Native Plants
Bransford, W.D. and Dolphia
Bill (W.D.) (1913-1996) and Dolphia Bransford (1915-2015) moved from San Angelo to Kingsland, Texas in 1950. There they established the first fish camp in the area. A carpenter, Bill built small cabins and a larger building which served as a general store.Bill was interested in photography so he and Dolphia would set out in their camper taking pictures of wildflowers and scenery along the way. After plants were photographed, Dolphia researched them and recorded their botanical name, family and common name on each slide. The Bransfords would travel for two or three months at a time and eventually visited nearly every corner of the United States and Canada. They spent 40 years pursuing their favorite pastime and stopped only when Bill’s vision diminished.
At the beginning, Bill photographed plants mostly from a distance, often too far to see enough detail necessary to identify his subjects. Dolphia encouraged him to get close-ups of the plants so that they could be identified and so that their full beauty could be appreciated. Many times he would lie flat on the ground to get the perfect shot. His extra effort shows in the quality of his photographs.
Bill enjoyed presenting prints of his photographs in collections, displaying images of entire genera or families in a single frame. In one case, it took six years of effort to get the photograph of a single species necessary to complete one of these framed collections.
Wishing to find a suitable, permanent home for their work, Mr. and Mrs. Bransford began donating their slide collection to the National Wildflower Research Center in 1987 and were privileged to enjoy Mrs. Johnson’s company on several occasions. Over the years, countless thousands of visitors to this website have enjoyed the work and study of this devoted couple.
Today, the nearly 4500 native plant slides contributed to the Wildflower Center by Bill and Dolphia Bransford remain one of the largest image collections in the NPIN Image Gallery.
The Lady Bird Johnson Wildflower Center is committed to developing the premier resource for native plant images in North America through continued growth of the Plant Image Gallery. You can help us achieve our mission ...to increase the sustainable use and conservation of native wildflowers, plants, and landscapes... by becoming a contributor.
scientific name | common name(s) | image gallery |
Asclepias viridis | Green Milkweed Spider Milkweed | |
Asclepias viridis | Green Milkweed Spider Milkweed | |
Asclepias viridis | Green Milkweed Spider Milkweed | |
Astragalus zionis | Zion Milkvetch | |
Atrichoseris platyphylla | Parachute Plant Tobacco Weed | |
Atrichoseris platyphylla | Parachute Plant Tobacco Weed | |
Atrichoseris platyphylla | Parachute Plant Tobacco Weed | |
Aureolaria grandiflora | Largeflower Yellow False Foxglove False Foxglove | |
Aureolaria grandiflora | Largeflower Yellow False Foxglove False Foxglove | |
Aureolaria grandiflora | Largeflower Yellow False Foxglove False Foxglove | |
Aureolaria laevigata | Entireleaf Yellow False Foxglove Smooth False Foxglove | |
Aureolaria laevigata | Entireleaf Yellow False Foxglove Smooth False Foxglove | |
Bahia absinthifolia | Hairyseed Bahia Hairy-seed False Goldfields Bahia Yerba Raton | |
Bahia absinthifolia | Hairyseed Bahia Hairy-seed False Goldfields Bahia Yerba Raton | |
Bahia absinthifolia | Hairyseed Bahia Hairy-seed False Goldfields Bahia Yerba Raton | |
Bahia absinthifolia | Hairyseed Bahia Hairy-seed False Goldfields Bahia Yerba Raton | |
Bahia absinthifolia | Hairyseed Bahia Hairy-seed False Goldfields Bahia Yerba Raton | |
Baptisia alba | White Wild Indigo White Baptisia | |
Baptisia alba | White Wild Indigo White Baptisia | |
Baptisia alba var. macrophylla | Largeleaf Wild Indigo White Wild Indigo | |
Baptisia alba var. macrophylla | Largeleaf Wild Indigo White Wild Indigo | |
Baptisia australis | Blue Wild Indigo Wild Blue Indigo Blue False Indigo | |
Baptisia bracteata var. leucophaea | Longbract Wild Indigo Cream False Indigo Plains Wild Indigo Cream Wild Indigo Large-bracted Wild Indigo | |
Balsamorhiza deltoidea | Deltoid Balsamroot | |
Bahia dissecta | Ragleaf Bahia | |
Balsamorhiza hookeri | Hooker's Balsamroot Hairy Balsamroot | |
Balsamorhiza hookeri | Hooker's Balsamroot Hairy Balsamroot | |
Balsamorhiza hookeri | Hooker's Balsamroot Hairy Balsamroot | |
Balsamorhiza incana | Hoary Balsamroot | |
Balsamorhiza incana | Hoary Balsamroot | |
Balsamorhiza incana | Hoary Balsamroot | |
Bauhinia lunarioides | Anacacho Orchid Tree Anacacho Bauhinia Orchid Tree Texas Plume | |
Balsamorhiza macrolepis | California Balsamroot | |
Bacopa monnieri | Herb-of-grace Water Hyssop Coastal Water-hyssop | |
Baileya multiradiata | Desert Marigold Showy Desert Marigold Paper Daisy Desert Baileya | |
Baileya multiradiata | Desert Marigold Showy Desert Marigold Paper Daisy Desert Baileya | |
Baileya multiradiata | Desert Marigold Showy Desert Marigold Paper Daisy Desert Baileya | |
Baileya multiradiata | Desert Marigold Showy Desert Marigold Paper Daisy Desert Baileya | |
Balsamorhiza sagittata | Arrowleaf Balsamroot Arrow-leaf Balsamroot | |
Barkleyanthus salicifolius | Willow Ragwort | |
Barkleyanthus salicifolius | Willow Ragwort | |
Baptisia sphaerocarpa | Yellow Wild Indigo Green Wild Indigo Bush Pea Yellow Wisteria | |
Bastardia viscosa | Viscid Mallow Bastardia | |
Berlandiera betonicifolia | Texas Greeneyes Broochflower | |
Berlandiera betonicifolia | Texas Greeneyes Broochflower | |
Berlandiera betonicifolia | Texas Greeneyes Broochflower | |
Berlandiera betonicifolia | Texas Greeneyes Broochflower | |
Berlandiera betonicifolia | Texas Greeneyes Broochflower | |
Berlandiera betonicifolia | Texas Greeneyes Broochflower | |
Berlandiera lyrata | Chocolate Daisy Chocolate Flower Lyreleaf Greeneyes Green-eyed Lyre Leaf | |
scientific name | common name(s) | image gallery |