Native By Josephine Keeney

Flame Acanthus, Hummingbird Bush, quadrifidus var. wrightii (Acanthus Family)

This is the for you, if you are looking for a beautiful plant that can take the Texas heat and survive with very little water and care. I have never seen it bothered by insects or disease in the fifteen years that I have been growing native plants, that really means a lot, and it is something that can hardly be said about other hardy plants. This shrub is deciduous and has light colored brittle wood, it is cold hardy in the DFW area and likes to wait for the weather to warm up before putting on new growth in the spring. The new stems are square and the leaves are small and light green, growing opposite to each other with no serration on the edges. The bloom period is from June to frost in this area of North Central Texas. Flame Acanthus can be pruned or sheared to suit your desired size or shape, it bounces back quickly and rewards you with many bright tubular orange-red blooms that attract attention from far away. But if all these virtues weren’t enough, the bright tubular flowers attract all the hummers and butterflies in the neighborhood, making it a delight to watch. It also happens to be a host plant for the Crimson Patch, Texan Crescent and Cyna Blue butterflies. Considering all these good points: Flame Acanthus should have a very special place in the yard and especially in the butterfly garden.

CONSERVATION PRESERVATION RESTORATION EDUCATION Outreach & Communications Guy By George McBride

Hello there fellow Master Naturalist, hope all is well with you. With my age and being on oxygen I guess I'm semi-retired- I am still still active with all of you. I am in charge of the Speakers Bureau. Go to our web-site and click it on. You will see different speakers on this list. Each one has a toppic they can lecture about. Each lecture should be at least 30 minutes or so. If you are good about speaking let me know and you will be put on this list. I can be reached at: cell: 817-247-6715 or [email protected]

CONSERVATION PRESERVATION RESTORATION EDUCATION Novice “Butterfly” Gardener By Carla Savage Those acquainted with me know; I have spent much of my time in the garden my entire life. In my case that just means I love being outside where the living things reside! Early on this would include my mother’s garden, her gardening friends’ yards and gardens in which she volunteered. Since then I have always dabbled with plants and dirt, (black, red, gold, rich deep brown) whether inside or outside, experiencing successes and losses along the way. I have also gardened with native plants found on the land I have lived and with seeds and plants I have gathered, whether along the roadside or at abandoned homesteads. My philosophy with plants was pretty much inherited from my mom who would experiment with tiny micro-climes in her yard, planting here and there and then moving next autumn, “it looks unhappy here...let’s try this!” I watched and admired her oneness with the surroundings, the totality of her experience and appreciation and interconnectedness with all forms of living organisms. I laugh when I recall a friend perusing my yard and telling me I garden “funny”. She said, “You just stick plants all over”. And that has been true. I never have been good at the orderly English cottage type garden my sister and brother were so successful in creating; I just enjoy sharing the space. Years ago my Cross Timbers yard was truly an oasis of greenery, the sprinklers running virtually non-stop, but the severe droughts changed my feelings immeasurably and I came to appreciate even more the plants that are resilient to the climate and soils North Texas offers. Folks visiting my yard comment they “don’t have a green thumb” and I tell them they are just using the wrong plants. Use the plants that are happy here, I tell them. Use the ones that don’t need to be babied as much, as I make suggestions and offer the wherefores and whys, maybe clipping a cutting or digging a start for them to take home. After meeting Dale Clark recently (local butterfly aficionado and expert of the Dallas Lepidopterist Society) and visiting his butterfly nursery my heart went pitter-patter and my enthusiasm took a leap. If you have never accepted Dale’s invitation for visitors to his yard in autumn, save the date. It is an experience you are not likely to soon forget. Prolific in his yard are both nectar and host plants for many species of butterfly, in a similar casual manner of arrangement to my own. Migratory and resident butterflies flit to and fro, sometimes alighting Long enough for a photo opportunity. The day I attended his open house, I decided then and there I would proceed in planting some species I hadn’t currently entertained in an area I have been saving for that particular venture, not far from several of my critter watering holes, but in great view of my kitchen window and balcony. Reminding myself of lessons learned from the Native Plant Society landscaping classes attended last year, volunteering in native plant gardens, gathering wild seed, dividing my existing perennials, supporting the native plant sales hosted by the Dallas Discovery Gardens and the Fort Worth Native Plant Society and sharing with friends, I was well on my way with new stock last fall. Always remember that when first planting a new garden bed it will appear a little sparse, but very rapidly the plants will take hold and spread or reseed.

I was rewarded with a year of welcome regular rain showers, not very common in North Central Texas, and this year has been a journey of new beginnings and of our first fronts of the season, I saw handfuls of species fluttering about. While doing gardening chores (pulling a few blades of grass that don’t belong, feeding and watering the birds, spreading compost) I have learned the different habits and preferences of several of the types of butterflies. I have also had future plans reeling in my head with new trellis ideas, expanding to additional planting areas, perusing books and seed catalogs for new plants to add this autumn. If you are interested and have a few available spaces in your yard, consider adding a native plant or two to enhance color, beauty and diversity in your yard and sit back and enjoy the experience of inviting the delightful flutterbys of the wonderful butterflies.

Preparing the bed Newly planted Months after planting Basketflower Another view

CONSERVATION PRESERVATION RESTORATION EDUCATION The Texas Master Naturalist 18th Annual Meeting will be held at the Omni Corpus Christi the weekend of October 20th through 22nd, 2017.

We have a FULL AGENDA filled with 117 different presentations and field sessions with a variety of topics and speakers from around the state. Join us and enjoy this weekend of comradery and learning!

For all the details: txmn.org/2017-annual-meeting

CONSERVATION PRESERVATION RESTORATION EDUCATION