Join NPSOT-Williamson County on Thursday, May 14, 2026, when our featured topic will be “Native Swagger: Turning Heads with Texas Native Plants” with Andrea DeLong-Amaya. Free and open to the public. The meeting begins at 7:00 PM. The guest presentation begins after a short business meeting.
Please note => This month’s guest presentation will NOT be recorded for YouTube.
About our topic: Native plants are ecological powerhouses while representing our botanical heritage. But too often, they’re dismissed as messy or weedy. It’s time to change the narrative! In this talk, we’ll explore how to use native plants to create gardens that are true people-pleasers. From wild to formal designs, lawns to containers, sun to shade, wildlife gardens to water gardens, even edible gardens — you’ll see how natives provide habitat while they also serve as the anchor for stunning landscapes. Whether you’re already a native-plant champion or just native-curious, you’ll come away with ideas to elevate your garden and give native plants the starring role they deserve.
BONUS BOOK SIGNING! Bring your copy of Andrea’s book The Texas Native Plant Primer for Andrea to sign! If you don’t have it yet, be sure to purchase the primer before the meeting. Copies will NOT be available for sale at the meeting. Options for purchasing include the NPSOT Bookstore (Amazon affiliate), or Timber Press.
About our speaker:
Andrea DeLong-Amaya (ahn-DRAY-ah di-LONG ah-MY-ah)
Horticulture Educator, Lady Bird Johnson Wildflower Center
For over three decades, Andrea DeLong-Amaya has been living her life’s mission to honor the natural world through presenting and teaching classes about the horticulture, ecology, and importance of native plants in planned landscapes.
Over the prior 21 years, she served as the Wildflower Center’s Director of Horticulture, overseeing the nine acres of Texas native plant gardens, and nursery programs. She’s been a staff member since 1998 and has over 30 years of experience with Texas native plants in horticulture, ecology and garden design. Recently, she has taken on a new role at the Wildflower Center focusing more on teaching and advancing interpretation in the gardens.
Andrea has contributed numerous gardening articles to publications such as Taunton’s Fine Gardening, Rodale’s Organic Gardening, American Public Gardens Association’s Public Garden, Neil Sperry’s Gardens and e-Gardens, Texas Gardener and Wildflower (the Center’s member magazine). Her regionally best-selling book, the Texas Native Plant Primer (Timber Press), was released in March of 2025.
Andrea has appeared numerous times on Central Texas Gardener, PBS’s long-running television program, and was a two-time guest on WNYC’s Science Friday. Jennifer Jewell featured Andrea’s work in her 2020 book, “The Earth in Her Hands: 75 Extraordinary Women Working in the World of Plants,” and interviewed DeLong-Amaya on the podcast Cultivating Place.
The Scott Arboretum of Swarthmore College honored Andrea with the prestigious 2025 Scott Garden & Horticulture Award in March 2025. And in the fall of 2025, the Native Plant Society of Texas recognized her for the Texas Native Plant Primer with the Correll Memorial Award.
==> This month’s in-person location is the Georgetown Public Library, 2nd floor, 402 West 8th St, Georgetown, TX 78626. Come early (6:30 PM) for expert advice, to check out the seed swap board, or just to visit.
==> To attend via Zoom, register at https://npsot-org.zoom.us/meeting/register/0HS0aMmtQ4Sh5nVia5ba6Q#/registration
At every meeting, we give away a book — about native plants or the meeting topic — to one randomly chosen in-person attendee!
If we have permission from our guest speaker, we record the presentation for our YouTube channel. (See a list of past topics at this link.)
Have an idea for a speaker? Let Program Leader Susie Hickman know via email to wilco-chapter@npsot.org.
NPSOT-Williamson County meetings are free and open to the public. We hope you attend! Meetings may be in person, virtual, or both, so be sure to check details in the meeting announcement. Meetings are announced on our website, our calendar and Facebook. See upcoming topics on our Home page or on the Calendar.