Collin County Chapter

What We Do

Monthly Talks

The Collin County Chapter of NPSOT meets on the first Tuesday of each month at 6:30 p.m., except in January and December. These talks include a featured speaker discussing a topic related to Native Plants of Texas. A full listing of our 2026 chapter meeting speakers is below. For a detailed description of upcoming chapter meetings, please see the Events page

If you would like to be notified of upcoming chapter meetings, and other updates, please send an email requesting to be added to our mailing list. 

Native Plant Sale

The Heard Natural Science Museum and Wildlife Sanctuary in McKinney is holding its annual native plant sale in 2026 on April 17 – 19. April 17 is for Heard Members only and the sale is open to the public on April 18 – 19. Our chapter partners with the Heard Museum on the native plant sale. The sale is one of the longest-running, largest, and best native plant sales in Texas. 

Field Trips & Nature Walks

We frequently lead field trips and walks to points of interest related to native plants. These include native prairies and forests, nurseries that carry native plants, and other similar venues. See our Event page for a listing of upcoming trips and walks.

Seed Packet Kits

Throughout the year we create native seed packet kits to sell at events. Our members collect seeds and then clean, sort, and package them for sale. Volunteer opportunities are available to help with packaging seed packet kits.

Community Outreach

The Collin County Chapter participates in events around the county and North Texas to advocate for native plants. Typically, we will work with schools, charitable organizations, youth groups, and other non-profits to help the community learn more about the benefits of native plants. In addition, we have information booths and speak at a variety of events. 

Speakers Bureau

The NPSOT Speakers Bureau connects our local and state-wide experts with organizations that need speakers related to native plants of Texas. Some past topics have included:

  • “Why Native Plants?”
  • “Landscaping with Natives”
  • “Pollinator Gardens”
  • “Monarchs and Milkweed”

Please use our Contact Us form to send your request, and a member will help you with identifying an expert for your topic.

Native Plant Garden Assistance

We offer non-profits, churches, government entities, and public parks within Collin County and adjacent counties free native plant garden design assistance. Our team of volunteers will provide a consultation site visit and can coordinate volunteer efforts for the garden installation. We will help identify plants that will do well based on the local site conditions (soil, sun and moisture). 

For organizations, we request they identify a champion who will support the project and has the authority to ensure development and maintenance tasks are completed by your staff or volunteers based on our recommendations.

Provide us with as much details as possible in our Contact Us page and one our members will contact you to learn more about the project, your organization, and coordinate a site visit. 

Education

The Native Landscape Certification Program (NLCP) is a series of day-long classes that teach best practices for native plant landscaping – including wildlife habitat gardening. This program is managed by the State NPSOT team, with local classes hosted in our area and often taught by our members.

Each class consists of an indoor training session and a 2-hour outdoor plant walk. The classes showcase native plants in their natural habitat, illustrating their use in the landscape. You will also see common invasive plants in natural areas. 

Targeted audiences include homeowners, native plant enthusiasts, landscape architects, architects, plant nursery employees, maintenance workers, park employees, Master Naturalists, Master Gardeners, teachers, and more.

For more details on the NLCP: About – Class Schedule – Class Descriptions.

For more information – nlcp@npsot.org

People in native prairie

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