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Native Plant Society of Texas

Austin Chapter

State of the Union: NPSOT Austin

Written by Claire Sorenson, 2023 President

Dear NPSOT Austin Members,

I am moving from President-elect to President this year. I look forward to a fun 2023 season of activities. I would like to introduce our slate of Chapter Leaders who are the ones who make all this happen.

OFFICERS
• President: Claire Sorenson
• President Elect: still looking for a volunteer
• Treasurer: Michelle Sikes
• Secretary: John Middleton

COMMITTEE CHAIRS
• Program Committee Co-Chairs: Michelle Sikes & Susan Brotman
• Communication Committee Co-Chairs: Adeliza Tiffany & Sandra Ries
• Volunteer Committee Co-Chairs: Susan Brotman & still looking for a volunteer
• Nominating Committee – active August through November: OPEN

AD HOC COMMITTEES
• NICE Committee Chair: Kathryn Teich
• NLCP Classes Committee Chair: Jane Tillman
• Plant Sale Committee Chair: Michelle Sikes
• Garden Tour Committee Chair: still looking for a volunteer
• Field Trips Committee Chair: Jackie O’Keefe

A big thank you to everyone who has stepped up to volunteer for the above positions. The only way our chapter continues is through the support of its members.

This year, as you may have noticed by the committees listed above, we are adding a couple of new activities: Field Trips and Garden Tours. We will share more details about these programs in the months to come.

We also hope to host some activities to encourage more members to grow Texas native plants that can’t easily be found in local nurseries, and then share them with others.

I would also like to thank everyone who helped, last year, to build a NICE Program for our Austin NPSOT Chapter. This is a statewide program which partners with local plant nurseries to encourage them to promote and provide more Texas native plants. We also built a searchable plant database, last year, for the Austin Chapter website. This later led to the creation of a Texas Native Plant Landscape database for the entire NPSOT organization, which all chapters are in the process of contributing to. And, we are so happy, after a bit of a setback, that we were able to continue to offer annual native plants sales.

We are proud of the momentum we built together last year, after the long COVID shutdown, and look forward to riding that wave into 2023.

Cheers,
Claire

About the Region

2026 Fall Symposium Logo

This low-elevations region of Texas extends inland from the barrier islands, about 60 or so miles, and stretches from Brownsville to Louisiana. In total, it covers about 9.5 million acres, with a high point of 150 feet in elevation. More than 1000 species of plants can be found in this region. On the southern end, species more common in Mexico (such as Sabal mexicana) and Central America occur.

The barrier islands provide us with dune systems, and clay flats to the inland side, which have species found in these areas alone. Many plants here, such as Ipomoea pes-caprae (beach morning glory), can be found throughout tropical regions of the globe. I’ve encountered the same species on the beaches of Guam.

Once inland, vast marshes and wet prairies occur. Occasionally, oak (Quercus fusiformis) groves can be found. Common grasses include species of Bothriochloa, Paspalum, and Sporobolus; eastern gamagrass (Tripsacum dactyloides); and switchgrass (Panicum species). Many rivers and creeks cut through the Gulf Prairies, and along these riparian areas various species of trees, Sabal minor, and other plants adapted to clay soils can be found. Due to overgrazing, farming, and fire suppression, woody species such as mesquite (Prosopis glandulosa) and huisache (Acacia farnesiana), and invasive species such as chinaberry (Melia azedarach), Brazilian pepper (Schinus terebinthifolius), and Chinese tallow (Sapium sebiferum) have increased and displaced our native flora.

Source: Wildflowers of Texas by Michael Eason