Passage III

Highway Flowers

[1]

Wildflowers thrive in stunning stretches of color along the highways across the United States. In California, poppies spread in dazzling carpets of orange. (31) In Virginia, pink cosmos accent the landscape, occasionally, these scenic expanses come about with no help from humans. Often, for example, they are the lovely outcome of federal, state, and local programs to restore and preserve the lasting character of the natural beauty of the national landscape.

[2]

The individuals who are passionate about these programs point out that native plants along a roadway do more than beautify the area. (35) Properly selected vegetation absorbs rainwater runoff that might otherwise create hazardous conditions on the highways. The plants also provide habitat for songbirds, butterflies, and other wildlife. (36) Furthermore, highway maintenance costs and pollution decreases in areas planted with native flowers and grasses, which require little, if any, mowing or chemical treatment.

[3]

Texas was one of the early leaders in this movement, established a wildflower program in the 1930s, thanks to the initiative of Gibb Gilchrist, the state's highway engineer at the time. Thirty years later, another Texan strengthened roadway beautification programs at a national level.

[4]

As a child, Claudia Taylor became deeply attached to the wild beauty of her surroundings. As an adult, she devoted herself to protecting and restoring habitat that she saw rapidly disappearing. In the 1960s, she moved into the White House with her husband, President Lyndon Johnson, by then widely known as "Lady Bird" Johnson, this crusader took a stand for native plants and the wildlife that depend on them. She strongly believed if humans were to benefit immeasurably from beauty in their environment. By working for the passage of the Highway Beautification Act in 1963, she helped create a national legacy to endure for others. That legacy blooms from coast to coast, from sea to shining sea.