Lady Bird Johnson Wildflower Center
Introduction
Text-to-speech Audio
The Lady Bird Johnson Wildflower Center is a public botanical garden located approximately ten miles southwest of Austin, TX. The 279-acre site is maintained by The University of Texas at Austin and attracts on average 100,000 visitors to the Texas hill country each year. The wildflower center contains over 700 species of plants native to central Texas and features a wide array of sculptures, educational exhibits, walking trails, and photography.
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Lady Bird Johnson Wildflower Center
Lady Bird Johnson Wildflower Center
Please see link below for more information about "Miss Lady Bird's Wildflowers: How a First Lady Changed America" by Kathi Appelt
Backstory and Context
Text-to-speech Audio
The Lady Bird Johnson Wildflower Center was founded in 1982 by actress Helen Hayes and former first lady Lady Bird Johnson. The center began as the National Wildflower Research Center but was later renamed in 1995 to reflect Mrs. Johnson's long-time interest in the preservation and sustainability of North America's wildflowers and natural landscapes. The center became a formal research branch of The University of Texas at Austin in 2006.
Mrs. Johnson recognized that the face of the North American landscape was changing and sought to preserve the indigenous plants and wildflowers that grew throughout the Texas hill country and beyond. The Lady Bird Johnson Wildflower Center not only promotes the conservation of native wildflowers and plants, but also serves as one of the nation's most respected research institutions for indigenous plants. The center boasts an online database of more than 7,200 native plants that can be accessed at http://www.wildflower.org/plants/.
Mrs. Johnson recognized that the face of the North American landscape was changing and sought to preserve the indigenous plants and wildflowers that grew throughout the Texas hill country and beyond. The Lady Bird Johnson Wildflower Center not only promotes the conservation of native wildflowers and plants, but also serves as one of the nation's most respected research institutions for indigenous plants. The center boasts an online database of more than 7,200 native plants that can be accessed at http://www.wildflower.org/plants/.
Sources
"About Us." Lady Bird Johnson Wildflower Center. Accessed July 14, 2014. http://www.wildflower.org/about.
"Lady Bird Johnson Wildflower Center." Wikipedia. Accessed July 14, 2014. http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Lady_Bird_Johnson_Wildflower_Center