love for animals,” Tellem said.
As this concludes the spring series of Walk on the Wildside, Lilly and I hope you have enjoyed learning about some of the beautiful and wonderful native flowering plants that thrive in Hernando County.
Whether you are hiking one of Hernando County’s awesome trails through the Withlacoochee State Forest, visiting a preserve or park, take the time to admire nature’s wildflowers.
In this segment, we have a few very special flowering plants, the Florida Milkvine and the wild orchid, Rose Pogonia. These flowering plants flourish and thrive right where they are, in the wild. The reason these and any other flowering plants grow in a particular spot or area is because it’s their preferred natural habitat. The soil, the amount of shade or sunlight and other natural factors including wildfire give them life, energy, and nutrients to grow.
For the past month, Lilly Browning, Hernando County Utilities Florida-Friendly Landscaping Program Coordinator, and I showcased some beautiful native wildflowers and flowering plants that thrive in Hernando County.
Luckily these beauties can be found in parks, preserves, wildlife management areas, and environmental areas. But some native plants are not so lucky.
Spring Hill, Fla.-- Student-athletes and coaches are not the only ones that have felt the hardship as the baseball season was cut short by COVID-19. The umpires whose arduous job is to keep the game in check have no games to oversee.
“It’s a segment of sports that people don’t think about,” Kieras said. “We refer to ourselves as the third team.”
PINE ISLAND-- At 8 am on Friday, May 1 a Hernando County Parks and Recreation employee pushed the button to open the motorized gate into Alfred McKethan/Pine Island Beach Park. On Tuesday April 28, the Board of County Commission voted to reopen all of Hernando County’s parks and recreational areas to the public.
Diane Caputo and her friend, Maryann Cole, drove to Pine Island Park from Pasco County.
Weeki Wachee, Fla. --Understanding history is more than just reading history books, it’s uncovering the past.
