When I wrote the first edition of this book, there were few resources to guide people. Now the shelves bulge with field guides, books on butterfly gardening, gardening for wildlife, and naturalistic garden design. Groups such as the Native Plant Society, the Prairie Association, and the Master Gardener Program are establishing their informed constituencies that are then sent out to educate their communities. The TV and the Internet are likewise rich in information, but we still need more public environments where people can directly experience a naturalistic garden. We need more parks, arboretums, and botanical gardens for people to casually and spontaneously attend and learn more about these plants.
All public buildings offer opportunities for smaller display gardens showcasing native plants.
We should support city ordinances that favor the planting of native plants over exotics species. The challenges are daunting, but despite a very mobile population, I believe native plants have established themselves as a resource to be valued. In a very basic sense, we have come full circle to the place Benny Simpson began thirty years ago. Incorporating native plants in landscape design is a major part of an integrated management strategy to address our dwindling water supplies. For many parts of Texas, current projections predict that by 2030, our demand for water will exceed our supplies.