Nancy Grieg presents “Texas Butterfly Top Ten:  How to Know Them and Grow Them”

Well over 400 butterfly species have been recorded in Texas, far surpassing numbers in other states.  Getting to know so many butterflies is a challenge.  However, it’s worthwhile learning to recognize some of our showiest species, several of which are easily attracted to pollinator gardens.  A successful butterfly garden includes nectar plants for adult butterflies (many of which feed other pollinators such as bees) but also food plants for the caterpillar stage.  Nancy will  discuss the “top 10” butterflies you can attract to your Central Texas pollinator garden by providing the right plants.  

BIO: Growing up in relatively species-poor Alberta, Canada, Nancy was always fascinated by the much greater diversity of living things in warmer climes.  She fled the long nights and chilly weather of Canada in 1977, coming to Texas to attend UT Austin.  There she got a PhD in tropical plant ecology based on studies conducted in Costa Rica under the direction of Larry Gilbert, an expert in butterfly-plant interactions.  In 1994 she moved to Houston to become the founding director of the Cockrell Butterfly Center at the Houston Museum of Natural Science, a position she filled for 24 years.  Her abiding interests include butterflies, bees and pollinator gardening, plants and insects in general, beekeeping, and vegetable gardening.

The La Bahia Chapter of the Native Plant Society of Texas have invited our membership to attend their speakers during their next two meetings.

February Speaker, Joe Liggio speaking on “Native Orchids of Texas”

Come hear Joe Liggio speak about native orchids you might find on your property such as  the spiranthes family of orchids which occur throughout our area.  Joe will focus on the Central Texas Region.

Joe Liggio is a native Texas botanist, nature photographer, and writer. He and his wife Ann wrote Wild Orchids of Texas published in 1999 by the University of Texas Press. His photos and writings have appeared in Texas Highways, Texas Parks and Wildlife Magazine, Science, The Bulletin of the American Orchid Society, Earth Magazine, Texas Mushrooms, and the Illustrated Flora of East Texas. He is currently serving on the board of directors for the Watson Rare Native Plant Preserve and Save Buffalo Bayou.