Situation
South-facing two-acre lot in Stone Oak. The property had been cleared of mature canopy by a previous owner and replaced with Bermuda turf and a perimeter of ornamental crepe myrtles. The current owner was losing plant material every summer and paying $480 a month in irrigation.
Observation
We took surface temperature readings at noon, August 19, 2025. Bare caliche: 142°F. Established Bermuda: 119°F. Native canopy shade — a hackberry and live oak grouping near the eastern fenceline: 87°F.
What we learned
The differential between bare ground and native canopy was 55°F. That is the difference between soil that holds water and soil that bakes it off. The crepe myrtles were dying not because they were planted wrong — they were planted in the wrong thermal environment. The property needed canopy structure before it needed any new plant investment.
In Hill Country, every dollar in established canopy is worth roughly seven dollars in irrigation avoided over a 10-year horizon. Plant for shade before planting for ornament.