No place but Texas

 I'm ecstatic to share with you that just the other day I finally typed The End to the first book in my new series. It will soon be headed to my awesome editor, after which the real work begins in order to have it ready for you this summer. Where is it set? No place but Texas.

And March has finally arrived. In Texas, March means the arrival of wildflowers, especially bluebonnets, our state flower. Bluebonnets are a type of lupine that grows, wait for it, no place but Texas.

These gorgeous little wildflowers start blooming in the Rio Grande Valley and along the coast, and as the weather warms, they proceed north and west. Depending on the temperature, they can begin in early March or finish as late as the end of April. Our bluebonnets are every much an event such as Fiesta, Rodeo, or the State Fair. And they bloom in pastures and along roadways all across the state. Take a drive, and you can enjoy them for free.

What is the state flower of your state?

Does it bloom all over your state?

Does it bloom for only a short time, like our bluebonnets, or does it blossom for most of the year?

And for Ukraine, a sunflower:






Comments

Liza said…
Well, this is fun. First off, someday I want to see those bluebonnets. Secondly, you made me look up my state (Massachusetts) flower. Surprise, surprise, it's the Mayflower. I had no idea what they looked like so I had to google and it turns out they look to be the invasive species I pull out of my garden each spring. Who knew! Thank you for the botany lesson.
Congratulations on the new series!!! How exciting. I love spring and how it makes me feel alive again after winter.

I'm praying the Ukraine. What a sinister and horrible event.

Teresa
Awesome about the new series. No idea what our state flower is though.
Natalie Aguirre said…
Congrats on finishing the first book in your series. My late husband would have loved the title. He was a true Texan who thought Texas was its own country.
L. Diane Wolfe said…
Another book - yeah!

I'll have to ask my friend Kerri if she has bluebonnets in her yard.
Rachna Chhabria said…
Congratulations on finishing the first book of your series.
Jemi Fraser said…
YAY for the fabulous new story!

The bluebonnets are gorgeous!
Hard to believe you've got flowers blooming and our snowbanks are still taller than I am!

Our provincial flower is the trillium - a pretty little flower with 3 white petals and bright green leaves. :)
Such good news about the book
Carol Kilgore said…
Liza - Hahaha! No problem :) I've never heard of the Mayflower FLOWER, so I looked it up. It looks so pretty and dainty.

Teresa - Thanks. You'll be hearing more about it in the coming months. I feel the same about spring.

Alex - Thank you. If you don't know, I don't know.

Natalie - TY! Since we once were our own country, I guess in the corners of our minds we still think we are.

Diane - One of our neighbors in San Antonio had a perennial wildflower garden that was gorgeous.

Rachna - Thank you. Much appreciated.

Jemi - I'm loving the new series and hope readers do, too. I haven't actually seen any bluebonnets here yet, but I have seen dandelions, and one of our potted geraniums has a new green leaf. I had to look up trillium to see what it looks like. Very pretty and spring-like!

Jo-Anne - Thank you! It was a lot of fun to write.
Congrats on the first book!!
I do love wildflowers, and those bluebonnets are gorgeous.
H. R. Sinclair said…
Congrats.

The bluebonnets are so beautiful and the sunflower has always been one of my favorites. I don't know what my state flower is now, but in CA it was the golden poppy. Also a pretty flower and when it blooms in large clusters, it was stunning.
Carol Kilgore said…
Lynda - I'm a wildflower fan, too.

HR - When we lived in New Mexico, we'd often see those gold and orange poppies growing there, both wild and cultivated. They're gorgeous.
Melissa said…
I love bluebonnets! I heard once that Texas state troopers toss seeds out along the highways. Can't wait to take a road trip so I can see meadows full of them.
Carol Kilgore said…
Melissa - I didn't know that about the troopers. Cool!
Mark said…
Beautiful! California Poppies are here year round, but we get a lot of Indian Paintbrush locally that comes in lots of colors in the spring :)
Carol Kilgore said…
Mark - I'm a huge fan of California poppies. They're so pretty. We have Indian Paintbrushes here, too, that bloom along with the bluebonnets. That red, white, and blue altogether is so pretty. I've only ever seen them in red, though.
Your bluebonnets are gorgeous, Carol!
The king protea is the national flower of South Africa.
Congrats on finishing the first book in your new series! Yay!
Carol Kilgore said…
Michelle - Another one I had to look up - and absolutely magnificent! Thanks for the congrats :)
Murees Dupè said…
Those bluebonnets do look beautiful and cheery. In South Africa the protea (King Protea) is our national flower. I hope you are doing well, Carol.
Carol Kilgore said…
Murees - Great to hear from you! I'm fine. The King Protea is absolutely gorgeous!
Congrats on writing "the end" on your new series! That's awesome. :) Two of th bet words to any writer.

Your description of bluebonnets makes me hope to see them in person some day. The funny thing is, when you asked what my state's flower is... I had to look it up. Why that's funny is I DO know the state flower of Maryland, even though I left there and moved to Georgia in 1971. For the record, Maryland's is the Black-Eyed Susan, and here it Georgia, it's the Cherokee rose. (Thanks for getting me to check it out!)
Carol Kilgore said…
Susan - I love back-eyed Susans. I tried to grow them once with no luck :( I love simple flowers like your Cherokee Rose. I had to look it up because I didn't know what it looked like. It looks a little like some wild roses I've seen. No bluebonnets here yet. Our winter has been colder than normal and it's supposed to freeze again this weekend. It's very late in the year for that here. Hopefully we'll have a spring and not zoom straight into summer.
Aww, thank you!

Also, I have no idea what the state flower is. (My personal flower is the black-eyed Susan) But our state amphibian is the Hellbender!
Carol Kilgore said…
Susan - I had to search for the Hellbender. I'm glad we don't have those here! We don't have a state amphibian, but we do have a state reptile: the Texas Horned Lizard. He's a real cutie :) I ♥ black-eyed Susans!

Eva - Not at this time. Thank you.

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