What are your Mom’s favorite flowers?

Cinco de Mayo is a significant holiday that celebrates the Mexican defeat of the French army at the Battle of Puebla back in 1862 but, more importantly, is a celebration of the rich culture and heritage of our neighbors to the south.

Speaking of battles, I spent my Cinco de Mayo, trying to find more ways to get greener at home. Pick your own battles to help this planet be greener.

Here are some ideas:

Kitchen battles
 Air dish dishes instead of using dishwasher drying cycle.
 Be sure the dishwasher is full, but not overloaded, when you run it.

Car battles
 Speeding, rapid acceleration and braking only waste gasoline. Drive sensibly, I know sometimes is hard, but next time you are pushing the gas pedal remember that each mile per hour (mph) you drive over 60 mph is like paying $0.10 more per gallon of gas.
 Keep tires properly inflated and aligned to improve your gasoline mileage by around 3.3%

Laundry battles
 Wash and dry full loads of clothes, if small, use the right water level.
 Clean the lint filter in the dryer after every load to improve air circulation.

There is something about May that makes me happier, it has nothing to do with been born in May, maybe it is because crops begin to sprout and flowers emerge. Now, we do not get to have a May 1st on a Friday that often, so today, is extra special.
For all my ex-colleagues in the Telecom industry, happy Friday to you, remember how we used to celebrate Friday’s, sharing snacks and delicious food from around the world? You are missed dearly.

I hope where ever you are today, you are taking the time to enjoy the first day of May, I can’t wait to see what this beautiful month will bring us.

Have you been taking care of you garden? Well, maybe I should ask, have you planted anything at all this year? If you have not, go out, get some fresh air. Gardening lowers stress levels.

If you need some ideas on what works best here in Dallas, take a trip to the Dallas Arboretum, always inspiring gardeners to new ideas. You could also check the United State Department of Agriculture for a comprehensive list of Texas native plants.

Here are some of my favorite Texas native plants, with their scientific and common names:

Amblyolepis setigera
Huisache daisy
Butterfly daisy
Honey daisy

* Anisacanthus quadrifidus var. wrightii
Flame acanthus
Hummingbird bush
Wright’s desert honeysuckle
Wright acanthus

Cercis canadensis var. texensis
Texas redbud

* Coreopsis tinctoria
Plains coreopsis
Golden tickseed
Goldenwave
Calliopsis

Gaillardia pulchella
Firewheel
Indian Blanket

* Hibiscus laevis
Halberdleaf rosemallow
Halberdleaf hibiscus
Scarlet rose mallow

Juniperus ashei
Ashe juniper
Ashe’s juniper
Mountain cedar
Blueberry juniper

* Lantana urticoides
Texas lantana
West Indian shrubverbena
West Indian shrub-verbena
Trailing lantana
Calico bush

Lupinus texensis
Bluebonnet
Texas bluebonnet
Texas lupine
Buffalo clover
Wolf-flower

Prunus mexicana
Mexican plum
Bigtree plum

* Thelesperma filifolium
Eastern gamagrass

Reference: www.plants.usda.gov ; www.wildflower.org