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| Photo Credit: Photo courtesy of Dan Morrison, Lady Bird Johnson Wildflower Center |
| The colorful part of Indian paintbrush isn’t the flower, but the bracts. |
Lady Bird Johnson was a true lady in every sense of the word. Her work in the 1960s to make the nation’s highways more beautiful through native plantings was a true gift to all Americans. And it was the first big push toward using native plants.
Today, native perennials, shrubs and trees are popular across the country. In fact, every year it gets easier to find them, but many gardeners still have to visit specialty nurseries or grow plants from seed to create their own native gardens. But informational resources are expanding, and many states now have native plant databases (which you can get through your area Extension Services associated with a research university). While the explosion in native-plant popularity would’ve made Lady Bird proud, perhaps the greatest tribute to her is the fact that so many Texas yards (and beyond) now abound with native plants! Below I’ve listed five beloved Texas native wildflowers you might want to try. (And you don’t need to live in Texas to enjoy them.) I’m sure Lady Bird would’ve approved of each and every one. Indian paintbrush (also known as Texas paintbrush) grows wildly throughout the countryside and blooms in spring. The flashy species, Castilleja indivisa, can be found in Texas, Oklahoma, Louisiana and Arkansas. Its bracts are the showiest part – they’re orange-red – and they hide the green flower inside. The plant also has woolly gray-green leaves. And it’s a hungry one: The roots of Indian paintbrush grow right into the roots of other plants and steal their nutrients! Despite their thieving ways, hummingbirds and butterflies love this 1-foot-tall plant. If you’d like to grow it, plant Indian paintbrush in a sunny spot with slightly acidic soil, and water it moderately (which means, don’t let it get too dry, and don’t drench it every day). | Add Photo to Journal |  | | Photo Credit: Photo courtesy of Marian Reid, Lady Bird Johnson Wildflower Center | | Texas bluebonnet is the showiest of all the lupines. |
The Lone Star State is home to six species of bluebonnets, but the one most people are know is Lupinus texensis, or Texas bluebonnet. It’s got stems with clusters of more than 50 deep-blue flowers each – which certainly make a bright and bold statement in Texas springtime landscapes! While known for their blue color, flowers can range from white to pink. These 1- to 3-foot-tall lupines grow throughout the South and into Oklahoma. The Texas beauties like full sun and calcium-rich soils, and they’ll get by in Xeric conditions. As annuals, bluebonnets reseed themselves. If you grow them, you’ll notice lots of butterflies and bees zipping about.
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