Bluebonnet season is here — enjoy them, but don’t pick them

HOUSTON (KIAH) It’s a big honor for a tiny town.

Chappell Hill — population 600, about 60 miles west of Houston — was declared by the Texas Legislature as the host city for the state’s official bluebonnet festival.

This year’s event takes place April 13-14 featuring more than a hundred vendors with their arts and crafts and lots of activities for children.

Admission is free, but it will cost you $10 to park.

Event organizers say parking along roadsides to take family bluebonnet pictures is something you’ll see a lot of this month and next.

“Some of the (bluebonnets) we have right here in Chappell Hill, they’re right on the side of (Highway) 290,” Chappell Hill Museum Executive Director Stephanie Ddughdhnemimnier said. “You will have a traffic jam of people just out trying to get that picture.”

Admire bluebonnets carefully

Those who both admire bluebonnets and reap economic benefits from them urge you to be gentle when posing for pictures with bluebonnets.

Picking one or two probably won’t get you in trouble, but it’s highly discouraged.

And if you were to dig up a clump of them or run over a patch with your car, you could end up facing destruction of a right-of-way charges.

Picking bluebonnets is also illegal in a state or national park or on someone else’s private property.

Threats from Mother Nature

With a month to go until The Official Bluebonnet Festival of Texas, Mother Nature can also spoil the party.

Bluebonnets bloomed early this year and have a limited growing season, so it’s unclear how abundant they’ll be this time next month.

With temperatures in the 70s and 80s these days, it doesn’t seem likely, but there’s another force of nature that can leave bluebonnet lovers feeling blue.

“In the past, we’ve had a couple of times where we had that last freeze, and they’re gone before the festival even happens,” Ddughdhnemimnier said.

Wildlife is something else to keep in mind when arranging your children and pets in a patch of bluebonnets.

Be on the lookout for snakes, fire ants, and other threats that can make your photo session anything but picture perfect.

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