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Newsletter
November 2015
Volume 15 Number 9
Monthly Meeting Tuesday November 3, 2015
Fellow chapter member Chuck Janzow will talk with us about Growing Texas Native Plants from Seed. Chuck is a founding member of the NPSOT-Boerne Chapter. He was a science teacher at Boerne High School for over 30 years and is a self-taught horticulturist. Jill Nokes, author of “How to Grow Native Plants of Texas and the Southwest.” lists Chuck among her “collaborators” and cites his advice many times in her book. This book is available in the Cibolo Nature Center library. Chuck and his wife Martha Barker can often be seen harvesting seeds from native plants in the Texas Hill Country. For many years, Chuck has brought his “Texas Natives”, plants that are often not available commercially at area nurseries, to the annual Cibolo Nature Center Mostly Native Plant Sale. Many of those plants can be seen in gardens throughout the Texas Hill Country. Chuck is a wonderful speaker and is very giving of this time in his efforts to save and propagate “Texas Native Plants.” As usual our social begins at 6:30pm. The meeting will begin at 7pm.
President’sMessage
Greetings to Boerne NPSOT Members!
I wish everybody had been able to attend the State Native Plant Society Meeting in Austin. Both the speakers and the fieldtrips were great. Our Vice President Don Fraser is trying to get some of them to come for our local Chapter Meetings.
Thanks to Rheda Boardman for initiating the Youth Wild flower Picture Contest. If you were present at the last meeting you saw some of the children and how excited they were. We planto repeat it, but have it during the spring.
Thanks to our outgoing officers: President Daneshu Clarke, Treasurer Rheda Boardman, and Secretary Kelly Dunn for all their good work this past year.
Our Vice President is continuing with the new board members, so we will have his expertise in finding programs for another year. Thanks for the work of our Newsletter Editor Carolyn Walden for many years.
I appreciate the honor I received to be your next President and I look forward to working with our officers. This is a wonderful organization with members who are willing to not only learn more, but share their knowledge and encourage sustaining and conserving the fascinating hill country ecosystem.
November is the time when Suzanne Young needs help giving out bigtooth maples to the Boerne community. After the first real cold spell we have, you will soon see the colorful leaves from the past years. Thanks to Maple Momma Suzanne for all her work with the grant money we received from Bill Lende.
Now that we finally have some rain, our native plants will start perking up. Enjoy the Fall.
Kathy Ward
Chapter Activities
Texas Native Plant Youth Photo Contest Winners
By Rheda Boardman
Congratulations to all of the participants of this year’s first Texas Native Plant Youth Photo contest. Winners were announced at our October meeting. All photos were displayed prior to the meeting for members and guests to cast their vote for the “People’s Choice” award, which went to Nicolas Stiller’s “Afternoon Snack” (Gulf Fritillary Butterfly & Rock Rose).
We received 17 entries from 12 students representing 7 schools. We were thrilled that several contestants and their families were able to attend the meeting.
Contestants received ribbon(s), a Certificate of Accomplishment, and a sponsor prize(s). Prizes were furnished by Security State Bank & Trust, TEVA, HEB, Home Depot, Bumdoodlers, Papa Murphy’s, and Starplex Cinemas.
Students, their schools and entries were:
Nicolas Siller – Geneva Middle School:1. Watch Tower – Mexican Hat (wind mill) 1st Place,
2. Prairie Cone Flower on a Summer Day” 1st Place, 3. Afternoon Snack 1st Place & Judges Choice
Adison Cate – Geneva High School: Texas Dawn1st Place & Judges Choice
Allison Dement – Fabra Elementary: The Busy Bee 1st Place
Georgette Hodge – Boerne Middle School North: 1. Thistle & Bee 2nd Place, 2.Bluebonnets &Thistle 3rd Place
Lacey Asher – Kendall Elementary: Bluebonnet 2nd Place
Sebastian Taylor – Boerne High School: 1. Bugs Eye View 2nd Place, 2. The Last Bloom Honorable Mention
Simon Taylor – Boerne Middle School South: 1. Raining Seeds 2nd Place, 2. Just Emerging Honorable Mention
Natalie Holder – Kendall Elementary:Natalie’s Bluebonnet 3rd Place
William Hart – Kendall Elementary:Thistle 3rd Place
T.J. Dement – Fabra Elementary: Twilight Lantana Honorable Mention
Daniel Vogel – Kendall Elementary: Photo not titled Honorable Mention
Lauren McDaniel – Boerne High School: Mexican Hat Flowers Honorable Mention
Thank you to all of this year’s participants. We hope to include the photographs in the next newsletter.
Shutterbug Rheda Boardman Also a Winner
at 2015 NPSOT Annual Symposium
Congratulations to Rheda, whose photograph of a cluster ofbeautiful Agarita(MahoniatrifoliolataakaBerberistrifoliolata)flowerswon first place in a tie score in the judged portion of the contest in the amateur division and the native plant category. This is the first year the photo contest included the "Picks of the Pros" with several judges scoring photos using an evaluation scale based on accepted photography and art and design principles.
Operation Nice!
NICE!™Plant of the Month
November 2015
Anacacho Orchid
Bauhinia lunarioides (congesta)
Anacacho orchid tree, a great landscape plant
By Bill Ward
May 10, 2009
Anacacho orchid tree (Bauhinia lunarioides) is ever-increasingly popular as a hardy landscape plant for Hill Country yards.
Bauhinia is a large genus with 250 species of shrubs, trees, and vines growing in many warm parts of the world. The large-flowered orchid trees native to India and China are familiar to many people because they are cultivated along the Gulf Coast from Texas to Florida. They also are a favorite ornamental in California, Mexico, the Caribbean, both sides of the Mediterranean, and many other places.
The United States has only one native species of Bauhinia, the Anacacho orchid tree. This species grows only in three Texas counties and northeastern Mexico. For a while, it was thought to occur in Texas only in Kinney County in the Upper Cretaceous limestone hills called the “Anacacho Mountains.” Later it was found in Maverick County, probably in similar limestone terrain, and also in Val Verde County on the Lower Cretaceous limestone slopes of the Devils River valley.
The Anacacho orchid tree is a perfect large shrub or small tree, because it is drought-tolerant, needs little care and water, grows fairly fast, and produces abundant spring blooms. Even in the severe drought we’ve recently suffered, our Anacacho orchid trees are now thick with blooms.
The blooms are in tight clusters of white or pale-pink 3/4-inch flowers. The old species name B. congesta refers to the crowded flowers. Typical of most bauhinia, the leaves are distinctly bi-lobed. In Anacacho orchid trees the small leaves are divided to the base into two leaflets, giving a cloven-hoof shape. One of the common names, “pata de vaca” (cow hoof), is derived from the appearance of the leaves.
Anacacho orchid trees apparently can grow well in understory or open-sun sites. Both our Texas white orchid tree and our Northeastern Mexico pink orchid tree do very well in full sun. The population growing in the Dolan Falls area of the Devils River valley is in full sun.
The native stands of Anacacho orchid trees thrive in thin limestone soils, which would seem to bid well for their success in Hill Country gardens. Probably one of the most important requirements is good drainage. In this area, Anacacho orchid trees seem to be cold tolerant, but they may not easily survive the winters much farther north.
According to Robert Vines (Trees, Shrubs, and Woody Vines of the Southwest), the genus name Bauhinia is in honor of Caspar and John Bauhin, “Sixteenth-Century herbalists, an allusion suggested by the twin lobes of the leaves.” These Swiss brothers, however, were not twins. The younger brother Caspar (Gaspard) gained recognition as one of the earliest botanists to attempt a classification system based on common characteristics. In 1623 he published a description of over 6,000 plants in “Pinax theatric botanici.” Even though Bauhin did not conceive of a binomial nomenclature as used in Carl Linnaeus’ 1735 “SystemaNaturae,” many names of genera he coined were adopted by Linnaeus and remain in use today.
Editor’s addition:
I certainly concur with Bill’s statements about the hardiness and beauty of this tree. Mine has survived the drought as well as the flooding rain we had on Memorial Day weekend this year and bloomed prolifically under both conditions. One feature of the Anacacho orchid tree that I especially like is that the flowers are pollinator magnets, attracting bees, butterflies and hummingbirds. Red admiral and pipevine butterflies are regular visitors. Patty Leslie Paztor lists the Anacacho orchid tree as a nectar source and larval food for the long-tailed skipper (
Flowers are followed by a flattened legume seed pod that is 1-3 inches long and contains several oblong, flattened, brown seeds. The dry pod twists open with a loud snap and such force to fling the seeds up to 15-20 feet from the tree. You can collect and sow the seeds for additional plants, or you can let Mother Nature do all the work for you. I planted two trees and over the years have rescued at least a dozen and raised them for the Mostly Native Plant Sale or given them to friends.
Operation NICE! Tip:This NICE! (Native Instead of Common Exotic) Anacacho orchid tree is a relatively fast grower once established and is a beautiful blooming specimen under the right conditions. This is also a good patio tree.
Wanted – NICE! Photos
By Wilt Shaw
2nd Call
The NICE! list of plants for 2016 is below. I am looking for photos of these plants: a close up of the flower (if it has a significant one) and the plant itself. Please send them to me as soon as is convenient for you. I would like to have all submissions by early November. This is NOT a photo contest, but the best ones will be used for our 2016 NICE! poster that will be placed on our website, in nurseries and in other establishments around town. You will be credited on the poster for your photo.
Pictures that are especially needed are: Carolina jessamine (Gelsemiumsempervirens), butterfly milkweed or milkweed (Asclepiastuberosa), (Asclepias sp.), and artemisia (artemisialudoviciana).
January / Carolina jessamine / GelsemiumsempervirensFebruary / spiny hackberry / Celtisehrenbergiana
March / Texas betony / Stachyscoccinea
April / goldenball lead tree / Leucaenaretusa
May / butterfly milkweed (or milkweed) / Asclepiastuberosa (Asclepias sp.)
June/July / inland seaoats or Indian wood oats / Chasmanthiumlatifolium
August / prairie flameleafsumac / Rhuslanceolata
September / artemisia / Artemisia ludoviciana
October / aster / (Symphyotrichum sp.)
November/December / gulf muhly / Muhlenbergiacapillaris
Questions? Please email me .
Thanks,
Wilt
Bigtooth Maples for Boerne Program
By Suzanne Young
We have 100 trees to give awayduring our 2015 Bigtooth Maple (BTM) Tree Giveaway on November 20th and 21st from 9AM to noon at the Agriculture Museum at the corner of Park Road and Highway 46. This is a great way to meet members of our community, many of whom are new to Boerne. They often have many questions about native plants, so the more NPSOT members we have available to greet them and answer their questions, the better. We also need help cutting cages on November 19.
If you can help on any of these days, contact me at or 830-249-8240.
Regional Stuff
Workshop - Birds in Their Habitats
Jan Wrede, Patsy Inglet and Anne Adams, who are native plant and bird enthusiasts, will teach a 4-part workshop on birds in their habitats starting Saturday November 7, 2015 from 9 AM-1PM at the Cibolo Nature Center & Farm. The workshops will include classroom and outdoor activities.
Note – participation is limited to 20. Here is the URL for more information and to register:
Balcones Satellite of the Texas Invaders
We know that invasive plants displace and compete with native plants and transform ecosystems. They alter hydrologic conditions, soil characteristics, nutrient flow and fire patterns. More importantly, however, they reduce biodiversity and form monocultures.
Recent studies on insect herbivores reveal that most insect herbivores can only eat plants with which they share an evolutionary history, and our native insects cannot survive on alien plant species. For example, oak trees support 534 species of lepidoptera in North America. The much maligned hackberry hosts multiple species of lepidoptera, as well. The invasive chinaberry tree supports none. A habitat without insects is a habitat without most forms of higher life.
Because insects are critical to the food chain, the diversity of animals in a particular habitat is directly linked to the diversity of insects in that habitat. To create ecosystems with a diversity of animal species, we must encourage a healthy diversity of plants and the associated insects.
The noted entomologist and wildlife ecologist Douglas Tallamy predicts: “It will be the plants that we use in our gardens that determine what nature will be like in 10, 20 and 50 years from now.”
We need your help. First, choose native plants that provide food for the fauna that have evolved in our particular region, including support of insect populations. Second, become familiar with the invasive plants in our community, remove them and replace them with native plants. Third, join the efforts to eradicate invasive plants in our area. The Alamo Area Master Naturalists website includes information about eradication opportunities.
The Balcones satellite current area of focus is eradication of invasive plants at Government Canyon. No prior experience is required, just a desire to join us in making a difference!
Wear attire suitable for working in rough terrain and brushy areas with stickery plants, loose rocks, and assorted critters large and small. Work boots, gloves, hat, long-sleeved pants & shirts, and water are necessary. We have a supply of tools, but welcome anyone who brings their own. For details of exact location and directions, contact Lonnie at .
Those on the mailing list will receive specific details about each week’s planned eradication, as well as cancellation for severe weather conditions.
When: Tuesday mornings in November 8:30 – 10:30 am. November site: Government Canyon SNA.
Monarch Butterfly Webpage
The Texas Parks & Wildlife Department’s Nature Tracker page, The Monarch Butterfly, has been created and contains a lot of information with links to projects and other organizations.
There are links to good resources on a variety of topics, such as the Pollinators of Texas Fact Sheets, Texas Monarch and Native Pollinator Conservation Plan, and Identify Milkweeds, which can be downloaded as PDFs. Information provided by Kip Kiphart.
Happenings – the Calendar
November3 (Tuesday) 7:00 PM.Chapter monthly meeting – Chuck Janzow, chapter member, will speak about Growing Plants from Native Seeds
November19 (Thursday) 9:00 AM. Bigtooth Maple cage making party at the Agriculture Museum on Park Road
November 2021 (Friday & Saturday) 9 AM- Noon.Bigtooth Maple tree giveaway at the Agriculture Museum on Park Road.
December 1 (Tuesday) 7:00 PM.Chapter holiday potluck.
To find out about activities and workshops with other organizations call or visit their websites:
CiboloNature Center (830.249.4616)
Master Naturalist:
San Antonio, Alamo Chapter
Kerrville, Hill Country Chapter
Friends of FriedrichWildernessPark (210.372.9124)
MedinaRiver Natural Area Second Saturday Programs (210.624.2575)
For more information or to RSVP for any event please contact by telephone. Website:
- Our meetings are free and open to the public.Join us the first Tuesday of the month, January-June and September-December, at 6:30 p.m. at the CiboloNatureCenter, Boerne, Texas.
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Boerne, TX
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Growing Native Plants Since 1999
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Medina, TX 78055
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Boerne, TX
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