New native plants!

Texas Star hisbiscus Hibiscus coccineus

Wild foxglove Penstemon cobaea 

Snake herb Dyschoriste linearis 

Engelmann's daisy Salvia peristenia

Yellow coral honeysuckle Lonicera sempervirens var. sulphurea

Blue curls Phacelia congesta

Evergreen sumac Rhus virens

Firecracker plant 'St. Elmo's' Russelia equisetiformis (Native to Mexico)

Western white honeysuckle Lonicera albiflora var. albiflora

Scarlet milkweed Asclepias curassavica (Native to South America)

Texas milkweed Asclepias texana

Zizotes milkweed Asclepias oenotheroides 

Mostly Native Plant Sale

Lately, I'd been living for TODAY. Because today was the Cibolo Nature Center's annual Mostly Native Plant Sale in Boerne! Oh, how I love love LOVE this sale, held at the Kendall County Fairgrounds every April. 

James visits with salvia vendor Jerry Morrisey from San Antonio.

Today, we arrived two minutes after 9 a.m. (they opened at 9). Right away, I zipped over to the big booth hosted by the  Native Plant Society of Texas/Boerne Chapter and bought their last Texas milkweed. In all, I came home with...oh...around 14 or so plants (I'll list them in a separate post). Then, right before we left the fairgrounds at 11, I snuck in one more purchase and bought a zizotes milkweed (photo below) from the Monarch Watch program. What can I say!? I love milkweeds! And penstemons...and sumacs...and.....

Suet recipe

No-Melt Suet

1/2 cup lard
1/2 cup crunchy peanut butter
1/2 cup flour
1 cup rolled oats
1 cup cornmeal

Microwave the lard at low power in a glass container until soft and just starting to melt. Add peanut butter. Microwave a little longer if necessary, then stir together. Add dry ingredients and mix well. Chill in the refrigerator until firm. Then form into little balls. Store balls in a container in refrigerator. Use as needed. Birds love this stuff!

Backyard visitor

Someone's been visiting our back yard. Probably an oppossum. I've never seen a raccoon around here.

Common green bottle fly (Lucilia sericata)

More blooms

Primrose

Coral honeysuckle

Spiderwort

Our volunteer aromatic sumac is flowering for the first time!

Mostly bluebonnets

Our neighbor's first bluebonnets....

Bladderpod.....

Native plant sales this spring

Reprinted from the Native Plant Society of Texas

By Julie Allen

Searching for hard-to-find natives for that special spot in a garden bed? This time of year many Native Plant Society chapters sell plants to support their local projects. You can also find sales at botanical gardens and nature centers.

Now is a perfect time to add natives to your new or existing garden. We think you’ll enjoy seeing them in your landscape and watching the native pollinators return.

Here is a list of native plant sales coming up this spring that we know of.  

• March 15-16, March 22-23, Houston. Spring Native Plant Sale at Houston Arboretum.
• March 29, San Antonio. The San Antonio Chapter will be holding their annual Spring Sale this year at Phil Hardberger Park East.
• March 29, San Marcos. Wildflower Fiesta at San Marcos Nature Center.
• March 29, Beaumont Botanical Gardens. Beaumont Chapter will have a plant sale in conjunction with Beaumont Council of Garden Clubs.
• March 29, Burnet. Highland Lakes Master Gardeners Lawn & Garden Show. Highland Lakes Chapter will have a booth with lots of native plants including milkweeds.
• April 5, Boerne. Cibolo Nature Center Mostly Native Plant Sale. Boerne Chapter will be participating.
• April 5, Fort Worth Botanic Garden. North Central Chapter will have plants on sale.
• April 5, Flower Mound. Keep Flower Mound Beautiful Spring Trash-Off and Environmental Fair Trinity Forks Chapter will have a booth with over 1000 plants for sale.
• April 5, Nacogdoches. Spring Gala Plant Sale, Mast Arboretum.
• April 11-13, Austin Lady Bird Johnson Wildflower Center. Our Austin Chapter and Williamson County Chapter will participate.
• April 12, Fredericksburg Marketplatz. Fredericksburg Chapter will have a sale in conjunction with the Fredericksburg Garden Club. Monarch booth with Cathy Downs.
• April 11-13, McKinney. Spring Plant Sale at Heard Museum. Collin County Chapter will have a booth.
• April 12-13, New Braunfels Folk Fest. Lindheimer Chapter will have a booth.
• April 12, Stephenville. Native and Heirloom Plant Fair, Stephenville Museum. Prairie Rose Chapter will have a booth there.
• April 26, Kerrville. Riverside Nature Center Native Plant Sale and Festival. Our Kerrville Chapter will have plants for sale.
• April 26, Seguin. Earth Day Celebration. Guadalupe County will include plant sales in our booth as part of the Earth Day celebration.
• April 26, Weatherford Blooms Festival. Cross Timbers Chapter will have a booth across from the courthouse square in Weatherford with plants for sale and other activities.
• April 26-27, Dallas. Texas Discovery Gardens Butterfly Plants Sale.
• April 26, El Paso. Flora Fest at University of Texas El Paso.
• May 3, Dallas.  Native plant sale and speakers at Love Our Native Plants and Prairies Day at White Rock Lake. Our Dallas Chapter will be there.