You may have realized that we have some unique vegetation in the courtyard of the John Brooks Williams complex. It is intended to evoke a sense of the flora of the Texas Hill Country. To that end, we are trying to mimic what one would experience at Wild Basin. That can be challenging, given that we are in an urban environment. Still, we try.
The courtyard consists in part of rain gardens that catch water during and after storms. Although we do not “harvest” rainwater, we do collect it temporarily in order to slow it down on its way into Blunn Creek. This not only partially mitigates the potential flooding resulting from such rain events, it extends the flow into Blunn Creek over a longer period of time, enhancing the background rate of flow. Since slower moving water carries less sediment, it also reduces the sediment load going into the creek. We have taken advantage of the catchment areas by planting species near them that are tolerant of consistently saturated soils. One example of this is the dwarf palmetto.
The ground cover is intended to increase rates at which water and atmospheric gases infiltrate into the soil. In response, the two long term residents (a plateau live oak and a cedar elm) are doing very well, especially when we consider that they were in a construction zone a few months ago. Today, they seem to be thriving.
Herbaceous species that are native to the area have been planted throughout the courtyard. These include such species as pavonia, ruellia, liatris, winecups, lantana, copper canyon daisy and four-nerved daisy. On the larger side, we have planted Texas Ash and an anacua.
We hope that all who visit this space will be reminded of the beauty of the Texas Hill Country!
For more information, please contact Dr. William J. Quinn, Professor of Biology, at 512-448-8457.