Native Plants

Q. Who is Mr. Smarty Plants?

A: There are those who suspect Wildflower Center volunteers are the culpable and capable culprits. Yet, others think staff members play some, albeit small, role. You can torture us with your plant questions, but we will never reveal the Green Guru's secret identity.

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Friday - March 31, 2006

From: Atlanta, GA
Region: Southeast
Topic: Wildflowers
Title: Peak period for viewing Central Texas wildflowers
Answered by: Nan Hampton

QUESTION:

My daughter lives in San Antonio now. I want to time my next visit with the peak period to blue bonnets and other TX wildflowers. When do you recommend that I visit and come to the Center for the first time. A visit to the Lady Bird Johnson Center has been a dream for many decades. Thank You.

ANSWER:

There's no better time than the present! The peak of bluebonnet and other wildflowers—paintbrushes, pink evening primrose, winecups and more—usually occurs around the first weekend in April. Even though we didn't have very much rain this winter, with our recent rains the wildflowers are beginning to respond and put on a lovely show. Every Spring, in order to help you decide where and when to go to see this beautiful phenomenon, we devote a portion of our website to wildflower sightings in the area. You can view this information, beginning around the middle of March, by browsing the Wildflower Center website and choosing the link from the "What's New" section. Another useful service that provides wildflower wayfinding routes through our region is a group called Lonestar Internet, Inc. When wildflowers begin to bloom around mid-March you can pick "Travel Services" and then "Road Conditions" on the Texas Department of Transportation web page to learn of the best wildflower sightings. You can find more routes and information at the Texas Hill Country Wildflower Trail web site. DeWitt County offers its own wildflower site as does Brenham, Texas in Washington County. On the Brenham page, select "Visitor Information", then "Nature Watch" to find their information on wildflowers.

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Friday - March 31, 2006

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