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 |
Salvia azurea | Pitcher Sage Big Blue Sage Azure Sage Giant Blue Sage Blue Sage | |
Salvia azurea | Pitcher Sage Big Blue Sage Azure Sage Giant Blue Sage Blue Sage | |
Salvia azurea | Pitcher Sage Big Blue Sage Azure Sage Giant Blue Sage Blue Sage | |
Salvia ballotiflora | Shrubby Blue Sage Blue Shrub Sage Mejorana | |
Salvia ballotiflora | Shrubby Blue Sage Blue Shrub Sage Mejorana | |
Sabatia brachiata | Narrowleaf Rose Gentian | |
Sanguisorba canadensis | Canadian Burnet American Burnet | |
Saxifraga careyana | Golden Eye Saxifrage | |
Sabatia campestris | Texas Star Rose Gentian Meadow Pink Prairie Rose-gentian Prairie Sabatia | |
Sabatia campestris | Texas Star Rose Gentian Meadow Pink Prairie Rose-gentian Prairie Sabatia | |
Sabatia campestris | Texas Star Rose Gentian Meadow Pink Prairie Rose-gentian Prairie Sabatia | |
Sabatia campestris | Texas Star Rose Gentian Meadow Pink Prairie Rose-gentian Prairie Sabatia | |
Salvia carduacea | Thistle Sage | |
Salvia carduacea | Thistle Sage | |
Salvia carduacea | Thistle Sage | |
Salvia carduacea | Thistle Sage | |
Saururus cernuus | Lizard's Tail Lizard Tail Breastweed Water Dragon | |
Saururus cernuus | Lizard's Tail Lizard Tail Breastweed Water Dragon | |
Saururus cernuus | Lizard's Tail Lizard Tail Breastweed Water Dragon | |
Sairocarpus coulterianus | Coulter's Snapdragon White Snapdragon | |
Salvia coccinea | Scarlet Sage Tropical Sage Blood Sage Red Sage Indian Fire | |
Salvia columbariae | California Sage Chia Sage Golden Chia Desert Chia Chia | |
Salvia columbariae | California Sage Chia Sage Golden Chia Desert Chia Chia | |
Salvia columbariae | California Sage Chia Sage Golden Chia Desert Chia Chia | |
Salvia columbariae | California Sage Chia Sage Golden Chia Desert Chia Chia | |
Salvia columbariae | California Sage Chia Sage Golden Chia Desert Chia Chia | |
Salvia dorrii var. incana | Purple Sage | |
Salvia dorrii var. incana | Purple Sage | |
Sagittaria engelmanniana | Engelmann's Arrowhead | |
Salvia engelmannii | Engelmann's Sage Engelmann's Salvia | |
Salvia engelmannii | Engelmann's Sage Engelmann's Salvia | |
Salvia engelmannii | Engelmann's Sage Engelmann's Salvia | |
Salvia farinacea | Mealy Blue Sage Mealy Sage Mealycup Sage | |
Salvia farinacea | Mealy Blue Sage Mealy Sage Mealycup Sage | |
Salvia farinacea | Mealy Blue Sage Mealy Sage Mealycup Sage | |
Salvia farinacea | Mealy Blue Sage Mealy Sage Mealycup Sage | |
Sarracenia flava | Yellow Pitcherplant Trumpets Yellow Pitcher Plant | |
Saxifraga flagellaris | Whiplash Saxifrage Spider-legged Saxifrage Spider Plant | |
Sagittaria graminea | Grassy Arrowhead Grass-leaf Arrowhead | |
Salvia greggii | Autumn Sage Cherry Sage Gregg Salvia | |
Salvia greggii | Autumn Sage Cherry Sage Gregg Salvia | |
Salvia greggii | Autumn Sage Cherry Sage Gregg Salvia | |
Salvia greggii | Autumn Sage Cherry Sage Gregg Salvia | |
Sabatia grandiflora | Largeflower Rose Gentian Large-flower Sabatia | |
Sabatia grandiflora | Largeflower Rose Gentian Large-flower Sabatia | |
Saxifraga integrifolia | Wholeleaf Saxifrage | |
Sagittaria lancifolia | Lanceleaf Arrowhead Duck-potato Bulltongue Arrowhead Bull-tongue Arrowhead | |
Sagittaria lancifolia | Lanceleaf Arrowhead Duck-potato Bulltongue Arrowhead Bull-tongue Arrowhead | |
Sagittaria latifolia | Broadleaf Arrowhead Arrowhead Duckroot Duck-potato Wapato | |
Sagittaria lancifolia ssp. media | Bulltongue Arrowhead Scythe-fruit Arrowhead | |
scientific name | common name(s) | image gallery |