A Cowboy at the Begonia Convention

 

I ran into this Cowboy at the Begonia Convention in Fort Worth Texas.  Mike was the emcee at the awards banquet.

Carnivorous Plants in a Mississippi Bog!

 

On our trip to Mississippi, we made a side trip to Buttercup Flats.  It's located in the De Soto National Forest near Wiggins, Mississippi, and it is one of the largest and most accessible pitcher plant savannas in the Southeast US.  This sprawling, fire-maintained wetland is internationally famous for its massive populations of rare, native carnivorous plants and specialized bog flora.  The savanna was sunny, hot and muggy, and the ground was soft and squishy, a perfect place for Sarracenia alata (Yellow Pitcher plants) and Drosera capillaris (tiny Pink sundews)!  We also saw some wildflowers and other plants that grow in the sandy bog.  I had a great time seeing these plants in the wild. 

Sarracenia alata (Yellow Pitcher plants)

Sarracenia alata (Yellow Pitcher plant)

Sarracenia alata bloom

Sarracenia alata pitchers and blooms

Sarracenia alata bloom

Sarracenia alata pitcher

Sarracenia alata pitcher

Sarracenia alata pitcher plant

Drosera capillaris AKA Pink Sundew

Rhexia alifanus aka Savanna Meadowbeauty

Aletris lutea aka Yellow Colicroot, Star Grass

Senega lutea aka Orange Milkwort

Lycopodiella alopecuroides aka foxtail clubmoss 

Lycopodiella alopecuroides aka foxtail clubmoss 

longleaf pine trees and sarracenia alatas 

Fort Worth Botanic Garden Begonia Species Bank and Collection

 

     The last tour of the American Begonia Society Convention was a visit to the Fort Worth Botanic Garden Begonia Species Bank and Collection.  They hold the largest collection of begonias in North America, including hundreds of species and rare cultivated varieties. In 2015, the FWBG became the first botanic garden in Texas to receive accreditation for its Begonia collection through the Plant Collections Network and currently has the only accredited Begonia collection in the nation.

     This part of the garden is not open to the public and they have strict protocols in place to protect the collection.

     Begonias grow in the wild throughout tropical and subtropical regions of the world, and often face loss of habitat from deforestation, logging, mining, and agriculture. The FWBG Begonia Species Bank serves as insurance against their extinction. Additions are constantly being made to the collection through propagation and the acquisition of new species.

A few statistics on begonias!

There are many begonias in the collection and here are a few that caught my eye!

B. Martha Stewart

It's always great to see these two in a Botanic Garden!