Crud Cruiser and Electronics Recycling Opportunity

On Saturday, June 7, 9am to 11am (or until the unit is full) at Meadowpark you can drop off your hazardous household waste and electronics. No charge, just bring proof of Bedford residency such as a water bill, lease or drivers license.

This is a great opportunity since you normally have to go to the city to get a permit, then take your waste to the collection center in Fort Worth. I understand this costs the city a fee even though you are not charged.

Watch out for this plant -- Branched Broomrape

Although pretty, Branched Broomrape is a parasite and endangers crops. It grows 4 to 12 inches tall and has snapdragon-like blooms.
If you see it get a plastic bag and then pull it and immediately seal it in the bag without walking around (to avoid distributing its tiny seeds, as many as 50,000 per plant!). It can lie dormant for decades. It grows by attaching to the roots of other plants to gain water and nutrients. The Fort Worth Star Telegram reported today that Tarrant County is now the furthest northwest that it has been spotted. A botanist at Fort Worth's Botanic Research Institute of Texas (BRIT) recently spotted it in a field along Interstate 20.

Voting time again

We attended the League of Women Voters/ AAUW-sponsored candidate forum on Thursday night at the Senior Center. It was so refreshing to hear generally positive candidates. I personally felt like any of the candidates for City Council or School Board would be worthy additions.

Please be sure to vote on Saturday, May 10. There are numerous City Charter revisions and it does take a while to actually mark a vote for them, but it took a lot of work for the committee to develop them and generally they are just editorial topics to clean up the charter for ease of future use and to make it agree with state law.