GLORIOUS TEXAS WILDFLOWERS

While driving away from the closing yesterday, I decided to take a different route to our farm ("our", still can't believe it!).  For those of you not in Texas or perhaps not familiar with our Wildflower season, you are missing out on some of the most beautiful sights nature can create.  A Google image search of "Texas Wildflowers" will show you the beauty.   As always, click the photos for a big closeup view!

This is the road we drive down to turn into our driveway.

This is a closeup, these are called "Indian Paintbrush".

This is a field about a mile from the property, a very nice man let me lean over his fence and take these pictures

(people in these parts of Texas are used to "tourists" this time of year)

Here is a closeup, of course, these are the State Flower of Texas, the

incredibly beautiful "Bluebonnet"

If you have never seen an ocean of wildflowers, it's truly a sight to behold.  One of the best parts is driving along some winding country road, and then rounding a corner and coming across a field of color.  It's like a living Monet painting.  Texas is lucky to have the National Wildflower Center, named for former First Lady Lady Bird Johnson.  She made it her mission to help preserve our country's naturalized landscapes and beauty, and, lucky for us here in the state, she had Texas highway medians and roads seeded with wildflowers that come back year after year.

If you are so inclined to visit, this year or in the future, here is the info you'll need to know.  

• Texas Wildflower season usually runs from the end of March until the end of April.  
• Weather conditions prior to the blooming season can affect the variety and number.  A dry Fall and Winter will lead to fewer flowers, so keep that in mind, not every year is the same. 
• Best viewing areas are central Texas, the Hill Country.  If you use Houston as a starting point, anywhere Northwest and West will get you to flowers.  
• Remember, if you stop and hop a fence to get that great picture, you are probably trespassing, so please be respectful of the property owners.  There are plenty of spots along the sides of roads that have tons of flowers and are free to stop at.
• Best bet is just to grab a map of Texas, your camera, and a full tank of gas and make it a road trip.  Don't be afraid to get off the main road and venture into some county roads, it'll be an experience you won't soon forget.
• Enjoy (and if you get some great pictures, share them here!)