I have just come back from a week in Austin, Texas. This was my first trip to Texas so I was eager to see what it was like there. I have long known Austin as a college and music city but now I know it has also become a big IT hub with many recent sky scrapers shooting up. I wondered if I might see the famous wild flowers of Texas; so advocated for by Lady Bird Johnson. Unfortunately, central Texas was under drought conditions, so no Blue Bonnets were to be seen along the country roads but I did get to see some close up at the lovely Zilker Botanical Park. You can catch a city bus there from downtown. I did see several Texas Red Bud bushes in flower so there was some evidence of spring arriving. The biggest green area of the city is along the banks of the big Colorado river that runs through the city. ( Not to be confused with the other Colorado river further west.) Lots of trails for runners and dog walkers. I also saw a few new native plant gardens along the way......with names of the donors who cared about their community. Another green walkway is going up along the Waterloo stream that runs from the University of Texas down to the main river. The upper part looks a bit neglected but hopefully will get fully used when connected to the lower paths that are still being constructed. I saw a few herons fishing in that stream. Another green area is around the state capital and tourists were making use of the shady tree area. Lastly......I fell in love with the live oak trees of Texas. Such beautiful bark on the trunks of older trees and then the bare branch outlines against the sky with their tufts of Tillandsia. The live oak mixed with pine forests were so beautiful too out in the rural hill country. A lovely memory of my short trip to Austin.
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Texas Red Bud in flower with the state capital
building in the distance. |
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| Gardens and walkways besides the Colorado river. |
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| The famous Blue Bonnets of Texas. |
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| A short walk in the woods at the Zilker Botanical Park. |
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| Hill Country views.....woody fields and vineyards. |
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| Beautiful old Live Oaks. |
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| Live Oaks with Tillandsia balls in situ. |
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A modern style garden at one of the new condo buildings
built for all the new IT workers. |
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I passed this house every day. An old timer tucked behind a
restaurant and overlooked by skyscrapers. Not much of a
garden but every time I stopped to watch the squirrels and the
birds. ( Great-tailed Grackles and White-winged Doves) |
Aloha
