Yeah, yeah, I write about wildflowers all the time. But today four of my Master Naturalist friends and I traveled to the deepest depths of Austin, Texas (which only took 1.5 hours on a Saturday with no huge festival happening). There, we found the Lady Bird Johnson Wildflower Center, a regular treasury of Texas wildflowers, many at their peak of bloom.
I used to be a member when my children were young and I only worked part time, but it had been quite a few years since my last visit. Seeing how well the plants have grown, as well as finding new places to look around, was a great experience for me.
I am a lot better at identifying native plants than I was 25 years ago, so I had fun figuring out what I was seeing before checking its sign or looking it up on iNaturalist. Of course, some plants were new surprises, which added to the fun. I think I ended up being the ID guide, though a couple of my companions were pretty good, too.
After enjoying the gardens, we went to the annual native plant sale, where the group picked up some interesting plants for the urban wildscape our group is making at the church where we meet.
We rewarded ourselves with a visit to the gift shop, where we found the Texas Master Naturalist textbook among the offerings. I got a book I can’t wait to read, with plant and insect mandalas.
When we were finished, we drove up to Georgetown for a late lunch at Wild Fire restaurant. It was pretty spectacular and a great ending to our trip. Plus! When I got home it started to rain. Yay! Let’s celebrate by looking at some plants I saw.
Looking forward to a cool day tomorrow and a good rain total!
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