Monday, March 9, 2015

Official State Flower(s)

big bend bluebonnets

Here’s a picture taken last week of the Bluebonnets blooming in the Big Bend area of Texas.  These aren’t the same species we see around here - those won’t be in full bloom for a few more weeks - but they are still the “official” State Flower.

March 7, 1901, the Texas Legislature named the Lupinus subcarnosus as the state flower. 

The problem was that many people felt that they picked the wrong flower.  The subcarnosis is not as common as the Lupinus texensis, the blooms are smaller and more delicate, and where it does grow, the patches aren’t as thick.  That led to a 70-year fight that was finally resolved on March 8, 1971, when the legislation was amended to include L. texensis and "any other variety of bluebonnet not heretofore recorded."

As a result of that legislation, Texas became the only state to have six “official” State Flowers.

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