Lady Bird’s legacy lives on in wildflowers far and near

The country lost a matriarch last week by the name of Claudia Alta Taylor Johnson. Most of us knew her as Lady Bird Johnson, the widow of Lyndon Baines Johnson -- the 37th president of the United States. She was known as a conservationist, an environmentalist and perhaps most notably as an advocate for the beautification of America's highways.

One of her most memorable achievements was her persistent effort to secure passage of the Highway Beautification Act of 1965, which was an attempt to steer America away from using highways as venues for junkyards and billboards. Sadly, these two items still blight the corridors of America, but the use of wildflowers to brighten highway right-of-ways remains as a visible legacy of Mrs. Johnson.

Unlike the brilliant bluebonnet displays in Texas, wildflowers are not a major attraction in Nevada. Our meager precipitation usually limits spectacular events to once per decade. But that should not deter us from using wildflowers in the landscape. They are easy to sow, low maintenance, thrive on minimal water and fertilization, and are basically trouble-free.

My first attempt to utilize wildflowers in the landscape was nothing less than radiant. Bleak and barren planters located within the vast parking lots at the University of Nevada, Las Vegas, were transformed to colorful blankets of color during the early 1990s. Experiments included the use of bright red Flanders poppy, intense blue California bluebells, warm yellow and maroon Mexican hat and, of course, the incredible orange found in California poppy.

Successful planters begin with proper timing and regular irrigation. Nearly every wildflower imaginable can be grown if the proper conditions are met. Wildflower seed should be sown in the fall just as the weather cools. If conditions are right, natural rainfall will encourage the seeds to germinate. If the weather is not cooperative, be sure to provide weekly soakings to achieve the same results. Once sprouted, most wildflowers will survive on scant irrigation, and will require only infrequent watering to thrive.

I have found that patches of solid color are most effective. If you prefer to mix things up, use complimentary colors. By using the primary colors of red, yellow and blue you may combine direct opposites to give the best contrast. For example, yellow and blue are great contrasts. Blue and orange go well together. Gradual combinations would be equally complimentary, such as blue to violet or yellow to orange. White and almost any color look great together, especially white and red. Red, orange and yellow are warm colors. Blue, green and pink are cool colors.

Some wildflowers are perfect for the entire county and will perform well in most any environment, including African daisy, black-eyed Susan, Indian blanket flower, corn or Flanders poppy, Mexican hat and California poppy.

Mrs. Johnson's efforts survive within the Lady Bird Johnson Wildflower Center, which she and Helen Hayes founded in 1982. The center is located in Austin, Texas, and is affiliated with the University of Texas at Austin. Dedicated to the restoration and preservation of biological diversity, the center focuses on the reintroduction of native plants to planned landscapes. For more information, visit: www.wildflower.org.

Dennis Swartzell is the marketing director for Mountain States Wholesale Nursery. As an ISA board-certified master arborist and a member of the Southern Nevada Arborist Group, Swartzell has been helping Southern Nevadans with their gardening questions for over 25 years. If you have a question about a particular plant, or a general gardening issue, send them to Swartzell at treemender@cox.net.