Bluebonnets: Challenges and Solutions

About the third year of growing bluebonnets in my yard, I thought: okay, they're self seeding, they've filled the area, I can now relax. Wrong. That year, left on their own, the bluebonnets came up but were almost overwhelmed by rescuegrass. So I realized that a self-seeding bed will still take some work.

Rescuegrass is also a winter plant, and is easy to pull when it first comes up. Later in the season, when the grasses are taller, I always run the risk of pulling up the flowers along with the grass. So I would go out frequently and weed the bluebonnets as soon as they and the rescuegrass come up. I was so glad when the flowers became well established in the driveway. At least I didn't need to weed those!

Bluebonnets’ low winter growing habit allows for a tricky way to deal with the grass. I no longer allow lawnmowers in my yard, but when I did, I found that a mower set high enough will keep the grass down and not harm the bluebonnets. Anyone trying this would have to be very careful to note when the plants start growing upwards in February or so (exact time varies from year to year depending on the weather). No more lawnmower at that point, or you'll destroy the bluebonnets.

Last year, with the bluebonnet bed so big, and me having some health challenges, I went for a more drastic solution. I bought a monocot herbicide. It only kills grasses, and the main threat to the bluebonnets were the Bermuda grass and rescuegrass. I applied it before the rescuegrass seeded, and slowly but surely, it all died. (Bermuda grass not so much.) It was not soon enough to help the bluebonnets much, but it cleared the way for the upcoming sunflowers. I still weeded the edge and had nice rows of bluebonnets on either side of the driveway to complement the ones in the driveway cracks. I'll try again earlier next year and hope to have an even larger plot of bluebonnets.