permaculture

["J. Kolenovsky" <garden@hal-pc.org>]

E.E., I went to www.hillcountrynatives.biz. Man, where were you when I
landscaped native trees,native shrubs and native perennials? Just kidding.
I'm in Houston and I wouldn't have driven to Austin to get some trees.
Doremus Nursery in Warren, Tx (nearest big town, Beaumont) was about as far
as I went.

No insult to your knowledge as you have a good lineup of small native trees
but are you familiar with:
http://aggie-horticulture.tamu.edu/ornamentals/natives/tamuhort.html - Benny
Simpson's Native Texas Trees and
http://aggie-horticulture.tamu.edu/ornamentals/nativeshrubs/indexcommon.htm
- Texas Native Shrubs? Those Aggies do a good job. I took the landscape
design consultantcy course under Dr. Bill Welch.
Benny Simpson was President of the Native Plant Society of Texas. I even got
to shake Lynn Lowery's hand once. Have you ever been a member? I was V-P of
the Houston NPSOT chapter for several years. I love native ornamental
understory trees. I see that you didn't list one of my favorites, Ilex
decidua but that could be due to your soil over there.

Here are some of what you sell I have planted in my habitat:

Parkinsonia aculeata - love the green photosynthesis and is a butterfly
magnet.
Sapindus drummondii - nice fruits.
Rhamnus caroliniana - another favorite. Berries pretty and birds forage off
of them.
Chilopsis linearis
Sophora affinis
Ungnadia speciosa - love the buckeye fruits.
Prunus mexicana - this dude is planted next to a rain garden. Very
prosperous.
Ilex decidua - the red berries in winter with the gray bark is stunning.
Story is the cedar waxwings will swarm the tree, strip the berries and fall
to the ground drunk.
Rhus lanceolata - this sumac is gorgeous in the fall.
Viburnum rufidulum - love Rusty Blackhaw.
Sophora secundiflora
Callicarpa americana - good old standby. Beautiful berries.
Capsicum annuum - bird brought in one seed. Stayed around for years and
constantly reseeds.
Malpighia glabra - highest Vitamin C level known to man and used in medical
research.
Anisacanthus quadrifidus - nice, unobtrusive butterfly bush.
Rhus virens - I lke this Rhus because its evergreen.
Eysenhardtia texana - neat leaves.
Cornus drummondii - dug it up off a railroad right-a-way
Cercis canadensis v texana
Myrica cerifera - attracts a high number of birds and produces good berry
food for them.
Cassia corymbosa

Also have papaya, pineapple, mango, satsumas, thornless lime and Meyer's
lemon.

Your nursery has a good lineup of native trees. Do you have a links to the
shrubs in the catalog? The ones you show are bullet-proof.

It is good to know that you are over Austin way. There are a many good
retail native plant locations over there.
I wish the Houston metro could have as many some day.

J
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