Lady Bird Johnson loved gardens. She cared about her garden at The Elms, the vice-presidential residence in Washington, at the White House and later at the LBJ Ranch in Stonewall and her austin home. But she also understood the value of plants, particularly native plants, and how critical they are to a healthy environment. That is why on her 70th birthday in 1982, she and actress Helen Hays founded the National Wildflower Research Center. The reasons she expressed were urgent: "To learn that more than four thousand native plant species are in danger of extinction in this country gives us a wake-up call ….Will these plants be lost to all but memory, with succeeding generations losing even that fragile connection? Are there sources of food, fiber or medicine that might perish with them? How do we save these species in the face of an ever-expanding human population and its impact on the land? " She wanted the center to educate people about the environmental necessity, economic value and natural beauty of native plants. That first center was not a showplace, but people came by the busload to see the wildflower fields. Mrs. Johnson was persuaded that a real public garden was needed if people were to really understand the beauty and environmental importance of wildflowers.
The botanic garden opened in 1995, and the name was changed in 1998 to the Lady Bird Johnson Wildflower Center. It is now 279 acres of Central Texas Hill Country that includes theme gardens, plants from Texas' many ecosystems, wetlands that demonstrate native aquatic species, homeowner inspiration gardens and four miles of trails through savannas and short grass prairie. The iconic architecture reflects Texas history with its Spanish, German and ranch influences and features a rainwater collection system that provides much of the water used on the site. But Mrs. Johnson never forgot that "research" had been the center's middle name. Just as she intended the beautification projects she started as first lady to have a broader impact, she intended the Wildflower Center to be more than just a pretty place. "Wildflower landscapes can help us save water," she said. "Wildflowers also save time and maintenance money. They may even bring money to cities and states. Wildflower Trails and flower festivals improve local pride and bring in tourists. But, as I've said, we need to know much more about how and when and where to plant them to get reliable, consistent, predictable results."
With her leadership, the Wildflower Center worked at plant conservation, proudly becoming part of the Millennium Seed Bank project of the Royal Botanical Garden, Kew, United Kingdom. To date, center volunteers working all over Texas have collected and banked seeds from more than 500 species. The research plots at the Wildflower Center are busy. A collection of mini-roofs are planted with different native species in an effort to test what will thrive on a subtropical green roof. Roadside vegetation plots have clearly demonstrated that native seed mixes outperform the conventional mix used by the Texas Department of Transportation. The Texas grassland project uses such techniques as prescribed fire and simulated levels of grazing pressure to better understand how these tools can be used to restore native prairies and savannas. And these are just a few of the research efforts underway. Mrs. Johnson died July 11 at the age of 94. She loved the Wildflower Center—she called it her "forever project" and asked that contributions in her memory be made to the Center—but she also intended that it would make a difference. She intended that it would help create a healthy environment for us all.
