Shooting Wildflowers - Tips 'n Tricks 'n Links
PowerPoint Presentation by Patty Waits Beasley
March 16, 2004 DigiCamSIG meeting
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Click on Slide01 below to begin the show, or scroll down and click on
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Click HOME at any time during the show to return to this page.
Scroll to the bottom of this page to see the latest news about
wildflower sightings and locations!
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2004 Texas Wildflower Sightings and Location
Reports:
- 04-04-04: Bill and Patty
went south to just past Raymondville. Highway 77 and 281 have peaked
for bluebonnets and paintbrushes; yellows are taking over. The Royal
Wireline facility a few miles south on SH 77 has exchanged its
blanket of deep red paintbrushes for a blanket of yellow (sorry; we
didn't have time to stop and see exactly which yellow flower covered
the fields). Some red can be seen mixed here and there; still a
beautiful sight.
- 03-28-04: Bill and Patty
Beasley traveled 360 miles today on an area wildflower driving trip
east, north and west of Corpus Christi (they'll go south next
weekend). Interstate 37 continues to be a hotspot for flowers.
Bluebonnets are peaking and can be found in a few highway shoulder
sheets at exits between mile markers 77 and 85 between Corpus
Christi and San Antonio. Good blankets of red Indian paintbrushes
and yellow flowers are mixed in now as well. Indian blankets are
also coming out in good numbers as well as purples of varying types.
Thistles are appearing, as are stretches of white poppies. Other
good color spots are scattered throughout from the Live Oak County
line north. Along I-37 on the access road to the junction of State
Highway (SH) 181 to I-37, there is a wonderful old abandoned house
with its grounds covered with yellow flowers. It's on the northbound
access road just a bit past (north of) Oakville. The interchange of
SH 281 and I-37 has a really good bluebonnet-paintbrush mix. The
Rockport Cemetery (now going mostly to the yellow; bluebonnets have
peaked there but are still thick, along with lots of other
multicolored flowers). White bluebonnets and myriads of combinations
of white to Texas blues can be found in a small patch strewn along
SH 72 just about a mile past the entrance to Choke Canyon State Park
(south shore). The bluebonnets are on the south side of the road and
are a bit hard to see from the westbound lane (we drove right by
them and didn't see them until our return back down the road due to
the incline of the road shoulder). They're just east of the entrance
to a little subdivision (sorry, can't remember the name). The
amazing number of variations of white to blue and everything in
between in that one small patch makes it worth the stop. We found it
thanks to someone else who had stopped to photograph it. Highway 281
continues to be the most consistent roadway for wildflowers. No huge
thick patches along its main stretches, but nice coverage of
multicolored blooms throughout. Lots of tall burgundy-purple
winecups along that road, too. The TXDOT report of blooms between SH
239 between Tivoli and I-37 is a washout; hardly anything other than
light scatterings of yellows and reds could be found. Maybe it
will get better in the next week? In the Beeville area, the Beeville
vet offices on SH59 have a blanket of yellow covering half the
grounds; really nice. From Beeville to I-37 via SH59, there's a
marvelously trite but cute scenario ... a small herd of longhorn
cattle in a field of bluebonnets! We couldn't resist stopping to
shoot that typical Texas scenario. One other site that Patty now
kicks herself for not getting is out west, on FM 3162 near the lake,
between SH 281 and the little town of Lagarto. There's a beautiful
ranch house on the south side of the road about halfway out that has
a red barn nearby and is surrounded by a blanket of acres of bright
yellow flowers. It's a morning shot, for sure. We passed it near
sundown and the lighting was not optimal, but Patty wishes she'd
tried it anyway. (Note to self: next field trip; board the dog so we
don't have to worry about his bladder exploding while we stay out
and play.)
- 03-28-04: JT Barnett
reports Goliad State Park has some nice coverage within the
boundaries of the state park.
- 03-28-04: Drew Jacobs
report the current issue of Texas Highways magazine has lists of
wildflower spots.
- 03-20-04: Interstate 37
is really starting to bloom! Best single stretch right now is
between mile marker 77 and 85. The Arabian horse farm just south of
Loop 1604 near San Antonio is a bust again this year. Those folks
insist on over-grazing the acreage that normally forms thick
blankets of bluebonnets right at the juncture of I-37 and 1604's
exit, west side. A real shame.
- 03-15-04: Highway 281 between Edinburg and Falfurrias:
some really nice red-yellow-blue carpets just north of Edinburg,
about five miles north of town on the highway median. Bluebonnets
seen in the mix in nice numbers; no blue fields yet, but promises
loom on the horizon! Be careful of the traffic if you stop to shoot!
Numbers should be even better over the next few weeks with the
additional rain from 03-12 to 03-14. Watch out
for fire ants and snakes! The rains are moving fire ants to higher ground and
the nests aren't always easy to find in their early stages, until
it's too late. Snakes will also be more active with the onset of
warmer weather, so keep a weather eye out for them as well.
- 03-12-04: 1) Highway 77 south from Corpus Christi to Harlingen:
good spreads of pink primroses south of Kingsville mixed with
patches of bluebonnets. 2) Stretches of
white poppies south of Kingsville to south of Rivera.
3) Sarita city entryway on the highway
(and the elementary school before the entrance) has a nice carpet of multi-colored
wildflowers coming in, in colors of red, blue, purple and yellow.
Should be even better over the next few weeks with the additional
rain from 03-12 to 03-14. Fire ant warning here, too. Bluebonnets are scattered in small numbers overall, with some medium
carpets in some areas, including south of Sarita to the checkpoint.
4) The big rest area was just mowed, so give those grounds a few weeks
to come in. 5) Of note, there is an huge field of the deepest red-hued
Indian paintbrushes I've ever seen visible from Highway 77 at the
Royal Wireline business compound just a few miles south of Sarita
(west side of the road). Just check in at the office and they'll
cheerfully let you drive around the back of the compound to the back
and into the field!
- 02-29-04: Rockport, Texas cemetery. The wildflowers seeded
throughout the cemetery got an early start this year and were
spectacular already by the end of February. Rainbow blooms should
continue to explode in March into April.
- 02-29-04: Interstate 37 North from Corpus Christi to San
Antonio. Traditionally a killer-good highway of wildflowers, this
year's crop promises to be exceptionally good thanks to a wet and
warm winter. Some wildflowers are making themselves known early,
including Indian blanket, seen in clumps here and there, as well as
some scattered Indian paintbrushes. No bluebonnets to speak of
yet, but some single plants were sighted along the route in a couple
places.
On-Line Identification Resources for Texas
Wildflowers:
And if THAT's not enough, here's a recap of
some on-line tips information available on the internet from the 2003 wildflowers
assignment from our TIPS page: