If you’ve never been to a botanical garden, it’s something you absolutely have to add to your Bucket List. They are the most gorgeous places you can find both native and exotic plants without traveling to another country. The first time I went to the Missouri Botanical Garden—back then, it was still referred to often as Shaw’s Garden—it took my breath away, and I was only a kid. Botanical gardens aren’t just flowers; they’re extensions of creative form, art come to life—in a word, inspiring.

The Lady Bird Johnson Wildflower Center is one such place. Founded in 1982 by former first lady Lady Bird Johnson and actress Helen Hayes, it was created to help preserve the natural plants and landscapes that are native to the United States. Originally known as the National Wildlife Research Center, today it’s an Organized Research Unit of the University of Texas at Austin.

Johnson had feared that America was losing its natural, native wildlife, so she dreamed up the Center as a way to not only preserve but to also restore that beauty for future generations. The center is considered one of the best wildflower research institutions as well as a strong advocate for the native flora of America.

Much of the Center, of course, displays native flowers and plants from Texas—specifically, from West Texas, Central Texas Hill County, and South Texas. Endangered plants from these and other areas are preserved at the Center as well. Sixteen different gardens make up the entire preserve, serving to inspire homeowners to create their own similar, beautiful landscapes.

Twenty-three different themed garden beds serve to demonstrate the different ways people can create interesting, inspiring gardens at their own homes with plants that might seem pretty average or lackluster. The native plants you see every day driving or walking around may not seem that amazing, but when organized as a butterfly garden, or centered within a shady path with a pretty bench, they can start to seem dazzling.

In the Ann and O.J. Weber Butterfly Garden, for example, visitors can expect to see various forms of pollinators and how they can work together. In the South Meadow, form follows function with “a rainbow of color” along with a featured aqueduct and promenade covered with Virginia creeper.

Like many botanical gardens, it also serves as a teaching hub, providing educational programs for both children and adults on how to care for and respect native plants, particularly at home. Visitors can also learn how to use water responsibly, how to attract certain types of wildlife, and how to protect plants against natural predators, such as deer and insects.