Wildflowers And Lady Bird Johnson

Yellow Daisies, Stone Mountain, Georgia. USA - September 9, 2012.

I'm optimistic that the world of native plants will not only survive, but will thrive for environmental and economic reasons, and for reasons of the heart. Beauty in nature nourishes us and brings joy to the human spirit, it also is one of the deep needs of people everywhere.    Lady Bird Johnson

We have had some very wonderful First Ladies in this country but one of my favorites is Lady Bird Johnson. (Born Claudia Alta Taylor, her nursemaid declared her "as pretty as a ladybird" and that is what she was called.)  She, along with her good friend, Helen Hayes, founded the Lady Bird Johnson Wildflower Center in Austin, Texas.   Please, read about her wonderful work to make this country and the world learn the importance of native wildflowers at the following website:  http://www.wildflower.org/

The U.S. Postal Service will come out with stamps honoring Lady Bird Johnson in December and they will be FOREVER stamps, which make them even more special.  The first stamp is her official White House portrait and the others were first issued in the 60's paying tribute to her beautification efforts in that decade.  Growing up during that time, I can tell you that I appreciate so very much the Beautification Act of 1965:  junk yards had to be disguised by a wall of tall bushes, the wildflower plantings along the major highways and the flower beds and trees for the city parks.  (Just a personal note, I see that she became an Episcopalian and worshiped at the same church for many years.  After she died, she made sure to leave the money for the church to pay off their mortgage.  Just a little footnote that I read, but I thought it was typical of her nature.)  Can you tell that I admire this woman so very much?  I am so grateful for all that she did in her long life and I am thankful that we can appreciate her lasting legacy.

At the top of my post is a photo from Stone Mountain showing the plants that grow there.  A few years ago, I only knew a few of them, but after our time on Arabia Mountain, I am happy to tell you that I know ALL of them and what is more, I think that Richard has taken some better photos of them than the ones that they have depicted here for you on this plaque.  (We call the spiderwort "Tradescantia", because the botanical name is so dignified!)

 

It is not only for beauty that we need to keep our native plants but it is also just plain common sense as it holds the soil together!  There will be another Ken Burns documentary that will be shown very soon and it is called "The Dust Bowl".  Are you aware of this tragic man-made disaster from the 1930's America? You might want to look out for this new film about a very sad period which, from all accounts, looks as if it could have been avoided. 

Wild beautyberry atop Stone Mountain- Nov. 3, 2012.

 

Wildflowers, enjoy them wherever you are in this world!  I will leave you with another quote from Lady Bird...

"The environment is where we all meet; where all have a mutual interest; it is the one thing all of us share. It is not only a mirror of ourselves, but a focusing lens on what we can become.