All Speakers

Abbie Ince-Hendrickson

I was originally born in the dusty plains of Lubbock, TX. For my undergraduate degree, I attended Texas A&M University in College Station, receiving a B.S. in Microbiology, with emphasis

Read More »

Austin Kelly

Austin R. Kelly is President and Lead Biologist for ARK Ecological Consulting, botanical and environmental consulting group that works across the US, focused on plant and wildlife inventories and conservation,

Read More »

Beth Erwin

NPSOT Williamson County Chapter President 2021-2023 Louisiana native with a B.S. in Horticulture. Charter member of the Louisiana Native Plant Society. Retired in 2017 as curator of a private nature

Read More »

Beverly Blondell

My name is Beverly Hill Blondell, and I am a passionate landscape designer based in Houston, Texas. My journey into the world of landscape design began in my own backyard

Read More »

Bob Dailey

Writer and lecturer on native plants, water conservation, soil conservation, and organics.  He grew up on a farm in South Louisiana and spent his time as a youth wandering through

Read More »

Brice Moczygemba

Brice Moczygemba retired in December 2017 after a 30-year career as a civil engineer and principal with Pape-Dawson Engineers. His lifelong interest in the outdoors and nature began as a

Read More »

Briony Gannon

I am a marketing professional working in Houston for the past 30 years. I am a Texas Master Naturalist, Permaculture certified, NLCP certified 1,2,3,4 + Birds. NLCP teacher

Read More »

Carol Clark

Carol Clark is an amateur botany enthusiast, a Texas Master Naturalist, a longtime member of the Native Plant Society of Texas, and is a Conservation Specialist with Monarch Watch. She

Read More »

Casey Williams

Casey graduated from Texas State University with a B.S in Aquatic Biology and an M.S. in Aquatic Resources. He has worked for BIO -WEST, a private consulting firm, since 2013

Read More »

Charlotte Reemts

Charlotte Reemts is an ecologist and science project director with The Nature Conservancy’s Texas Chapter where she has studied ecosystems across Texas since 2005. She works with natural areas and

Read More »

Cherie Colburn

A professional landscape designer and native Texan, Cherie has designed hundreds of low-maintenance commercial and residential landscape designs since 1994 through her company, Nature’s Tapestry. She’s also helped create schoolyard

Read More »

Craig Bruska

Craig chairs the Society’s Native Seed committee and is the Lindheimer Education chair. He covers – Collecting Native Seeds, Creating native seed libraries, a Quarterly Propagation series, and the Seven

Read More »

David Will

David has been a long time member of NPSOT. He was awarded the Benny J. Simpson Fellows Award in 2006. David founded the Lindheimer Chapter, co-founded the Hill Country Chapter

Read More »

Dawn Obermoeller

Dawn Obermoeller brings more than 20 years of science communication and strategic marketing experience to conservation writing, a career that began in the biology labs of Southwest Texas State University

Read More »

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