Denton Master Gardeners and Flower Mound Library Host Garden Series FLOWER MOUND, Texas â Michael Eason from the Lady Bird Johnson Wildflower Garden presented the first of (5) five free lectures. Mr. Eason spoke to a large crowd of Denton county residents explaining the conservation efforts that the center is making to preserve seeds up to 1500 years. âThe effort is more than I had anticipated,â explained Mr. Eason. âTexas has 6000 (six thousand) species which account for 24% of what is found in the U.S. The seed collection takes place mostly on private land since 97% of land in Texas is owned by private individuals. They are making great strides but are hampered by urbanization, land sprayed with herbicides, recreational use damage and removal of native species by individuals. âDid you know that there once was a Palm forest along the Rio Grande?â stated Mr. Eason in describing the threats to conservation. Texas does not have laws regarding removal of native species as do some other states. âThere is a lot more work to be done,â stated Mr. Eason since only 10% of the 6000 species have been collected since the project started in 2002. The Wildflower Garden is a member of the Millennium Seed Project which Mr. Eason described as âthe U.N. of seed collection.â This work is done across the globe by mostly a volunteer force. The series continues on Wed, April 1st at 7PM with Dr. Dotty Woodson, a horticulturist with the Texas AgriLife Extension Agency where she is a Program Specialist in Water Resources. Her expertise includes drip irrigation, irrigation auditing and rainwater harvesting. Her passion is sharing information with the public. Woodson is on the North Central Texas Council of Government Task Force which developed the Texas SmartScape Landscape Program, a landscape design, plant selection and maintenance program addressing landscape water conservation. A published author and columnist for the Fort Worth Star Telegram, Woodson also appears regularly on HGTVâs âGardening by the Yard.â For more information visit www.dcmga.com. ###