According to Missouri Department of State Parks data, there are somewhere between 2,000 and 2,800 native species of plants that grow in Missouri.
That’s a lot of plants.
According to the U.S. Forest Service, of the roughly 2,800 species of plants in Missouri, about two-thirds can be found in the Mark Twain National Forest.
I’m pretty sure more like about three-quarters can be found on our Texas County property high above the Big Piney River west of Houston. OK, maybe that’s an exaggeration, but it sure seems like it, because there’s a tremendous variety of flora on our land, as is the case all over the Missouri Ozarks.
Of course, as is pretty standard procedure, we’ve added some forms of vegetation that aren’t native to the Show Me State. Nothing “invasive,” just your basic dianthus, dahlias, iris, wisteria, various types of mint, tomatoes, herbs and other decorative or edible selections.
But wow, with all the rain that has fallen this year, the plant population – both native and otherwise – is going completely bonkers in our neck of the woods. Everything is so thick and lush; even the lawn has no bare spots for the first time I can recall (it’s a lawn not entirely made up of grass, mind you, but that’s also pretty standard around here).
As my wife, Wendy, and I sit on the front porch swing and look out toward the heavily-forested river bluff landscape, it’s absolutely amazing how green everything is. I mean, it’s pretty much always green this time of year, but the color this time is ultra-augmented and intensified, and many plants appear to be enthusiastically expanding and blooming because of the bountiful natural watering.
And speaking of watering, we have done little watering of plants this year, for obvious reasons. And that’s a really good thing, because no hose nozzle or sprinkler head can come close to the kind of soaking that a nice solid rain shower produces. And it’s free and effortless. How cool is that?
Regarding native plants again, an entry on the Missouri State Parks website states they “improve quality of life for all, including creation of pollinator habitat, reduction of nature-deficit disorder, stormwater management and carbon storage.”
Roger that. And on top of that scientific stuff, plants are critter habitat, too, that’s for sure.
Just ask our cat, Andie. She’s a born killer and will often literally dive into the bushes and exit with one of several types of local rodents hanging out of her mouth. Yeah, maybe that’s a bit morbid and kind of sad, but she’s doing what God created her to do, and she’s really, really good at it, so we usually just let her do her thing.
Now, when there’s a lizard involved, we try to save it. Yep, we play favorites when it comes to Andie’s hunting behavior. We’re not very concerned about the rodents, but we just like the lizards.
Of course, trees are plants, and man, oh man, the Missouri Ozarks has some trees, right? Like many spots in the region, we have dozens of species on our property, and they bring welcome shade during the summer and stark beauty in the winter.
And, of course, trees manufacture massive amounts of oxygen (via photosynthesis), which is surely one reason such pure air exists in this portion of North America.
Anyway, that’s kind of a rambling way of saying I’m enjoying watching the Missouri Jungle thrive this year. It’s an unusual opportunity to witness plants have a big-time heyday.
But at the same time, I understand that weather patterns in this region are never even close to permanent, and – as a friend recently said – we’re sort of always “two weeks away from a drought.”
Welcome to Missouri, right?
Doug Davison is a writer, photographer and newsroom assistant for the Houston Herald. Email: ddavison@houstonherald.com.
