Greenwood Valley View Natives

06/11/2026

Interesting find in the yard. A Plains Leopard Frog, part of Genus Lithobates (American Water Frogs). Not sure if it has wandered from the draw down the road, or came in with a plant I recently purchased in Fort Worth. Either way, seen it twice this last week now. It is technically "native" to the area but I had been concerned about the habitat it has been living in. Sure enough though, where I water is where I have been seeing it! So it can sure sense water easily.

I did read they can also travel up to 3 miles from permanent water to forage. So it could be likely that it is from the hood. Just thought it was a really neat find in the dryscape.

06/06/2026

Absolutely love the color of the new growth on the Texas Pistache (Pistacia texana). Picture doesn't do it justice!

06/01/2026

Anyone know what kind of eggs these are?

05/31/2026

05/31/2026

Party at Club Mesquite last night!

05/23/2026

First time visiting native plant nurseries in Fort Worth and I would say it was a success. Came back to some rain which made it great for planting, even though, yes, I know this is probably the worst time for planting!

05/22/2026

The Lotebush (Ziziphus obtusifolia) is buzzing like CRAZY

05/17/2026

Love the Apache Plumes (Fallugia paradoxa)! They're really starting to show off in the yard!

05/15/2026

The new growth on the Ponderosa Pine (Pinus ponderosa) looks amazing!

No, not everything I'm planting here in Midland County is xeric. While a great practice, and I would say 75% of my landscape is xeric, I am a plant addict. And do have a few trees that would be a little tougher to grow in Midland without supplemental water. The goal of my 5 acres is to be sort of an Arboretum collection of native Texas trees. This is why I have an extensive rain-water collection system and am out there every night hand watering these special trees.

It's going to all look amazing one day.

05/14/2026

I found a second type of Beeblossom on the property yesterday and now I'm unsure on the exact identification. This one is a shorter, more compact type with smaller, rougher leaves. The other one that seems to be all over the place is much larger (can get 2' x 2', neglecting the flower stalks) and has a larger, softer leaf). Neat to have two varieties but I'm no expert at identifying them.

I found several options for Midland County and will look into the differences soon.