Oh, what fun! The Spring Fling, by all accounts, exceeded our wildest expectations.
It was a beautiful day - cool in the morning - for Austin, at least - at 49F, and then it warmed up to 80F. So our guests got a good taste of the range of Austin weather. For those who were here on Friday morning, some experienced a fast-moving cold front that brought with it wind and rain and hail, a 20 degree cool-down, and then blew out of here a few hours later as quickly as it came in.
We started on Saturday at the Lady Bird Johnson Wildflower Center with a docent tour to learn about Lady Bird and her efforts to beautify our country, and to get a great overview of our unique Texas native plants. Here, Flingers are checking out the water plants in the pond at the entrance to the center.
Our docent tells everyone about this spineless cactus native to Texas. For a lovely tour of her own garden, check out Pam's post of a small private tour she gave some folks on Friday as an early event.
The bright Texas sun starts to show itself as bloggers listen.
Looking at the natural spring at the entrance to the center.
The spring, surrounded by native grasses.
From this tower vantage point, you can see wildflowers blooming all over the central Texas Hill Country.
Blogger perusing the grounds.
A blooming yucca stands at attention for us!
More plant inspections. We were a tough crowd for a tour guide - we couldn't stop visiting with each other and everyone had detailed questions and answers about all the plants.
Tiny baby grapes cover the arbor along the pathway.
An acacia tree waves it's golden branches at us.
A cactus with little babies.
A stunningly beautiful field of poppies had us all in awe.
Ok - that's the first sneak peek of the day -- I have in-laws here visiting from Indiana and since I bailed on them Friday and Saturday for "flinging," my posts will be in fits and starts today.
But I wanted to give you a little taste, and I'll try to be back later in the day for more show and tell, because there is so much to share with you.
We started on Saturday at the Lady Bird Johnson Wildflower Center with a docent tour to learn about Lady Bird and her efforts to beautify our country, and to get a great overview of our unique Texas native plants. Here, Flingers are checking out the water plants in the pond at the entrance to the center.
Our docent tells everyone about this spineless cactus native to Texas. For a lovely tour of her own garden, check out Pam's post of a small private tour she gave some folks on Friday as an early event.
The bright Texas sun starts to show itself as bloggers listen.
Looking at the natural spring at the entrance to the center.
The spring, surrounded by native grasses.
From this tower vantage point, you can see wildflowers blooming all over the central Texas Hill Country.
Blogger perusing the grounds.
A blooming yucca stands at attention for us!
More plant inspections. We were a tough crowd for a tour guide - we couldn't stop visiting with each other and everyone had detailed questions and answers about all the plants.
Tiny baby grapes cover the arbor along the pathway.
An acacia tree waves it's golden branches at us.
A cactus with little babies.
A stunningly beautiful field of poppies had us all in awe.