Basic landscape techniques to help plants show more effectively and let neighbors know you have a plan!
Basic landscape techniques to help plants show more effectively and let neighbors know you have a plan!
Deedy Wright is a life-long Texas gardener. Her particular interests are native plants, xeriscape, and invasive plants. She has been an active member of the Native Plant Society of Texas […]
Deedy Wright is a life-long Texas gardener. Her particular interests are native plants, xeriscape, and invasive plants. She has been an active member of the Native Plant Society of Texas (NPSOT) since 1996 and helped organize the Guadalupe County NPSOT chapter in 2007 and New Braunfels Chapter in 2019. She served as president of the San Antonio, Guadalupe County and New Braunfels chapters of NPSOT. She has also served as the Vice-President of Education on the state NPSOT board.
Deedy has completed the Texas Invaders training on invasive plants and multiple native plant courses at the Ladybird Johnson Wildflower Center. She served on the Native Landscape Certification Program (NLCP) Steering Committee for several years. She is also an NLCP instructor, completing Levels 1-3 and serving on the sub-committee to write Level 4. In addition she was a certified Master Gardener for 15 years in Bexar and Guadalupe counties.
A retired secondary language arts and social studies teacher, Deedy has taught adult continuing education classes on various gardening topics in the San Antonio area.
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