Plants

Pecan Trees at the Reconstructed Birthplace

When the Texas Hill Country was first explored by Euro-American settlers in the early to mid-1800s, wild species of native grasses three to five feet tall were dominant. The landscape resembled a sea of grass, while at the same time the slopes were mostly covered with stunted live oaks and cedar, miles of brush country and tall, thin grass coexisting together. Wild pine and cedar (ashe juniper) grew in the area, but their growth was restricted by infrequent prairie fires. Oaks, primarily live oak, but including post, blackjack and Spanish or red, were clearly the predominant trees in the original Hill Country.