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Native Plant Society of Texas

Big Bend Chapter

New Xeric Landscape for Van Horn

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[From Phyllis Kennedy]

A landscape project funded by Culberson County as an ongoing effort to improve Van Horn’s public spaces commenced in mid-November. Nine one-gallon container size Lynn’s Legacy Cenizo (Leucophyllum langmaniae) were planted in the space between the sidewalk and the parking lot of a steel building that once housed the Boys and Girls Club located alongside Hwy 54, one block north of El Capitan Hotel. The area around the plants was covered with a rock mulch and enhanced with small boulders and solar landscape lights.

Lynn’s Legacy Cenizo is a hardy perennial woody shrub with sage green foliage that is evergreen. During the growing season, it produces lavender colored flowers and blooms more often than any other type of sage.

Joy Scott, a Texas Master Gardener, assisted with the landscape design and supervised the planting. Future plans for this area include adding additional xeriscape elements as well as a drip irrigation system.

Keep up the good work, Joy!

Phyllis Kennedy
Newsletter Communications

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**ARCHIVED POST AUTHOR: billarmstrong

About the Region

Fall Symposium 2025 Logo - Teach for the Future

Salado, the location of our Fall 2025 Symposium, lies at the intersection of two ecoregions: the Edwards Plateau (Limestone Cut Plain) and Blackland Prairie (Northern Blackland Prairie).

The Edwards Plateau area is also called the Hill Country; however, this general term covers a much larger area extending farther north. Spring-fed creeks are found throughout the region; deep limestone canyons, rivers, and lakes (reservoirs) are common. Ashe juniper is perhaps the most common woody species found throughout the region. Additional woody species include various species of oak, with live oak (Quercus fusiformis) being the most common. Sycamores (Platanus occidentalis) and bald cypress (Taxodium distichum) border waterways. This area is well known for its spring wildflower displays, though they may be viewed in spring, late summer, and fall, as well. According to Texas Parks and Wildlife, average annual rainfall in the Edwards Plateau ranges from 15 to 34 inches.

The Blackland Prairie extends from the Red River south to San Antonio, bordered on the west by the Edwards Plateau and the Cross Timbers, and on the east by the Post Oak Savannah. Annual rainfall averages 30 to 40 inches, with higher averages to the east. This region is dominated by prairie species. The most common grass species include little bluestem (Schizachyrium scoparium) and Indian grass (Sorghastrum nutans) in the uplands and switchgrass (Panicum virgatum) in the riparian areas and drainages. Common herbaceous flowering plants include salvias, penstemons, and silphiums. This area has suffered greatly from overgrazing and agricultural use. Few intact areas remain, though many of the plants can be found along county roadsides throughout the region.

Our fall Symposium host chapter, the Tonkawa Chapter, includes both of these ecoregions.

Source: Wildflowers of Texas by Michael Eason