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Native Plant Society of Texas

Clear Lake Chapter

Plant of the Month: Texas Bluebells

Presented by Atalanda Cameron
January 11, 2021

Botanical name: Eustoma exaltatum
Common names: Texas Bluebells, Prairie Gentian, Showy Prairie Gentian
Family: Gentianaceae (Gentian)

[MUS—EASY AND FUN]

[Atalanda] Hi, my name is Atalanda Cameron. I’m an environmental science student at the University of Houston-Clear Lake, and I’m an intern at the Environmental Institute of Houston this semester. This is a presentation on Texas Bluebells.

Texas Bluebells, otherwise known as Eustoma exaltatum, are from the Gentian Family. They have multiple common names including the Prairie Gentian and the Showy Prairie Gentian. The flowers are bell-shaped with upright stems with a blue to light violet bell bloom with white gradient from center. They can grow up to 1.5 feet with their blooming time mainly in the summer.

Texas Bluebells grow individually. The flowers are pentamerous meaning they have five petals, and their width is about two to four inches. The leaves grow in opposite orientation and are deciduous, meaning the leaves will fall off at the end of the growing season. When the seed capsule ripens, the stalk may be cut back two or three inches above the ground for maintenance. They are very popular in other countries like Japan, where they have been bred and hybridized for their beauty for over 70 years.

Texas Bluebells prefer moist, sandy and loamy soil. They also grow best with full or partial access to sunlight. Depending on where they are grown, the growth cycle can be annual, biennial, or perennial. They are found naturally in moist well-drained areas around streams and river beds, and they grow best in well-watered, well-drained gardens.

Due to over picking of naturally grown bluebells, they are much less common than they were a few decades ago. Unfortunately, the over-picking makes it hard for them to be pollinated and spread their seeds, but people have expanded their habitat by spreading them to different regions.

When growing in the garden, plan to propagate at the end of March. The seeds are very small and can be somewhat difficult to work with, but they have a higher germination rate through surface seeding when sunlight is able to penetrate them. For best results, germinate the seeds in a warm 70- to 75-degree environment.

For more resources and more information, visit the Native Plant Society of Texas.

[MUS—AND THAT’S IT]

Resources

Related Posts

Plant of the month for August is Splitbeard Bluestem, Andropogon ternarius, and also called Feather Bluestem or Paintbrush Bluestem. It is a native. It's a warm season grass. It's a perennial. It's a bunchgrass. By warm season, it means that it's dormant in the winter and starts growing in the spring as the weather warms up. A bunchgrass tends to stay in a small circle or a bunch. The grass has numerous thin basal leaves, which usually stay about 12 or 15 inches tall, which makes it ideal in our home landscapes. It grows best in part shade to full sun. And this grass will be available at our plant sale on October 20 and 21. It prefers to grow in sand or well-drained soil, which we kind of struggle with here, but it does do well. It's shade tolerant and drought tolerant. I know the camera has a hard time focusing on those light hairy little seeds. The bloom time is from August to November. In late summer, it will send up its bloom stalk, which may be up to three feet tall. And, as the seeds on the long slender stalk mature, they'll split into two tiny stems about two inches long, each with seeds of fluffy white tufts. The seeds are wind distributed. The plants may be started from seed or another way is to dig your mature plant and with your shovels, cut it into maybe four sections, which then can be replanted in other places in your yard or shared with some of your neighbors. It's an easy plant to grow. Splitbeard can be found on the prairie with Little Bluestem and it's great when it's seen in the afternoon sun en masse; reminds me of snowflakes on the branches. And it can be used in a winter dried arrangement in the house. Native bees can use Splitbeard Bluestem for nesting materials. And until their bloom stalk is sent up, the narrow basal leaves are hard to distinguish from other bunchgrasses such as Sideoats Grama. And there it is. And you note how the seeds are all on one side, thus its name. We don't have any of this one for sale at our fall sale. Maybe we will in the spring, in April. But it was interesting, I thought, when I looked for Splitbeard Bluestem in the Wasowski book of Native Texas Plants these two bunchgrasses were on the same page. So, that is the story of the Sideoats Grama and the Splitbeard Bluestem.

Plant of the Month: Woolly Bluestar

February 15, 2023

Our Plant of the Month for February 2023 is Amsonia tomentosa, commonly known as Woolly Bluestar, Woolly Amsonia, Small Leaved Amsonia, or Gray Amsonia.

Oyster Mushroom

Plant of the Month: Oyster Mushroom

January 9, 2023

Our plant of the month for January isn’t a plant at all, it’s a fungus!
Botanical name: Pleurotus ostreatus
Common name(s): Oyster Mushroom, Pearl Oyster Mushroom

About the Region

Fall Symposium 2025 Logo - Teach for the Future

Salado, the location of our Fall 2025 Symposium, lies at the intersection of two ecoregions: the Edwards Plateau (Limestone Cut Plain) and Blackland Prairie (Northern Blackland Prairie).

The Edwards Plateau area is also called the Hill Country; however, this general term covers a much larger area extending farther north. Spring-fed creeks are found throughout the region; deep limestone canyons, rivers, and lakes (reservoirs) are common. Ashe juniper is perhaps the most common woody species found throughout the region. Additional woody species include various species of oak, with live oak (Quercus fusiformis) being the most common. Sycamores (Platanus occidentalis) and bald cypress (Taxodium distichum) border waterways. This area is well known for its spring wildflower displays, though they may be viewed in spring, late summer, and fall, as well. According to Texas Parks and Wildlife, average annual rainfall in the Edwards Plateau ranges from 15 to 34 inches.

The Blackland Prairie extends from the Red River south to San Antonio, bordered on the west by the Edwards Plateau and the Cross Timbers, and on the east by the Post Oak Savannah. Annual rainfall averages 30 to 40 inches, with higher averages to the east. This region is dominated by prairie species. The most common grass species include little bluestem (Schizachyrium scoparium) and Indian grass (Sorghastrum nutans) in the uplands and switchgrass (Panicum virgatum) in the riparian areas and drainages. Common herbaceous flowering plants include salvias, penstemons, and silphiums. This area has suffered greatly from overgrazing and agricultural use. Few intact areas remain, though many of the plants can be found along county roadsides throughout the region.

Our fall Symposium host chapter, the Tonkawa Chapter, includes both of these ecoregions.

Source: Wildflowers of Texas by Michael Eason