Native Plants

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Tuesday - March 13, 2007

From: Rye, NY
Region: Southwest
Topic: Wildflowers
Title: Texas wildflowers for April wedding
Answered by: Nan Hampton

QUESTION:

A friend of mine is getting married in Texas in April and wanted to decorate the event with flowers native to that state. In my experience wildflowers do not last long out of the ground or in cut form. Is this correct? Rather than cut flowers are there potted flowering plants that she might use?

ANSWER:

Many wildflowers work very well as cut flowers. We have a wonderful crew of volunteers who very successfully use cut flowers from the Wildflower Center grounds to decorate offices and meeting rooms at the Center. However, living plants as decoration would be very nice and could be given as favors if used to decorate tables at a reception dinner. Your friend will need to find a supplier that can furnish the number and kinds of plants that she wants. You can find nurseries that specialize in native plants in our National Suppliers Directory. Another organization, PlantNative, also has a list of nurseries specializing in native plants.

Some possibilities for decorative potted flowering plants native to Texas that might be available in nurseries in April are:

Lupinus texensis (Texas lupine) or bluebonnet

Achillea millefolium var. occidentalis (western yarrow)

Aquilegia canadensis (red columbine)

Aquilegia chrysantha var. hinckleyana (Hinckley's golden columbine)

Calylophus berlandieri (Berlandier's sundrops)

Engelmannia peristenia (Engelmann's daisy)

Penstemon cobaea (cobaea beardtongue)

Salvia engelmannii (Engelmann's sage)

Salvia coccinea (blood sage)