Ensuring a Safe Operations Your children are safe in our program. Learn More
Explore the Texas Prairies
20 million acres of prairie once spread across the state of Texas. Miles upon miles of tall, bunch-forming grasses accompanied by flowers and woody shrubs made the perfect home for an array of wildlife. Indigenous peoples lived and worked on the land, making use of native plants and wild animals for food, clothing, tools, and shelter.
When the European settlers arrived in Texas in the 1500s, they immediately began plowing the land for large-scale farming operations with plants from Spain and England. By the 1700s, an estimated half of the prairie had been turned into farmland.
Today, less than 1% of the Texas prairie remains. The people, plants, and animals native to our prairies are being rapidly lost to human forces. Learn more about why this land is so special and why it is vital to protect what's left of our native tallgrass prairies.
Ranchland in Lavaca County, which the Backland Prairie and Post Oak Savannahs intersect. By William L. Farr - Own work, CC BY-SA 4.0, Link
01
Native Prairie Association of Texas
Not just a place to build a little house. Prairies are dense, self-sustaining networks of life. Check out this rundown of what makes a prairie a prairie.
02
Lady Bird Johnson Wildflower Center
We're not talking about short, manicured turfgrass. Prairie tallgrasses can reach 10-12 feet high when left undisturbed, with roots just as deep below the surface. Click the link above to see why these plants are so important to our ecosystem.
Mexican Feathergrass in the Brentwood neighborhood. My picture.
03
The Blackland prairies of East Central Texas stretch through the Dallas-Forth Worth area and north into the Midwest. Click the link above to learn more about this unique, diverse eco-region.
Blackland Prairie Rangeland in Washington County. By William L. Farr - Own work, CC BY-SA 4.0, Link
04
Read how The Nature Conservancy is working to preserve Texas grasslands, slow environmental destruction from development, and restore native land to its original state.
Large muhly grass and Prickly Pear Cactus in the Brentwood neighborhood. My picture.