Native Grown Articles

By Bill Ward Published in The Boerne Star on December 28, 2007 In this part of the world, we can plant trees almost any time of year, but planting during

By Bill Ward Published in The Boerne Star on December14, 2007 If you ever attended a talk by Steve Nelle, you undoubtedly were impressed by how well this man understands

By Bill Ward Published in The Boerne Star on November 30, 2007 When Kendall County purchased parkland on Little Joshua Creek north of Boerne, the county also might have bought

This is the time of year I like to try to find time to sit in the backyard on a sunny day and enjoy the flowers.  The bright-yellow areas of

By Bill Ward Published in The Boerne Star on October 5, 2007 Operation NICE! (Natives Instead of Common Exotics!) recommended plant for October is western soapberry (Sapindus saponaria var. drummondii).

By Bill Ward Published in The Boerne Star on September 7, 2007 The September Plant of the Month for Operation NICE! (Natives Instead of Common Exotics!) is one of those

By Bill Ward Published in The Boerne Star on August 24, 2007 The end of September this year could well be called “Native-Plant Days in Boerne.” The Boerne Chapter of

By Bill Ward Published in The Boerne Star on August 10, 2007 Mark your calendars! The last Friday and Saturday in September, the Boerne Chapter of the Native Plant Society

By Bill Ward Published in The Boerne Star on July 27, 2007 Lying in an obscure weed patch just south of the Guadalupe River in Kerrville is a big block

By Bill Ward Published in The Boerne Star on July 13, 2007 Big Red Sage – where might it be hiding? Big red sage (Salvia pentstemonoides) is common in gardens,

By Bill Ward Published in The Boerne Star on June 8, 2007 In May of 2004, Patty Leslie Pasztor and I got permission from land owners to kayak through some

By Bill Ward Published in The Boerne Star on May 25, 2007 There is a tropical-looking shrub with long spikes of scarlet-red blooms that is becoming more and more popular

By Bill Ward Published in The Boerne Star on May 11, 2007 Operation NICE! (Natives Instead of Common Exotics!) is five years old. This program was conceived and initiated by

By Bill Ward Published in The Boerne Star on April 27, 2007 Until not too long ago, I thought that the spring wildflower with four big pink petals is called

By Bill Ward Published in The Boerne Star on April 13, 2007 Among those yellow wildflowers that are starting to bloom in the Hill Country is Engelmann daisy (Engelmannia pinnatifida).

By Bill Ward Published in The Boerne Star on March 30, 2007 Operation NICE! (Natives Instead of Common Exotics!) landscape plant for April is crossvine (Bigonia capreolata). This vine is

By Bill Ward Published in The Boerne Star on March 16, 2007 All during the time of the Texas Republic, from 1836 to 1845, Ferdinand Lindheimer botanized in southeastern Texas.

By Bill Ward Published in The Boerne Star on March 2, 2007 About this time of year, I always get a little impatient waiting for signs that the Mexican plum

By Bill Ward Published in The Boerne Star on February 16, 2007 Lindheimer daisy, Lindheimer’s silktassel, Lindheimer’s senna, Lindheimer’s maiden fern, Lindheimer’s nolina, Lindheimer muhly, and the “Lindheimer” list goes

By Bill Ward Published in The Boerne Star on February 2, 2007 Lindheimer silktassel (Garrya ovata subsp. lindheimeri) is the Operation NICE! (Natives Instead of the Common Exotics!) choice for

By Bill Ward Published in The Boerne Star on January 26, 2007 Lindheimer’s senna, Engelmann daisy, Drummond phlox, Ashe juniper, Wright lip fern. Lots of native plants of this area

By Bill Ward Published in The Boerne Star on January 5, 2007 A happy surprise for me several years ago when I began paying more attention to the trees of

By Bill Ward Published in The Boerne Star on December 22, 2006. While Kathy and I were visiting in Austin last week, our friend Les White thought we would like to take a tour of Escarpment Village, a shopping center near his house. Now, I definitely am not into shopping centers, but Les was correct. This one we did want to see.

By Bill Ward Published in The Boerne Star on December 8, 2006 Before last week’s frigid gale stripped off most of the leaves, our yard was the prettiest it has

By Bill Ward Published in The Boerne Star on October 27, 2006. In more ways than one, November is the month of the bigtooth maple in Boerne.

By Bill Ward Published in The Boerne Star in October 2006 One nice thing about living in the Hill Country is that we have a “second spring” of blooming wildflowers.

By Bill Ward Published in The Boerne Star on September 29, 2006. Operation NICE! (Natives Instead of the Common Exotics!) selection for October is Barbados-cherry (Malpighia glabra).

By Bill Ward Published in The Boerne Star on September 15, 2006 Two weeks ago, the Boerne chapter of the Native Plant Society of Texas (NPSOT) entered a float in

By Bill Ward Published in The Boerne Star on August 25, 2006 Ever since man has been able to move about the globe, plants that originated in one part of

By Bill Ward Published in The Boerne Star on August 11, 2006 Biologists who study ecologic changes have long agreed that the leading reason for the decreasing biodiversity in the