Fort Worth gazette. [volume] (Fort Worth, Tex.) 1891-1898, 1891-05-03
THE FLORAOF TEXAS.

Professor Robert L. Hill, the eminent
scientist, who has figured so extensively in
the geology of Texas, Arkansas and other
states, and who is at present on the edi-
torial staff of this continents only magazine
Of the kind, The American Geologist, has
honored US with an interesting letter in
which he says:
am delighted to see that you are calling
attention in YOUR columns of THE GAZETTE
10 the botanical features of Texas. and urg-
ing the necessity of an appropriate manual
for use in this region. l have tried very
hard to collect together all the scattered
literature concerning the botany of our
state, and possibly the following remarks
thereon might be of service to you:
In the first place permit me 10 remark
that Texas embraces within its vast area
several distinct floral provinces, and hence
the difficulty of complete manual until
these provinces are defined. For instance,
the student will lind the flora of all the
timbered region of Eastern Texas north of
the Colorado, and extendg up the alluvial
basins of Red and other rivers as far west
as DeniSon and Dallas. to belong to the
Eastern United States, and TO embrace most
of the plants enumerated in Chapman's
Flora of the Southern United States, or Mrs.
Noung's valuable little handbook. Imnledi-
ately west Of this upon the sub calcareouS
prairieS the plants are entirely different,
very few species being found common to it
and the East Texas region. These plants
have never been systematically catalogued
or studied, and local lists from Fort Worth,
Waco, or other places would be Of the
greatest value to science.
Again, the billy, or hard lime plateaus
and buttes of the lower cretaceouS areas of
Southwest Texas present another beauti-
fully distinct fora, with many handsome
,+.,1 cl,,, he 1,a
commonly mistaken for laureD, the Bar
berry (Berheris fremontu) or chapparel,
huiSatch, the mountain juniper and others.
The red beds of the Abilene, Wichita
area, (Tom Green county,, again show an
other peculiar fora, including many of the
plants of the great plains, especially rare
composite which have travelled eastward.
The vast table land of the Llama Estacado
is still further different from the rest OF
Texas, Astounding in its peculiar grasses
and pereHnialS, most of which are enumer-
ated in Gray and Coulter's Manual of
Botany in the Rocky Mountain Regions.
The most unique and least described floral
province of Texas is in the mountains of
the trans-Pecos region, where the yucca,
the sotOl, e. siempre vivre, giant cacti and
other unique plants adapted 10 arid exist
ence, prevail.
For this region and all of Southwest
Texas | would commend the reader to
most valuable and little known treatise on
Texas botany, to-wit: Harvey's Flora Of
Southwest Texas, published in the ninth
annual report of the United States national
museum. Washington, d. c. This IS, in
my opinion, one of the most important
treatises on Texas botany.
The field of botanical study has been so
much differentiated in late years that large
and comprehensive subdivisions of the
study have been made, especially in the
field of cryptogamious or non-fowering
plants. ] should add that there are several
works on special branches of botany which
will be great aid to the Texas student.
All of our ferns will be found in Under
woods little manual on North
American ferns. The cactacal, which
mans life study, have been beautifully
published by the Shaw botanical garden of
ST. Louis, but the work costs in the neigh
borhood of $50. The composite or sun
flower family can all be found in Gray's
Monograph, published by the Smithsonian
institution.
wish also to add word about some of
the pioneers in the study of Texas botany,
those NOBLE men who worked for science
and nature unrewarded and without honor
in their own country. Thomas NuGtall
visited the lower Red river valley in the
early part of this century and studied the
plants of Southeast Arkansas Southeast
y
Lindheimer. a most able German natu-
raliSt, worked most induStriously and pa
tiently for years on the botany of the New
Braunfels region, and published the results
OF his studies in Northern and European
journals. Mrs. Young OF Houston and DR..
Buckley of Austin deserve places of honor
in the memory of Texans. THE GAZETTE
has already mentioned their work. The
latter'S books, herbarium and manuscripts,
were bought by a secondhand dealer and
sold 10 q scientific institution in st. Louis
l Think all these names are those of work
erS in antebellum days. Who are the
workers now? Alas! we are indeed living
in period OF scientific apathy in Texas.
But there is still a prophet at least in our
own country TO whom l au least shall do
honor. This is Professor T. Y. Munson of
Denison, who, in addition TO his long
studies of economic botany and horticulture,
has been q patient investigator of scientific
botany, and is bringing abroad honor and |
credit TO our state France has given him |
the cross OF the Legion of Honor for his |
work on grapes. and the United States de- |
partment of agriculture has time and again |
relied and drawn upon his knowledge, and |
is now publishing his magnificent book on |
the NORTH American grapes.