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Now is the time to start planning for your own wildflower haven. You can create a haven as small as a planter or as large as a meadow. You want to start planning now for the type of wildflower haven you want to create and what you will need to create it.
In Texas it is easier to prepare those beds or areas now than in the heat of the summer. If the area you choose already has wildflowers growing then think about whether you want to either improve the area or sustain it.
There are very few truly "wild areas" where the balance of the eco-system is maintained naturally. The intervention of man-made development, hunting, recreational facilities, farming and ranching all introduce non-natural elements that alter the normal balance.
If you want a meadow to become a wildflower meadow you must consider several factors before taking on the task. These factors include:
- Topography and geology of the land
- Existing plants
- Rainfall
- Animals
- Soil
- Near-by development
If your meadow is part of a floodplain then only certain wildflowers will grow there. Generally most wildflowers prefer areas that are hilly, rocky or sloping, because these areas tend to drain better than flat or low-lying areas.
I'm in the process of restoration of my own property as well as creating some managed "natural areas." A restoration effort seeks to restore the land back to where it was before alteration by non-natural factors. I'm learning that over a long geological time period land is altered naturally and the eco-system adjusts accordingly.
Restoration attempts to restore areas that were altered drastically by non-natural factors such as farming, ranching, hunting and development. The removal of critical factors in an eco-system can have immediate and long range effects on the ecological balance. For example, indiscriminate hunting can remove predators that were important to keeping forb-eating wildlife in check. Without the predators these forb-eating wildlife can then graze unchecked and destroy entire areas that were once covered with forbs.
Restoration is an exciting and challenging effort that requires careful planning and discovery of the nature of the eco-system in the area to be restored. I highly recommend seeking professional advice on how to restore an area. You can get help from your local agricultural extension office. The National Suppliers directory at the Lady Bird Johnson Wildflower web site can help you locate a variety of resources ready to help you. Bill Neimann
In Texas 94% of the land is privately owned. This means that unless private land owners take an active interest in restoration effort, much of the native lands in Texas are in jeopardy. If you own land in Texas like I do, I encourage you to get actively involved in learning how to properly manage, protect, preserve and restore portions of your land.
Ecological Restoration in Texas - A Big Private Land State by Jonathan Ogren addresses some of these issues for private land owners.
You can find other good starter articles on land restoration at Land Restoration
If land restoration is too big a task for you at this time, then I suggest starting with a small wildflower haven which can be nothing more than a rock garden or a special garden in your front or backyard.
I'll be publishing a series of articles about my adventures creating rock gardens on my property. You can read along, ask questions, laugh, cry as I share my struggles, tears, joy and sweat trying to bring back a few blooms on a rocky hillside nearly barren hillside.
RichO
Hunting Texas Wildflowers
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