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| The perfect ecosystem! Mosquito larvae, tadpoles, snails, minnows, and algae. |
One of the best science classrooms isn't inside a building—it's outdoors. During one of our regular walks to a nearby creek, we packed our nets hoping to find crawfish and turtles. Instead, we stumbled across something even more exciting: thousands of tiny tadpoles swimming through the shallow water. It turned into an unexpected biology lesson that none of us will ever forget.
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| Texas Creek |
Instead, we were astounded to find THOUSANDS of tadpoles! JACKPOT!
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| Thousands of tadpoles |
CLICK to ZOOM
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| A healthy Texas creek ecosystem. |
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| Pride of Barbados plant we pass walking to the creek |
About Pride of Barbados
Pride of Barbados is one of the most striking flowering shrubs you can grow in Texas. I had to look this up, so I can plant for myself.
It is known for:
- Blooming from late spring through fall
- Thriving in full Texas sun and heat
- Being very drought tolerant once established
- Attracting hummingbirds, butterflies, and bees
- Growing 5–8 feet tall (sometimes taller)
Winter behavior
For the Austin area, the plant typically:
- Dies back to the ground after a hard freeze.
- Returns from the roots each spring.
- Grows rapidly once warm weather arrives.
That's one reason it's so popular in Central Texas landscapes.
Growing tips
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Plant in full sun for the best flowering.
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Avoid overwatering once established.
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Prune dead stems in late winter or early spring after frost danger has passed.
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It performs well in hot, dry Texas summers.
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Pride of Barbados: One of the Best Heat-Tolerant Flowers for Texas
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Why Pride of Barbados Is a Hummingbird Magnet
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The Best Drought-Tolerant Flowering Shrubs for Central Texas
A Tiny Creek Full of Life
Healthy creeks are home to an amazing variety of living things. Tadpoles, minnows, snails, aquatic insects, algae, and mosquito larvae all play an important role in the ecosystem. As frogs mature, they help control insect populations, while the smaller creatures provide food for fish, birds, turtles, and other wildlife.
Moments like these remind me that children don't always need expensive science equipment to learn about nature. Sometimes all it takes is a creek, a net, and the curiosity to look a little closer.
6 comments:
Beautiful flowers.. were they beside the creek?
We pass this flowering shrub on our way to the creek. I took a seed pod and picture so I can identify it later ;-)
this is called a ceasalpinia (sp?) or commonly-known as a 'bird of paradise'. Be aware, though, there are lots of plants that have this common name. These are very heat and drought-tolerant. so much so that they are common flowering landscape plants in the Sonoran Desert where it only gets about 11 inches of rain a yr! They'll bloom all summer and into a mild fall. Deciduous, mulit-branched, woody shrub that grows to about 6-8'. They are not too frost hardy so you probably see them in warmer or protected spots-- is near a warm creek or on the south side of house. I have books if you want more info. That's just what I remember of the top of my head.
Oh! There's also a 'Mexican bird of paradis' that is very similar in appearance and growth habit only a little smaller and has yellow flowers.
HTH
Valerie
THANKS VAL!! I can always depend on you to help me with plant identification! I was JUST thinking about that tree today that we had passed at the farm. Remember? I had forgotten the name, but it had those THORNS.
Anyway, I planted the seeds today in a pot. NICE to know they are drought tolerant! ;-)
PS) See ya on homeschool day. I'm working the shelter all weekend, so I won't be at la farm tomorrow.
Thanks for the info Val.. sure was interesting.
To bad ther all gone
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