Watson Rare Native Plant Preserve
The Watson Rare Native Plant Preserve is a 501c (3) non-profit organization in Warren Texas, about 45 miles north of Beaumont and was created by the late Geraldine Watson, one of the activists who worked to create the Big Thicket National Preserve. This website of the Watson Rare Native Plant Preserve is open to the public for viewing. Contents are posted by a group of volunteers at the preserve.
The Watson Rare Native Plant Preserve has many rare and endangered species of native plants, including seven species of orchids, four of the five types of carnivorous plants native to North America, and ten species of ferns. Geraldine Watson had discovered a site that exhibited almost all of the plant communities for which the Big Thicket is famous. She purchased it and worked to restore it to its original condition.
The preserve is open to the public at no charge and guided tours may sometimes be arranged (281-421-2469). Read more about the Watson Rare Native Plant Preserve by clicking the About tab to link to a Google document about the Preserve.
Maps are on www.watsonpreserve.org and link to google map of approximate GPS location of the preserve. 
Photo of Chapman's Orchid by Pauline Singleton
Photos
2015 Prescribed Burn
by Pauline Singleton Added March 29, 2015 at 4:43pm
Bee Tour
by Pauline Singleton Added October 8, 2014 at 10:03pm
2014 Activities
by Pauline Singleton Added September 30, 2014 at 10:46pm
Dragonflies & Damselflies
by Sergio Henao Added October 13, 2013 at 10:28pm
Ferns
by Sergio Henao Added August 2, 2013 at 11:09pm
Paige at Watson
by Sue Singletary Added July 27, 2013 at 7:21pm
Geraldine Watson lecturing students
by Verne Lehmberg Added July 27, 2013 at 12:35pm
Mushroom Walk 2013
by Pauline Singleton Added June 4, 2013 at 9:05pm
Butterfies
by Sergio Henao Added February 5, 2013 at 7:50pm
Wildflower Walk 9-29-12
by Pauline Singleton Added September 30, 2012 at 9:36pm
Wildflower-Butterfly Walk August 11, 2012
by Pauline Singleton Added August 12, 2012 at 4:36pm
Remembering Geraldine
by Pauline Singleton Added August 5, 2012 at 3:17pm
Blog Posts
Dr. Jyotsna Sharma, who is an Associate Professor at Texas Tech University in Lubbock, TX, is leading conservation research projects at Watson Native Plant Preserve since 2012. The focus of her lab’s…
Posted by Pauline Singleton on November 17, 2016 at 10:09pm 0 Comments 0 Likes
Dr. Jyotsna Sharma, who is an Associate Professor at Texas Tech University in Lubbock, TX, is leading conservation research projects at Watson Native Plant Preserve since 2012. The focus of her lab’s work is on one of the rare and superbly showy orchids of Texas. Platanthera chapmanii (Chapman’s orchid) is known from only a few locations in southeastern Texas, and Watson Native Plant Preserve hosts the largest population in Texas. Her work has included:
1) augmenting the…
Continue We're Losing our Redbay Trees
Posted by Pauline Singleton on August 21, 2016 at 9:30pm 0 Comments 3 Likes
I have some very bad news. It concerns two of our most common but easily-overlooked shrubs/small trees: the redbay (Persea borbonia) and sassafras (Sassafras albidum). They don’t directly affect people’s lives, except that sassafras is the source of the flavoring for root beer and gumbo file, and redbay is occasionally used in cooking. They do play a role in the ecosystems of east Texas, and we may be about to receive an unpleasant lesson in the interconnectedness…
Continue No Campaign Posters on the Preserve, Please
Posted by Pauline Singleton on April 18, 2016 at 7:54pm 0 Comments 2 Likes
Without the knowledge or consent of the Board of Directors of Watson Preserve, someone put some campaign posters for one of the presidential candidates on trees on Watson Preserve.
We are a 501c3 tax-exempt corporation, and therefore do not support specific candidates for office. Any political material that we find on the preserve will be removed. So please, save yourself some time and energy, and post such materials somewhere else. Please don't take it personally, but a…
Continue Species List for Mushroom Walk June 27, 2015
Posted by Pauline Singleton on September 19, 2015 at 2:22pm 0 Comments 0 Likes
Watson Rare Native Plant Preserve
Mushroom Walk
June 27, 2015
Species List
Agaricus silvaticus Schaeff
Amanita bisporigera Atkinson
Amanita flavoconia Atkinson
Amanita peckiana complex
Amanita vaginata complex
Boletus oliveisporus (Murr) Murr
Cantarellus tabernensis Feibelman & Cibula
Coltricia cinnamomea (Jacq.:Pers.)…
ContinueVideos
About
Donations
Watson Rare Native Plant Preserve is a 501c3 charitable corporation, and donations, while never a requirement for a visit, are always welcome and are tax-deductible.
If you would like to make a donation to support the preserve, and would like for your donation to be tax deductible, pay by check, with the check made out to Watson Rare Native Plant Preserve, and send to Watson Rare Native Plant Preserve, PO Box 533, Warren, TX 77664.
If you wish to confirm our status with the IRS, our EIN is 80-0316780.
Events & Links
Board of Directors Meetings
Workdays:
Events:
Birding Walk: 1st Saturday of every month, from 8:00 to ??. Leader: Kathleen Appelbaum.
Wildflower Walk to find Chapman's Orchid, July 29, 2017. Starts at 9:30 am. Leader: Joe Liggio. All interested people are welcome to attend.
Birding Walk & Wildflower Tour: Saturday, May 6, 2017 starts at 8:00 am. If you can't make it that early, feel free to join us later in the morning. Everyone is welcome.
Mushroom Walk: Saturday June 24, 2017.CANCELED due to weather related problems.
Fall Mushroom Walk: Saturday November 18, 2017.
Starts at 10:00 am. Leaders: David and Patricia Lewis.
Watch this space in the 48 hours preceding the event. If anything should happen (such as illness, or a hurricane, God forbid) to cause cancellation, we will notify you HERE.
For more information about events, call 281-421-2469 or email pollytx1@gmail.com.
LINKS:
Big Thicket Association
Big Thicket National Preserve
Butterfly Enthusiasts of East Texas
Gulf States Mycological Society, Inc.
© 2017 Created by Linda Knowles.
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