We visited the Lady Bird Johnson Wildflower Center this past week to see what’s thriving in the peak of our Central Texas summer heat. The display gardens are thoughtfully structured to highlight native species that handle heat and drought with ease.
From the fluttering butterflies in the Woodland Garden meadow to the curated beds in the Theme Gardens, there’s endless inspiration to bring back to your home landscape. There are also two paths of Hill Country Trails for those a little more adventurous.
First Impressions & Entrance Displays
From the moment you enter, you are surrounded by all kinds of Texas native plants, trees as well as wildflowers sprinkled throughout.
As we made our way toward the Woodland Garden, there was a Wheeler’s Desert Spoon, (Dasylirion wheeleri) planted in a container along the top edge of the wall and it was thriving. These are fantastic tough plants that can take full summer heat with hardly any care.
The masonry work throughout was very impressive. There were nice open spaces and courtyards at the entrance.
The shade garden beds in the courtyard were full of Turks Cap (Malvaviscus arboreus var. drummondii) and American beautyberry both of which were very impressive specimens.
The American beautyberry (Callicarpa americana) is a tough understory plant that thrives in full shade and can take full sun if given ample water. At the time of our visit, the berries had turned a vibrant purple.
In the winter months, the leaves will drop to reveal bare stems covered in purple berries the local wildlife adore.
Woodland Garden
We entered the Woodland Garden Area and the meadow was breathtaking. Butterflies and bees were all over the wildflowers.
The meadow was bursting with pops of yellow, purple and deep red blooms. There were various smaller paths in the Woodland Garden to take you around from display to display.
Talk about a butterfly garden! This was full of them.
To the right in the meadow garden area was a Cistern that had a trellis alongside it covered in Carolina Jessamine. This is a hardy Texas native vine that has yellow blooms. It stays semi evergreen in our area.
It has glossy green leaves and dense growth habit making it a local favorite for screening and trellises.
As we passed the Woodland Garden area we went into the Theme Gardens. Each little section was different creating a wonderful array of display gardens.
Theme Gardens
The theme gardens were bursting with Texas native plants. There were cacti, perennials, agaves and trees all designed in separate gardens and all equally as impressive.
In the middle was an enormous Tree Cholla (Cylindropuntia imbricata). These are sculptural cacti that as the name suggests grow into a tree form. They have lots of spines so look, don’t touch.
Each of the sections had different combinations, it was impossible to pick a favorite.
This section featured one of my personal favorites: Woolly Stemodia (Stemodia tomentosa). As you can see here, it is planted in a geometrical pattern with the center of Muhly grass.
Two very drought tolerant plants create a striking combination. The silvery foliage of the Woolly Stemodia pairs with almost anything, creating a sharp contrast makes neighboring colors pop.
The Stemodia is a low growing evergreen perennial groundcover that blooms a small blue flower in the summer.
It is for those spots where you need a low growing plant that does not require a lot of maintenance.
The Goldenball leadtree (Leucaena retusa) is a small Texas native tree reaching heights of 12- 15 + feet. This makes a fantastic accent or specimen tree for almost any Central Texas landscape.
It is a multi trunked with airy, fern like green foliage and and becomes covered in glowing golden sphere blooms in late summer thru the fall.
Some say it looks like a tree filled with yellow golf balls! It features smooth attractive bark and provides light dappled shade.
Hill Country Solution: Stock Tank Raised Beds
The Center uses several metal stock tanks as raised garden beds which is a clever solution when you can’t dig deep into the native soil. (something many of us in the Hill Country can relate to, where solid limestone sits just inches down).
The troughs are deep enough to give the root systems plenty of room to expand. They are a great solution and come in a variety of sizes.
As shown here, filling them with structural yuccas, cacti and flowering perennials looks fantastic.
Pro Tip: Be sure to drill adequate drainage holes in the bottom so water does not pool around the root zone.
Manicured Native Hedges: Dwarf Yaupon
The Wildflower Center features another tough stand-out Texas native: the Dwarf Yaupon Holly (Ilex vomitoria ‘Nana’) located in the Home Inspiration Gardens right off the Theme Gardens.
While many gardeners plant Dwarf Yaupon as a standard hedge, the Center shaped into a formal topiary. It adds a Hill Country flair to an English-style garden layout.
This is a fantastic option for gardeners who prefer a manicured, structured look while staying within the native Texas palette.
On another side of the Center is the Luci and Ian Family Garden. To access it, our path was closed so we walked back to the courtyard and exited into the Savanna Meadow.
Savanna Meadow
The Savanna Meadow was was a large expanse of meadow filled with native perennials and pollinators.
There were well maintained paths and clear trail signs so you always knew you were headed in the right direction. Each path felt like a new adventure!
The Savanna Meadow was an expansive sweep of wildflowers in just about every color you could imagine.
Bees were buzzing, butterflies were fluttering all around, and the sun was shining. We spotted black and yellow Swallowtails, yellow and white Sulphur butterflies, Admiral butterflies, and Gulf Fritillaries across the blooms.
It was a beautiful day and we felt like we had the place to ourselves. I guess not many people venture out when it’s 105 degrees outside, but we loved every minute of it!
Big Muhly Grass lined the pathway, which made a gorgeous backdrop. Grasses are incredibly versatile and look spectacular whether planted in mass or as informal hedges.
Afterward, we took a moment to sit under an enormous shade tree and take it all in. The Big Muhly hedge framed a wooden bench right out in the sun, creating a striking landscape vignette.
After relaxing in the shade, we made our way toward the entrance of the Luci and Ian Family Garden.
Luci and Ian Family Garden
This section featured a completely different layout, which was so exciting to explore. It includes several interactive play areas for children, a refreshing water feature, and a wide array of unique plant combinations.
Additionally, Arizona Cypress (Cupressus arizonica) and Blue Sotol (Dasylirion wheeleri) make a spectacular combination as shown here. The Sotols were in full bloom during our visit—I love their towering bloom spikes!
Both of these species are excellent choices for drought-tolerant gardens, requiring very little maintenance while delivering maximum visual impact.
The central water feature helps cool down the surrounding air while softening the texture of the native plants.
The soothing sound of the waterfall was incredibly calming and relaxing—I was almost tempted to jump in, but managed to resist!
If you have not visited the Lady Bird Johnson Wildflower Center, I encourage you to do so! It was incredibly informative and inspiring to see all the different combinations and pairings of native plants alongside wildflowers, boulders, and natural landscape elements.
I especially liked how they represented all kinds of light scenarios—offering plenty of full-sun display beds while also featuring several shaded spots to demonstrate that you can have gorgeous native plants in the shade, too.
The Inland Sea Oats (Chasmanthium latifolium) are a stunning choice for shady areas. This ornamental grass features bright green foliage and distinctive flat seed pods that dangle gracefully in the breeze.
They bring visual interest and gentle movement to a shade bed while serving as a tough, reliable Texas native option for those hard-to-fill shaded spots.
I will end the post with a parting shot as I exited. I did not get near enough photos of everything I wanted to share once I sat down to write this post!
The Dwarf Sabal Palm (Sabal minor) was yet another stunner, as was the Bald Cypress (Taxodium distichum).
If you haven’t been lately, make the time to visit. Get inspired, soak it all in, and enjoy!
