Recently in native TX plants Category

"Sustainable" -- it's the new catchword and the new black. It's a word I'm trying to reiterate over and over again with my family, and now that I'm leading a big habitat project at our elementary school, it's a term I'm making sure our students know, as well.

Doves, mind you, don't seem to understand the word "sustainable" nor the word "reduce," the little wasteful gluttons. But on occasion, they do lend themselves out for a nice winter picture, so for the moment I'll forgive them.

It warms my heart to see how many bloggers are spreading the word about environmental care by encouraging fellow bloggers to think, act, and make lifestyle changes in regard to taking care of Earth. Suzy at HipMountainMama is leading One Small Change, Dee at RedDirt Ramblings recently hosted a reel mower giveaway, and Jan at Thanks for Today has established the Garden Bloggers Sustainable Living Project.

This post is multi-purpose. One, I need to report on my One Small Change progress for January and February. Two, I want to partake in Jan's Sustainable Living Project, and three, I want to share all these bird photos I just got this morning! I've been trying to find woodpeckers in the trees for months, and I was shocked to finally see one -- at our birdfeeder!

Taking all these shots, I was reminded that our kitchen window could really stand a good vinegar wash. 

 In my own garden, as many know, I'm dedicated to planting as many drought-hardy Texas native plants with organic methods as I can. My plants are like my children -- I want to nurture them when they are young, help them grow up big and strong, and guide them to being able to make it on their own. Someday, we might move away from this house, and if my plants aren't able to survive without care, they might not make it. I also long to be lazy -- the better my plants can establish, the less I'll have to do... one day.

My biggest project at the moment is guiding our elementary school to become a Certified Schoolyard Habitat. We're putting in a new butterfly-hummingbird garden as Phase 1, and the list of Phase 2 environmental projects is growing -- we'll be putting a water collection system and more. Co-existing with this habitat project is another project for the 3rd- and 4th-graders -- learning about wildlife habitats and then teaching the community about them through 3-D murals. The excitement over habitats is spreading fast, and I feel so good helping our students become environmental stewards.

On my sidebar, I call myself green-blooded. While my blood might *look* red, especially when I cut myself on a thorny spine or do some other clumsy thing in the garden, my heart and soul are always thinking about ways to protect the environment, and so my blood really runs green. If you put on your special Super-Enviro-Power goggles, you'll be able to see it. If you don't have any, then I'll just raise my hand in a Vulcan greeting. 

In January, for One Small Change, I did three primary acts for the environment: I removed all remaining nandinas from my property, sending the bushes to city mulch and throwing away the berries. I also took all our old leftover chemical products, bleach, and paint from our past to the Austin Hazardous Waste Facility, and some from two of our neighbors. We've been using natural cleansers for a long while now, and finally the evidence from our former lifestyle is gone, gone, gone. And finally, I've been learning many different organic products to help gardeners stay green. I feel more knowledgable about offering green solutions to problems in the yard. Understanding the soil food web was a big part of this. It all begins in the earth, and truly everyday is Earth Day in my book. (Officially, Earth Day is celebrated on April 22).

This month, my son asked us to make something for the wildlife for our February change. We are going to make a bee box or two and a screech owl house. Looking ahead to March, I think I want to train my family to open blinds daily to let the light shine in, and I want to strategically place mirrors to help get more natural light across our house without having to turn on artificial lights. There's a tendency in this family to become inert in regard to opening/closing the blinds, and the result is way more "turning on the lights" than should be necessary. Right now my study blinds are open, and the cats are on my desk watching the birds outside, and the puppy is occasionally growling and barking at the hanging plant hovering outside. No, pup, it's not an evil threat, but it would look nicer if the plant in it hadn't died this winter.

I feel so hopeful this year that Earth is finally getting the kind of attention it so needs and deserves.

Take care of yourselves and our wonderful Earth this spring, and always. And live long and prosper. 

Hugs,

Meredith

Lost Maples State Natural Area, near Kerrville and Vanderpool, Texas, is beautiful year-round, but it is the fall colors of its bigtooth maples and other deciduous trees that draw in the crowds. The park is named for its pocket of bigtooth maples that were brought to its canyons by Ice Age glaciers. The maples do well because of the park's microclimate, though in any given year the fall colors are dependent on that year's rainfall and temperatures.

During our visit, the woods were a colorful palette of greens, golds, oranges, reds, and browns. The colors come from the Bigtooth Maples, Red Oaks, Lacey Oaks, Flameleaf Sumacs, and other trees, and even vines such as Virginia Creeper and Poison Ivy.

    Sometimes the colors were all present on the same tree.

But when the trees were ready, they really did the colors right.

  Aside from the pleasing flora, the park offers miles of trails, springs, rivers, overlooks, grasslands, fern-covered canyon walls, and more. During the fall, visitors will wait in car lines for two hours just to get into the park. We cheated by going on the Wednesday before Thanksgiving, and we had no problem getting in. After the 3.5-hour drive from Austin, we were ready for some exercise!

The dogs were very excited to be there, too. Most of the pictures in this blog were taken after their energy wore out a little. Guess why?

Lost Maples' most popular trail is a short, relatively easy walk, but we opted for the almost-5-mile East Trail. Shortly into the hike, we were met by a sign that read something along the lines of "Steep Trail for the Next 1.5 Miles." It was not just steep -- it was very, very rocky, too. And you know, what goes up, must come down.

But it was worth it to see the beauty of the area for miles around.

The mountaintop was covered in Ashe Junipers and various grasses. The boys imagined a scene from an African savannah, with lions lurking about.

As we made our way down the other side of the mountain, the stunning fall foliage came forth again.

            Though the dogs were worn out by the end, they didn't mind a final jog.

On our way home, we stopped at Stonehenge II, a smaller version of its more famous archaeological wonder of a cousin. It also has an Easter Island-like statue. It was getting dark, so we snapped a picture and headed on. A nifty spot to visit -- we'll go back in daylight.

As a special treat on Halloween, other recent Habitat Steward graduates and I had the honor of visiting the award-winning and very beautiful wildlife habitat of Dale and Pat Bulla here in Austin. 

I had heard a lot about their spectacular wildscape, so when our Habitat Steward group was given the opportunity to have a tour, you know I jumped at the chance!

Dale (left) and Pat (center) are also both Habitat Stewards with NWF, and preserving native Texas plant life is exceptionally important to them. They are leaders in conservation efforts in Austin and Texas, and they were a primary force in helping their neighborhood win Austin's Community Wildlife Habitat challenge in 2008 with the highest number of certified wildlife habitats.

Pat and Dale have lived on their property since 1998, building their home on a rocky limestone slope overlooking the Balcones Canyonland Preserves. Their efforts to create a natural landscape since then have paid off -- paths of natural materials such as mulch, rock, and cedar lead visitors through peaceful woods and past pocket seeps.

Many of the plants were placed there by the Bullas, but many more were delivered by birds and other creatures. The result is a wonderland of native Texas species.

Pat told me that the plants on their property are about 95% native, with the remaining being well adapted plants such as rosemary and winter-blooming germander.

It being the end of October, we were able to see many species just beginning their fall fruit or fall color stages.

As we toured the Bulla wildscape, Dale and Pat identified many of their favorite trees, shrubs, and perennials, sometimes sharing stories about certain plants. We tasted the leaves of a Toothache Tree (Zanthoxylum hirsutum), and after a couple of minutes I felt my gums tingle, as if they were going numb. I want one of these trees for the pure fun of it.

The Bullas are fortunate to have many rare or unusual plants, such as the Lindheimer's Crown-Beard (Verbesina lindheimeri), a plant so rare and special that the Wildflower Center collected seeds from the Bulla plants and sent them to the Millennium Seed Bank in London. Other plants, not necessarily considered rare, can still quite difficult to find in nurseries. 

The Bullas study the soil, light, and water conditions of their property in order to best place plants. With a combination of rocky slopes, natural seeps, sun, shade, woods, and open areas all on their property, it seemed to me that they had an advantage in being able to plant a little bit of everything!

Bluebonnet seedlings, Tropical Sage, Little Bluestem, and other plants were interspersed in the Buffalo grass of the Bullas' front yard mini-prairie.

Amazingly, the habitat is home to six different kinds of native Texas passionflower vines.

The Bullas have a knack for creating functional habitat features that blend in with the natural setting, including a manmade seep-like water source, beebox (with nesting holes for solitary bees), and rock man.

Dale and Pat's home serves as an example to others about how to minimize their carbon footprint. Not only is their carbon footprint exceptionally low due to natural paths, water collection systems, zero lawn, and minimal water usage, the Bullas also use solar panels that produce enough electricity to actually return some back to the city.

And of course, the wildlife love the Bullas' habitat, too. Unfortunately for the Bullas, however, this includes destructive feral hogs that visit the property from the BCP during the night, occasionally tearing up pathways and plants while looking for grubs, roots, and tasty vegetation. Deer prevent Dale and Pat from planting certain delectable species and veggies, too. But birds, butterflies, lizards, and other creatures call the Bullas' habitat home. We enjoyed watching the Queens and Monarchs fluttering about, but I was truly mesmerized by this Buckeye. I have yet to see a Buckeye in my yard!

It's no wonder the Bullas' habitat is designated as a Green Garden by the City of Austin. An award well deserved!

I'm still sorting through my photos of my San Miguel trip, but in the meantime, all you Texans start whooping and hollering, because it's Texas Native Plants Week! Get out there and give special happy attention to your native plants, or go get your garden a new Texas-native flower, tree, shrub, vine, or grass just to celebrate! In my garden, lots of Monarchs and Queen butterflies are loving on my blooming natives right now, so I'm having double the fun visiting the garden this week.

Want to learn more? Read the Statesman's article, visit the Wildflower Center, or check out Austin's TX Native Plants Week page for listings of this week's special events, great native plant sources, or other information.

Has it really only been a year? So much progress has been made in our first year of gardening that it's hard to believe it happened in a mere 365-ish days. Hey, I only about destroyed my back and my husband had to have knee surgery, but what does that matter when our yard is such a pleasant place to be now? (Ok, my husband just pointed out that we can't really blame gardening for our failing bodies, but it sounded good.)

What started it all? The felling of one very dead hackberry that was dangerously leaning over our house.

When that tree fell, I had no idea that I was about to embark on a gardening endeavour of massive proportions. But I looked around my yard and hated what I saw. It was time, after 13 years of doing nothing, to do something. Even if I had no clue whatsoever about what to do. 

But apparently I figured a few things out. The rest will come when I figure those out.

Here are a few tidbits of how our outdoor world has changed. Now be warned, the overgrown state has to do with all the rain we've finally been getting -- I haven't been able to clean anything up. At least things look more green...

The backyard, before and after:

The pond, before and after:

The back porch, before and after:

The front garden bed, before and after:

There's a lot more to our yard than what you see here, and I invite you to see more. We have a long way to go, but it's fun to take a look at how far we've come. You can also hear more about the story that got us on our gardening journey.

Well, we'd been warned. Deer will rub antlers on young trees.

But they seemed to leave our Lacey Oak alone all year -- well, as it turns out that's because it isn't until fall that they do the antler rub thing! We noticed the damage while planting our new Anachacho Orchid nearby. Cry. I haven't had a deer incident this major since they ate my beloved Spotted Squill, a.k.a Alien Tentacle Plant! Well, there's also the pineapple sage, but I can't be 100% sure on that one, as it was closer to the house.

I think the tree will be ok. The damage isn't all the way around, and it's on only one of the three main trunks. But I'm also very glad we noticed it today and not tomorrow, because tonight more damage might have occurred.

And luckily when we planted the Lacey Oak, I also bought the materials to protect it with. Perhaps actually using said materials might have been the wiser path... But we at least had them in the garage and didn't have to go shopping.

So now we have one of those yards with the goofy fences around the trees. We decided to put the Anacacho behind bars with the Lacey Oak to protect it, too. It's the first understory tree to go under the story of the Lacey Oak. This would be more impressive were the trees, say, bigger. But they will grow!

Now for some good news -- the disappearing fountain is back and functioning again! We never did solve the mystery of the shifted rock, which led to the unexpected emptying of our new disappearing fountain and potential pump damage. But happily the pump still functions, and our fountain still remains the $40 disappearing fountain! We changed up the rock structure, so hopefully it will be harder for some creature to displace the tube. That little rock is only there for interest, not for directing the water flow.

Whether it was cat or deer or rain or human or Sasquatch that caused the tube to shift, we'll never know. But I still think a deer is likely responsible for the removal of the nearby pineapple sage. And the nursery didn't have any the last time I was there. I was sad. Oh deer.

We're very fortunate that Texas is home to the truly special Lady Bird Johnson Wildflower Center, and we Austinites are particularly thrilled that it's right here on the edge of our beautiful city. The center is dedicated to the conservation of native plant species across North America, providing an incredible online database of information about thousands of plants and giving visitors to the center a first-eye glimpse of the beauty of Texas plants. 

Throughout the gardens lovely sculptures and other art complement the natural beauty of the Texas flowers, shrubs, and trees.

Spectacular combinations of colors and textures bring unconscious serenity to the viewer. Here the majestic Goldenrod really stands out against the wispy seeds and grasses of Big Muhly.

  All around the center are fantastic displays of plant diversity, with settings typical of our state: prairie, pond, woodland, meadow, and more. Even a few coastal plants are represented, minus the ocean and the sand.

It was my husband's first time to the Wildflower Center, so we did a quick little walkaround, but there wasn't much time to take a thorough tour. There is so much more the center offers, from truly impressive rain collection systems to walking trails to green roof research to continuing education courses, and more.

 But twice a year, Texan gardeners get very excited about a special event that takes place at the Wildflower Center. The center hosts an outstanding native plant sale each fall and spring, and gardeners from all over the state converge to seek and buy plants they might not be able to get at any other time. I know that there are always plants I've never seen before, and it's hard not to get carried away with purchasing. People line up with their wagons and lists. 

Even the rainy day couldn't keep the buyers away, though fortunately the rain came the night before and in the morning, but not during the actual sale. The crowds were a little smaller than is typical of the opening day of the sale, but it might be chaotic this weekend instead.

Here you can see some of the plants set aside for the rest of the weekend, so that plants would be available throughout. You can still see the mini-lake left over from the heavy rains.

Up near the front of the line, my husband and I chatted with our friendly line neighbors.

(I had great fun trying to figure out where to put the copyright on this image of my husband. He wouldn't let me plaster it right across his nose, though.) 

Of course, when the ribbon was cut and the sale actually opened, we all said something along the lines of "It was so very nice talking to you! Now stay away from my plants!" (And at this point I stopped taking pictures, because the mad rush to find all coveted plants began. In fact, if you couldn't tell from the images -- these are from my pocket camera instead of my regular camera. I had to make sure I wasn't overburdened when plants were at stake! Yes, at first it can seem like a frenzy, particularly for the rarer species. I didn't start taking pictures again until all our plants were chosen, and by then many buyers had already cleared out, so this crowd looks small compared to the earlier blockade of people all trying to get their carts through the aisles while collecting as many plants on their list that they could).    

Now, this being Texas, even though there is definitely a mad rush at first, people really are friendly about it. And I think the biggest rush is for trees and shrubs, and perhaps some succulents and water plants. The perennials can go fast, but in general there are plenty available.

I  should mention that two Native Plant Society groups and Native American Seed were also there as vendors, and I made sure to visit their tents.

My special purchases of the day were Rusty Blackhaw (there was definitely a crazed rush to find these, and even then, only very small plants were available; I consider myself very fortunate to be able to buy any) and Anacua, or Sandpaper Tree. I also got a gorgeous Anachacho Orchid, an Evergreen Sumac, and a few other smaller plants. I even got a Lizard's Tail plant for my pond. My husband was a trooper about it, despite the money being spent. But I'd been preparing him for several months that by gosh we were going to the Fall Plant Sale at the Wildflower Center, no matter what! :)

While taking a stroll near the butterfly garden, the sound of busy bees caught my attention, and I realized that my little pollinating friends had moved from the pumpkin flowers over to a nice big batch of native plants, and my gardener's heart did a little pitter-patter.

But in observing them, I realized something I'd never noticed before. Gregg's Mistflower produces white pollen.

My mind was boggled. In all my years watching wildlife, I never knew that pollen could be anything but yellow?

In the same patch of flowers, the honeybees on the Zexmenia had bright orange pollen baskets on their little legs.

This little bee has been to both Mistflower and Zexmenia. His pollen is pale orange.

I was fascinated. Today was a day where nature just had me reeling.

When I could tear my eyes away from the bees, I noticed a beautiful male Queen butterfly keeping me company.

And on the Fall Aster, newly blooming just on the other side of the Gregg's Mistflower, little hoverflies enjoyed a feast without getting the attention of the bigger bees nearby.   

Sure enough, these little flies can hover. Someone sure came up with a brilliant name for them! (Hey, guess what hoverflies eat? Aphids! Yay!)

Pollination inspiration, here's my poem for the day:

Flyby

Fly little fly

Fly little bee

Queen be flying

But not Queen Bee

I'll try post about this again at the appropriate time, but I wanted to announce that the third week of October is now being recognized as Texas Native Plant Week. Here is the information passed on to me from Keep Austin Wild; more details can be found on the City of Austin site at the link below. There will even be designated Plants of the Day throughout the week, with certified habitats hosting activities.

Texas Native Plant Week October 19th-23rd

In June 2009 Governor PerrOn June 16, 2009 Governor Perry signed a bill into law that will recognize the third week in October as Texas Native Plant Week. The bill is intended to emphasize the role of native plants in conservation efforts and to be used as incentive for the Texas education system to teach school children about the importance of native plants. The Native Plant Society of Texas teamed with State Representative Donna Howard to present the bill to the State Congress. The bill passed unanimously in both houses.

To mark this inaugural Texas Native Plant Week the City of Austin, in partnership with State Representative Donna Howard's Office, the Lady Bird Johnson Wildflower Center, and the Native Plant Society of Texas, will host activities and educational opportunities for the public to learn more about our amazing Texas native plants.

Thursday, October 15th, 5:30pm
Event: City Council Proclamation to announce Texas Native Plant Awareness Week. Mayor Lee Leffingwell will present Native Plant Society of Texas with proclamation.

Location: Austin City Hall Council Chambers, 301 W. Second Street Austin, TX 78701

Monday, October 19, 10:00am:
Event: Austin Parks and Recreation Department (PARD) demonstration habitat garden certification ceremony and media kick off for Texas Native Plant Week. Habitat Garden Tour to follow press conference.

The Parks and Recreation Department's main office demonstration habitat garden will be recognized by the National Wildlife Federation and Texas Parks and Wildlife Department as a Best of Texas Habitat site.  This is the highest level of wildlife habitat certification in Texas and is bestowed upon landscapes that use a majority of native plants, provide wildlife food and water sources year round, and practice at least six resource conservation measures.  PARD's main office habitat is the first City of Austin habitat site to receive this more stringent level of certification.

This demonstration habitat garden serves as a place people can come to learn about what wildlife habitat is and how to create a place for butterflies, songbirds, and hummingbirds at their own homes using beautiful native plants. Austin Mayor Lee Leffingwell, State Representative Donna Howard, Parks and Recreation Department Director Sara Hensley, Lady Bird Johnson Wildflower Center Executive Director Susan Rieff and others will participate in the habitat certification ceremony and native plant week kick off celebration.

Location: City of Austin Parks and Recreation Department Main Office, 200 S. Lamar Blvd, 78704.

For more information visit http://www.ci.austin.tx.us/parks/nativeplantweek.htm or call the Parks and Recreation Department's Wildlife Austin Program at 512-327-8181x29.

Please help us spread the word about Texas' first Native Plant Week!

If you live in Austin, consider attending one or both events, and if you live in Texas, support our beautiful state by planting native plants!

Ah, Horseherb (Calyptocarpus vialis), also called Straggler Daisy. There doesn't seem to be much of a gray area on this one. People either truly love this little groundcover or hate it with a passion. I'm of the former variety. I adore this little plant.

Why do I love it? If you've ever walked past a field of horseherb, you are presented with an incredibly lush sea of green, with the daintiest of little yellow flowers throughout to catch your eye. I've seen some gorgeous fields, and each time I was mesmerized by the beauty and serenity of the scene. 

Field of horseherb at Hornsby Bend

I almost don't want to walk on it -- it's so pretty in appearance -- but for a non-lawn groundcover, it can withstand some foot traffic. It only needs water in the worst of droughts, and it loves shade and sun.

Horseherb is also native to the southern U.S. on into Central America, and it makes a great alternative to the exotic and water-hogging Bermuda and St. Augustine grasses. I'd love to see it replace Asian jasmine, as well -- now THAT is a plant that will take over a garden bed and yard. Horseherb is considered semi-evergreen, blooming most of the year except in cold winter areas, and if you like you can mow it, or you can let it grow to its typical max height, which is about 8 inches. But as bonus, horseherb also attracts small butterflies, including sulfurs and skippers. And think of all the happy little lizards that will zip underneath the foliage!

It's an eco-friendly solution to having a lawn without having to resort to heavy chemicals or fertilizers or ridiculous amounts of water to sustain it. Lawn irrigation tops the list on where our municipal water goes, and the time for water conservation is now, especially in Texas.

Why do some people want to leave it? Well, in some yards it can be a big nuisance. For those who keep a grass lawn, horseherb is a competitor, and it can be difficult to get rid of. And it can spread into garden beds, though I've found that so far it doesn't bother much with my well-mulched beds. In fact, one of the characteristics of this plant is that it supposedly doesn't do well in areas that have heavy leaves that take a long time to decompose. It spreads by both seeds and runners, which means that if the goal is to remove all of it, you're going to have a challenge. In a wildflower field, I have to imagine that it would be another competitor, but it's going to depend on the goals you have for your yard or area.

But for now I prefer to embrace its desire to spread. What I loathe is the Bermuda Grass and St. Augustine in my yard. I loathe the unnamed weeds that dominate my backyard. I love my buffalograss in the back, but it too is losing to the weeds, and in the drought, the buffalograss was dead most of the time, so I didn't end up loving it as much as I wanted to - I loved it when I could see it.

What would you choose: spotty grass or spreading horseherb? 

Will I regret it? Some gardeners are going to shout out an absolute yes to that question. But I do regret having Bermuda and St. Augustine (not that I planted it; that was the previous owners), so it's not a big deal to switch from frustration with the grasses to frustration with another groundcover, unless I've got all three to deal with at the same time. At least horseherb is native. But I'm going for the complete wildscape, and I have a lot of ground to fill and a lot of grass to get rid of. In those bed areas I want to keep maintained, I'll do my best to keep horseherb in check. And love it everywhere else!

So how about you? Do you prefer to love it or leave it?