River restoration projects survive second major flood on the Guadalupe

Long-term restoration work along the Guadalupe River largely withstood the July 16 flood, according to partner organizations who said the results validate their approach heading into a larger planting effort this fall.

The Guadalupe flooded again July 16, just over a year after the catastrophic July 4, 2025, flood. In the year between the two events, the Hill Country Alliance, the San Antonio Botanical Garden and the Kerr County River Foundation — working with the Texas Parks and Wildlife Department, the Upper Guadalupe River Authority and other partners in the Kerr Together Long-Term Recovery Group’s River Working Group — planted native grasses, sedges and young trees along the river as part of long-term restoration efforts. Officials with the partner organizations said most of that vegetation survived this month’s flood with minimal damage.

“Last week tested the impacts of our efforts, and we are heartbroken for the landowners who have once again seen huge changes to their river banks,” said Katherine Romans, executive director of the Hill Country Alliance. “At the same time, we’re uplifted by the initial reports of grasses, sedges and even trees we planted from cuttings that withstood the worst of the floodwaters and did the vital job of holding riverbanks in place.”

Romans said some restoration areas were lost to the flood, but many survived, and before-and-after photos — including images taken in the days after last week’s flood — show the recovery underway.

Katherine Trumble, president and CEO of the San Antonio Botanical Garden, said the survival rate reflects the multiyear approach behind the TREES Initiative, which aims to establish 50,000 or more trees along the river.

“The TREES Initiative was built from the start around the understanding that lasting results come from sustained effort,” Trumble said. “Our work is spread over multiple years, and we are replanting wherever needed to ensure we ultimately hit our goal. Floods, drought, heat and wildlife are part of life along the Guadalupe, and our long-term approach accounts for that reality.”

The initiative’s first large-scale plantings begin this fall. Trumble said cooler temperatures and steady moisture give young trees an advantage over spring or summer plantings, allowing stronger root systems to develop and giving seedlings six to eight months to establish before the next flood season. Once established, she said, young trees can bend flat under floodwater and rise again once it passes, replicating a process that has occurred naturally along the river for thousands of years.

“The healthy vegetation we and our Kerr Together partners are working to restore along the riverbank will slow future floodwaters, strengthen streambanks, filter runoff and help mitigate the intensity of future flooding for the communities who live along it,” Trumble said.

Jeremy Walther, founding director of the Kerr County River Foundation, said the results offer a preview of what’s possible at a larger scale.

“Up and down the river corridor, the majority of trees volunteers planted over the past year are alive and well,” Walther said. “It’s been an encouraging signal that our approach to restoration is working. It also gives us a fresh boost of confidence in the TREES Initiative’s first large-scale plantings this fall, and into HCA’s next round of native plant giveaways. Let’s plant more, with more diversity and in more places. The healing process will continue.”