Native Plants
Bransford, W.D. and Dolphia
Bill (W.D.) (1913-1996) and Dolphia Bransford (1915-2015) moved from San Angelo to Kingsland, Texas in 1950. There they established the first fish camp in the area. A carpenter, Bill built small cabins and a larger building which served as a general store.Bill was interested in photography so he and Dolphia would set out in their camper taking pictures of wildflowers and scenery along the way. After plants were photographed, Dolphia researched them and recorded their botanical name, family and common name on each slide. The Bransfords would travel for two or three months at a time and eventually visited nearly every corner of the United States and Canada. They spent 40 years pursuing their favorite pastime and stopped only when Bill’s vision diminished.
At the beginning, Bill photographed plants mostly from a distance, often too far to see enough detail necessary to identify his subjects. Dolphia encouraged him to get close-ups of the plants so that they could be identified and so that their full beauty could be appreciated. Many times he would lie flat on the ground to get the perfect shot. His extra effort shows in the quality of his photographs.
Bill enjoyed presenting prints of his photographs in collections, displaying images of entire genera or families in a single frame. In one case, it took six years of effort to get the photograph of a single species necessary to complete one of these framed collections.
Wishing to find a suitable, permanent home for their work, Mr. and Mrs. Bransford began donating their slide collection to the National Wildflower Research Center in 1987 and were privileged to enjoy Mrs. Johnson’s company on several occasions. Over the years, countless thousands of visitors to this website have enjoyed the work and study of this devoted couple.
Today, the nearly 4500 native plant slides contributed to the Wildflower Center by Bill and Dolphia Bransford remain one of the largest image collections in the NPIN Image Gallery.
The Lady Bird Johnson Wildflower Center is committed to developing the premier resource for native plant images in North America through continued growth of the Plant Image Gallery. You can help us achieve our mission ...to increase the sustainable use and conservation of native wildflowers, plants, and landscapes... by becoming a contributor.
scientific name | common name(s) | image gallery |
Rudbeckia hirta var. pulcherrima | Black-eyed Susan Blackeyed Susan Brown-eyed Susan Pinewoods Coneflower | |
Rudbeckia hirta var. pulcherrima | Black-eyed Susan Blackeyed Susan Brown-eyed Susan Pinewoods Coneflower | |
Rudbeckia hirta var. pulcherrima | Black-eyed Susan Blackeyed Susan Brown-eyed Susan Pinewoods Coneflower | |
Rudbeckia hirta var. pulcherrima | Black-eyed Susan Blackeyed Susan Brown-eyed Susan Pinewoods Coneflower | |
Rudbeckia hirta var. pulcherrima | Black-eyed Susan Blackeyed Susan Brown-eyed Susan Pinewoods Coneflower | |
Rudbeckia hirta var. pulcherrima | Black-eyed Susan Blackeyed Susan Brown-eyed Susan Pinewoods Coneflower | |
Rudbeckia hirta var. pulcherrima | Black-eyed Susan Blackeyed Susan Brown-eyed Susan Pinewoods Coneflower | |
Rudbeckia hirta var. pulcherrima | Black-eyed Susan Blackeyed Susan Brown-eyed Susan Pinewoods Coneflower | |
Ruellia humilis | Prairie Petunia Fringeleaf Wild Petunia Hairy Ruellia Low Wild Petunia Low Ruellia Fringeleaf Ruellia Fringe-leaf Wild Petunia | |
Rumex hymenosepalus | Canaigre Dock Canaigre Desert Rhubarb | |
Rumex hymenosepalus | Canaigre Dock Canaigre Desert Rhubarb | |
Rudbeckia laciniata | Green-headed Coneflower Greenhead Coneflower Cutleaf Coneflower Wild Goldenglow Sochan | |
Rudbeckia maxima | Giant Coneflower Great Coneflower Giant Brown-eyed Susan Cabbage Coneflower | |
Ruellia metziae | White Ruellia Metz's Wild Petunia Metz Wild Petunia Wild White Petunia | |
Ruellia metziae | White Ruellia Metz's Wild Petunia Metz Wild Petunia Wild White Petunia | |
Ruellia metziae | White Ruellia Metz's Wild Petunia Metz Wild Petunia Wild White Petunia | |
Rudbeckia nitida | Shiny Coneflower Shining Coneflower | |
Rudbeckia nitida | Shiny Coneflower Shining Coneflower | |
Ruellia nudiflora | Violet Ruellia Common Wild Petunia Violet Wild Petunia Wild Petunia Hierba De La Calentura | |
Ruellia nudiflora | Violet Ruellia Common Wild Petunia Violet Wild Petunia Wild Petunia Hierba De La Calentura | |
Ruellia nudiflora | Violet Ruellia Common Wild Petunia Violet Wild Petunia Wild Petunia Hierba De La Calentura | |
Rugelia nudicaulis | Rugel's Indianplantain | |
Ruellia nudiflora var. runyonii | Runyon's Wild Petunia | |
Rudbeckia occidentalis | Western Coneflower | |
Rubus odoratus | Purple-flowering Raspberry Thimbleberry | |
Rubus odoratus | Purple-flowering Raspberry Thimbleberry | |
Rubus parviflorus | Western Thimbleberry Thimbleberry | |
Rubus parviflorus | Western Thimbleberry Thimbleberry | |
Ruellia parryi | Parry's Wild Petunia | |
Ruellia pedunculata | Stalked Wild Petunia | |
Ruellia pedunculata | Stalked Wild Petunia | |
Ruellia pedunculata ssp. pinetorum | Stalked Wild Petunia | |
Ruellia strepens | Limestone Ruellia Limestone Wild Petunia | |
Ruellia strepens | Limestone Ruellia Limestone Wild Petunia | |
Rubus trivialis | Southern Dewberry Dewberry | |
Rubus trivialis | Southern Dewberry Dewberry | |
Rudbeckia triloba | Browneyed Susan Brown-eyed-susan Thin-leaved Coneflower Three-lobed Rudbeckia | |
Rumex venosus | Veiny Dock Winged Dock | |
Ruellia yucatana | Yucatan Wild Petunia | |
Sarracenia alata | Yellow Trumpets Yellow Pitcher Plant Yellow Trumpet Flycatcher Trumpet Pitcher Plant | |
Sarracenia alata | Yellow Trumpets Yellow Pitcher Plant Yellow Trumpet Flycatcher Trumpet Pitcher Plant | |
Sarracenia alata | Yellow Trumpets Yellow Pitcher Plant Yellow Trumpet Flycatcher Trumpet Pitcher Plant | |
Sarracenia alata | Yellow Trumpets Yellow Pitcher Plant Yellow Trumpet Flycatcher Trumpet Pitcher Plant | |
Sarracenia alata | Yellow Trumpets Yellow Pitcher Plant Yellow Trumpet Flycatcher Trumpet Pitcher Plant | |
Sarracenia alata | Yellow Trumpets Yellow Pitcher Plant Yellow Trumpet Flycatcher Trumpet Pitcher Plant | |
Sarracenia alata | Yellow Trumpets Yellow Pitcher Plant Yellow Trumpet Flycatcher Trumpet Pitcher Plant | |
Sarracenia alata | Yellow Trumpets Yellow Pitcher Plant Yellow Trumpet Flycatcher Trumpet Pitcher Plant | |
Sarracenia alata | Yellow Trumpets Yellow Pitcher Plant Yellow Trumpet Flycatcher Trumpet Pitcher Plant | |
Salvia apiana | White Sage California White Sage | |
Saxifraga aprica | Sierra Saxifrage | |
scientific name | common name(s) | image gallery |