Tough Texas Native Perennial Plants

March 14, 2018 | By webadmin

We have a tough gardening climate here in Texas. That means choosing the right plants for your landscape is especially important. Because of our harsh growing environment, planting native varieties of trees, shrubs, and perennials is often a good solution. That said, Texas is a big state; just because a plant is native to the state, doesn’t mean it will thrive in your Dallas garden. It’s all about choosing the plants acclimated to your local climate and soils.

To help you choose the right Texas native plants, we developed a list of some of our favorite native perennials. We love to incorporate natives into our design plans.

Coneflower

Echinacea species and varieties are fantastic full-sun perennials that come in many colors. The native pink variety is excellent for wildlife—pollinators love it, and birds eat its seeds. As a bonus it makes for a long-lasting cut flower. Does best in soils with good drainage.

Blackfoot Daisy

If you have a location that doesn’t have automated irrigation, or is in a high and dry location in our landscape, blackfoot daisy is a great choice. Plants are pretty much set-it-and-forget it once they’ve become established. This native sports sweet white daisy flowers on a spreading plant no more than 12” tall.

Flame Acanthus

If you are looking for something a little larger, flame acanthus takes on a shrub form. Hummingbirds and butterflies love the red, tubular flowers. This plant is super easy to grow and would be great in a rock garden.

Autumn Sage

Autumn sage, or Salvia greggii, is one of the most commonly planted native perennials you will see in North Texas; for good reason. This shrub like, semi-evergreen salvia comes in a rainbow of colors and blooms multiple times throughout the year with some pruning. Another favorite of wildlife, especially hummingbirds.

 Now is a great time to fill and set out your hummingbird feeders to attract migrating species.

 

Gaura

Lindheimer’s Gaura (Gaura lindheimeri)  is a delicate, white or pink flowered perennial highly suited to our region. The shrub-like plants grow to about 3’ with flowers dancing at the end of stems. Plant in areas with good drainage.

Wood Fern

A lovely pick for your shade garden is the wood fern. As one of the most drought-tolerant ferns, it is also a fast grower to heights around 3’, with a similar spread.

Not only are the perennials on this list tough enough to take the Texas heat, they are also acclimated to survive our droughts; making them excellent water-wise plants. You may have noticed most of these selections are favored by insects and birds. This is another benefit of planting native perennials. The plants evolved in conjunction with the wildlife and they now share a beneficial relationship.

We will soon be moving into the hot, dry part of the year—so plant now to give your plants a little time to set down new roots.

Choosing and planting native perennials is important for the success of your landscape. Let us put together a colorful, water wise, and pollinator friendly design for you.