The Texas A&M Agrilife Extension service is offering a pond management seminar on March 15, 2019. See attached flyer for more details.
A Wonderful & Versatile Native Shrub
We planted this wonderful native down on our dry weather creek for bank stability. This plant likes/needs wet feet, and is perfect for the task. This is the Buttonbush Cephalanthus occidentalis. It can grow to 18′ tall and 10′ wide in full sun. The blossom looks like a button, as you can see and attracts all the pollinators; look for butterflies, bees and hummingbirds to come to it once established. It is particularly favored by our native bees. The plant is deciduous, but in my experience, some stems freeze back to the ground. The plant recovers each year to bloom in the summer. I found that used in a pond environment, any submerged portion will provide habitat for amphibians, reptiles, ducks, and fish. Some 25 species of birds eat the seeds. A native worth planting by our creeks and ponds.
This picture shows the “button” later in the season, about to go to seed.
Water Lilies in the Rain
If you’re driving Miller Creek Loop, you will find these water lilies as we did last Saturday in the rain.
White Water Lily, Fragrant Water Lily, Nymphaea odorata. These perennial lilies are native to Texas and only become a problem if they become too thick within their environment . Then there is a risk they will start to shade out other plants. These lilies are found in our ponds, lakes, slow streams and ditches. The plant parts and seeds benefit waterbirds and small mammals.
