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.
Did you know you can access the Native Plant Information Network with your web-enabled smartphone?
Ask Mr. Smarty Plants is a free service provided by the staff and volunteers at the Lady Bird Johnson Wildflower Center.

rate this answer

Friday - April 06, 2012
From: Valley Mills, TX
Region: Southwest
Topic: Propagation, Wildflowers
Title: Flowers for Fall in Bosque County from Valley Mills TX
Answered by: Barbara Medford
QUESTION:
What Wildflowers could we plant in Bosque County area to bloom in the Fall?ANSWER:
It's getting a little late to be planting wildflowers even for Fall bloom, but we will try to find some for you to try. Ordinarily, we recommend that wildflower seeds be planted at the same time that the flowers in the wild drop their seeds. Perennials will not bloom until the second season, anyway, so you are talking annuals. Annuals grow and bud quickly, when the weather is cooperating, bloom and set seeds. Once those seeds are dropped, the plant has finished with its Prime Directive, which is to reproduce, and ordinarily the plant then dies. Hopefully, the next year, the seeds left in the ground from the previous season will come up in greater numbers, and go through the same procedure.
From our online list Wildflowers of Central Texas we will look at the sidebar on the righthand side of the page and select on bloom times of September, October and November. You can follow each plant link to our webpage on that plant. Sometimes, there are directions on how and when to plant seeds. We will check them to see if we can find out if any can be planted by the end of April and you can hope to have flowers by Fall.
If you are planning a Fall wedding, a garden at the background, your best chance is to purchase bedding plants and get them in the ground now. If your thought was just to begin a Fall garden, then you can plant seeds of any of these in November or thereabouts and the annuals will bloom in the Fall of 2013, while the perennials will bloom in 2014. Some perennials can be propagated by cuttings of existing plants in November and would probably begin to bloom the next year.
The plants that bloom in the Fall have usually been blooming since March to May, which means this is NOT their seeding time. There were exactly 2 annuals that fit the bill: Rudbeckia hirta (Black-eyed susan), which blooms from June to October and Eustoma exaltatum (Catchfly prairie gentian), blooming from May to October. This means that those plants are very likely up, after putting out their seeds probably in November.
Perennials for a Fall garden:
Asclepias asperula (Spider milkweed) - blooms March to October
Calylophus berlandieri (Berlandier's sundrops blooms March to September
Commelina erecta (Whitemouth dayflower) - March to October
Glandularia bipinnatifida (Purple prairie verbena) - May to October
Lobelia cardinalis (Cardinal flower) - May to October
Melampodium leucanthum (Blackfoot daisy) - March to November
Ratibida columnifera (Mexican hat) - May to October
Salvia farinacea (Mealy blue sage) - April to October
From the Image Gallery
More Wildflowers Questions
Orientation of roots of Ranunculus
April 11, 2006 - I need to know how to plant "Ranunculus". I don't know which way to put the rhizomes/bulbs in the ground. Do they go flat side down or strange long tubular things upward ?
view the full question and answer
Wildflowers for high canal bank in Florida
May 27, 2009 - My home is on a canal to a natural lake in Central Florida (Orlando area). I am wondering if there is a wildflower that I can grow on a 3' high canal bank that is mostly shady.
view the full question and answer
Bluebonnets planted in late spring bloom, will they bloom again?
February 06, 2008 - New to South Texas & we decided to plant bluebonnets around our house. The seeds were planted in late spring & we were delighted to watch them start their initial growth-cycle. They ultimately produc...
view the full question and answer
Bluebonnets in pots in New Caney, TX
April 25, 2009 - My mother in New Caney (Texas), would like to plant Bluebonnets in some lovely terra cotta containers on her porch (and will hopefully mail me some dried pressings of my beloved state flower). Other t...
view the full question and answer
Critter-Proof Native Plants for Virginia Lawn
April 02, 2015 - We live in a gated community that was part of the Wilderness Battlefield during the Civil War. Our home is on a narrow lot, fully treed except for a postage stamp-sized lawn at lake side. We have de...
view the full question and answer
Support the Wildflower Center by Donating Online or Becoming a Member today. |