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A landscape can be beautiful and still be well suited to the Texas Hill Country. At our Community Education presentation on October 1, Vicki Adcock shared how native plants can bring color and wildlife to Horseshoe Bay yards while using less water once established.

 

Adcock began by showing the same nearby lot in different seasons. After fall and spring rains, the landscape was full of bluebonnets. During a dry spring, it looked very different. A month later, when rain returned, the area began to green up again. The photos showed how much local landscapes change with the weather.

Horseshoe Bay’s setting makes gardening here distinctive. We live in the Llano Uplift, a region with granite outcroppings and coarse, well-drained soils. Adcock said she started buying smaller plants because exposed rock makes digging large planting holes difficult. At the time of her presentation, she had checked drought.gov, which provides weekly county drought updates.

Adcock described a native plant as one that has been here for hundreds of years, before plants from other countries arrived with European colonization. Native plants are adapted to local soil and weather extremes and offer several benefits: less need for water, fewer pest and disease problems, food and habitat for wildlife, and color for the landscape.

She cautioned that a plant’s success depends on where it is planted. Light, water, and location all matter. A plant may thrive in one yard and struggle in another, even within Horseshoe Bay. She shared examples from her garden, including plants that flourished in some spots but needed to be moved or replaced in others. Here is a copy of the presentation.

The presentation featured an array of plants for different settings and seasons. Henry Duelberg salvia can bloom from spring through fall, while standing cypress attracts hummingbirds with its tubular flowers and reseeds readily. Possumhaw holly offers winter interest with red berries after its leaves drop. Adcock encouraged selecting native plants that bloom in different seasons to provide ongoing color in the landscape and food for pollinators. 

White mistflower and Gregg’s mistflower draw butterflies. Gregg’s mistflower serves as both a host plant for caterpillars and a nectar source for butterflies. Antelope horn milkweed also supports monarchs as a host and nectar plant. Adcock suggested checking the undersides of milkweed leaves for monarch eggs.

 

 

Other examples included Blackfoot daisies, which need good drainage; Mexican bush sage, which blooms in fall and does best in full sun; and chocolate daisy, whose flowers open in the morning and smell like chocolate. She also highlighted crossvine, rock rose, damianita, Webberville sedge, pale leaf yucca, purple skullcap, woolly stemodia and lace cactus.

Choosing plants also means considering their mature size and growing habits. Crossvine can reach 36 to 50 feet, and woolly stemodia can spread aggressively. Adcock recommended thinking about how large a plant will become before placing it near a house or in a small bed. Some spreading plants may work well in a contained area, while others need more room.

Adcock shared several changes that helped her reduce lawn area and watering at home. She removed nonnative, water-loving plants, replaced spray irrigation with drip irrigation, and added mulched beds. She also encouraged residents to look into LCRA residential rebates for qualifying water-saving improvements.

For established plants, deep, less frequent watering encourages deeper roots. For spray irrigation, she suggested starting with a short cycle to let the soil absorb water, then running additional short cycles to reduce runoff. Drip irrigation works differently because it delivers water slowly. Newly planted natives need regular watering while they become established, and newly planted trees will need supplemental water for at least 3 years.

 

Mulch helps retain moisture. Adcock recommended a three- to four-inch layer, kept away from plant stems and tree trunks. Piling mulch against a trunk can keep the bark wet and create conditions for insects and disease. She reminded attendees that plants can show similar signs when they get too much or too little water, so checking soil moisture helps.

Adcock described herself as “a lazy gardener.” She plants in the soil she has, avoids pesticides and fertilizer, and uses compost and mulch. As the mulch breaks down, she explained, it nourishes the plants.

Adcock pointed residents to local and regional resources, including (live links below):

 

 

 

 

 

 

She also recommended checking Texas Invasives before purchasing plants, since some plants sold in stores can spread into natural areas and displace native species.

 

Her presentation offered a practical reminder: gardening in Horseshoe Bay is not about forcing a landscape to behave like one in another part of Texas. It is about choosing plants and watering practices that fit the place we call home. We are fortunate to have Vicki Adcock’s knowledge and willingness to share what she has learned with our community. Thank you Vicki!