ETX View Home & Garden PLUS: Floral beauty abounds in East Texas

Published 5:35 am Friday, April 7, 2023

Editor’s Note: Stories labeled ETX View Home & Garden PLUS supplement ETX View’s inaugural Home, Garden and Storm Prep magazine, which subscribers will find in their Friday newspaper. The special edition highlights home aspects, inside and out, for all things spring and summer as well as tips and tricks to protect your home during stormy seasons. To read all the stories or view the e-edition of the magazine, visit etxview.com.

Springtime is a season of new beginnings.

It is a time for the natural world to revive after the dormant months of a cold and bitter winter. It is a time for flowers to bloom, and for people to enjoy spending more time outdoors as the weather gets warmer.

From the Tyler Rose Garden to the Azalea & Spring Flower Trail in Tyler to the award-winning Longview Arboretum, there is no shortage of places to admire floral beauty in East Texas.

And with a banner such as “The Rose Capital of America,” springtime in Tyler doesn’t just bloom in flowers. Tyler’s tourism blossoms into thousands of visitors.

“We hold that title proudly,” said Susan Travis, vice president of tourism/servicing for Visit Tyler.

East Texas was originally known for growing peaches. According to Travis, at the turn of the century many of the peach crops were destroyed due to a blight, drought and winter freezes wiped out much of the fruit industry, turning many farmers to growing roses.

“They realized that the same soil that grew their peaches also grew roses really well,” Travis said.

Spanning 14 acres, the Tyler Municipal Rose Garden is the nation’s largest rose garden, boasting well over 38,000 rose bushes and over 600 different varieties, as well as reflecting pools, walkways and fountains.

“We just make sure to keep an eye on things every day,” said José Parga, park manager.

The upkeep of the rose garden takes adequate water and adequate fertilizer, he says.

“Just making sure we stay on top of things… when the plants need to be pruned and that they are free from any diseases,” Parga said.

The gardens are a popular destination for both local residents and for visitors, and offer plenty of photographic opportunities, especially for weddings and senior photo shoots.

Adjacent to the Tyler Rose Garden is the Tyler Rose Museum, which showcases the history of the Texas Rose Festival.

If roses don’t invigorate your floral fancy, perhaps the simplicity and variety of azaleas will, as Tyler has plenty of those too.

Roses may capture the attention of many with its traditional and plentiful beauty — particularly in the fall with the Rose Festival — but in the springtime, azaleas reign as queen.

Known for blooming two to three times a year, they are adaptable to climates and location, and can thrive almost anywhere.

Specifically during the Azalea & Spring Flower Trail, which opened this year on March 24 and lasts through April 9.

The entire trail, a photographer’s paradise, is 10 miles long and draws visitors by the thousands each spring.

Along with the many azaleas, people will also see white and pink dogwoods, redbud trees, Japanese maples, tulips, and daffodils. As of Tuesday, some azaleas were still blooming but since their peak has mostly passed, other spring flowers are dominating the trail, according to Visit Tyler.

Some Tyler residents have opened their expansive garden to hundreds of visitors each season as part of the tour.

“I welcome people all the time, except for after dark, of course,” said Joan Pryon, who has opened the doors of her famed garden to visitors since 1994.

Of her hundreds of azaleas, Pryon insists the flowers do all the work.

“I put some fertilizer in and cut back every now and then… have someone come mow and do the heavy lifting, but for the most part, the azaleas do what they want,” she says.

Pryon doesn’t just give an eye full of natural beauty for the wandering visitors in her backyard — she provides water cans for kids so they can be a part of the growing process of the azaleas as well.

“God gave me this beautiful garden so I might as well share it,” Pyron said.

Tyler isn’t the only place in East Texas with boastful natural beauty.

In just a few short years since its launch, Longview Arboretum has breathed new life into its community.

“It’s an explosion of floral beauty in the springtime,” said Steven Chamblee, director of Longview Arboretum.

With so many eye-catching things to see, like calla lilies, daffodils, tulips, fire wheels and so much more, the nature center draws thousands of visitors.

“It’s wonderful to see everything come to life,” Chamblee said. “Everything from the little plants to the trees, it’s nothing short of amazing around here.”

According to Chamblee, the staff and volunteers were challenged to come up with something unique.

“We wanted to get out of the doldrums of winter and figure out something fun,” he said.

So, blossomed the idea of fairy houses made out of anything found in nature.

“Anything they could find outside — pinecones, bark, vines, you name it — they used towards these little fairy houses,” Chamblee said. “It’s quite a fun little thing.”

Not meant to be handled, the fairy houses can be used as photo opportunities for visitors, and Chambless said they do have plans on offering a class on fairy house building.

Many gardens faced challenges with the unpreparedness of a harsh winter, as flowers and plants were exposed to the bitter cold.

“We had some damage from the freeze, because we went from such warm weather to extreme freezing so quickly, many plants didn’t have time to get climatized,” Chamblee said. “Some are tough, some are not-so-tough.”

However, springtime isn’t springtime without making room for new beginnings.

According to Chamblee, the arboretum will be introducing a new flower called ‘moonflower’ (ipomoea alba). Relative to the morning glory, climbing moonflower vines produce white, 5-inch flowers that tend to develop after dark.

“It’s an interesting flower,” Chamblee said. “A highly fragrant flower. I think people will find it interesting too.”

These attractions, and others such as Tyler State Park, Caldwell Zoo and more, draw hundreds of thousands of visitors to Tyler.

According to Travis, every taxpayer saves at least $762 a year in property taxes because of the tourism dollars.

“That’s how important it is to our city and how wide tourism is and vital to a community, especially to our community,” she said. “That being said… the Azalea & Spring Flower Trail brings a lot of visitors to Tyler. And the economic impact is huge.”

Part of Travis’ job is going around to the hotels and event coordinators to get a tally of attendance at the end of the spring trail.

Just for 2022, with around 53,000 people (29,000 not local visitors), the city saw $1.6 million with Azalea & Spring Flower Trail.

“We are blessed with a beautiful city like Tyler,” said Travis. “There’s just so much to do.”