President’s Message
Just when many of us—in Central Texas at least—had
reconciled to not having a decent spring wildflower bloom,
recent rains have been just enough to provide moisture for
the flowers, although our trees still barely manage.
Every wildflower season is different; dependent not only on
the amount of precipitation received, but whether it arrives
at the right time in the growth cycle for a particular species
to capitalize on it. In Central Texas and on my recent drive
to Glen Rose we’ve enjoyed a decent enough display of
bluebonnets, Engelmann daisies, prairie verbena, black-foot
daisies and other species to liven the heart with feelings of
rejuvenation, which I’m convinced is the purpose of spring.
Don’t hesitate to stop your car, and enjoy the spring moment
along the roadsides – it will get you through the drought and
winter moments. And also take note of some biomimicry
lessons (emulating or taking inspiration from nature in
order to solve human problems) derived from our native
wildflowers – be flexible, adaptable, and opportunistic
when the rain comes and the sun shines. Good lessons for
people and organizations! (Footnote: Our hearts go out to
South Texas and the Panhandle that continue in exceptional
drought conditions and probably had few moments of spring
jubilation).
At our last State Board meeting, we had the opportunity
to re-cap some great successes that your state officers and
committees achieved in the last several months.
The Advocacy Committee led by Ricky Linex testified
before the state legislature on four separate bills involving
HOA regulations and xeric landscapes, the requirement
for the use of native seeds in state funded land restoration
projects, and the creation of a grant program to fund native
seed development.
2
Our education team under
the leadership of Dawn
Hancock awarded three
prizes to budding native
plant scientists as part of
the ExxonMobil Science
and Engineering Fair.
Cathy Downs, chair
of the Bring Back the
Monarchs to Texas project,
announced that 19 grants
totaling almost $4,000
had been issued to create
new Monarch Waystations
in public demonstration
gardens.
Bill Hopkins continues to grow our communication
tools with new email utilities and a Kindle version of the
newsletter. And finally, Cathy Lustgarten beamed as she
announced that our newly approved Prairie Rose chapter
(Glen Rose) burst forth with 38 new members. Despite the
drought, it feels like your Society had quite a spring bloom of
its own!
Lastly, I’ll make a plug for the Annual Symposium to be
held in Corpus Christi. It is branded South Texas – Beach
to Brush Country and features the diversity of habitats
that intersect in that geographic region. Look for more
information on the website, and plan to attend.
Onward through the wilderness!
Lonnie Childs