Native Plants
Q. Who is Mr. Smarty Plants?
A: There are those who suspect Wildflower Center volunteers are the culpable and capable culprits. Yet, others think staff members play some, albeit small, role. You can torture us with your plant questions, but we will never reveal the Green Guru's secret identity.
Did you know you can access the Native Plant Information Network with your web-enabled smartphone?
Ask Mr. Smarty Plants is a free service provided by the staff and volunteers at the Lady Bird Johnson Wildflower Center.
rate this answer
Tuesday - June 10, 2014
From: Plano, TX
Region: Southwest
Topic: Rain Gardens, Drought Tolerant
Title: Plants that will withstand spray from fountain and heat from concrete
Answered by: Nan Hampton
QUESTION:
Working on a property in Plano, I have an area around a fountain, surrounded by concrete, in full sun, that receives a lot of water that is blown from the fountain (which is treated with chlorine tablets). What plant would be able to withstand the moisture during the windy season, that is low growing so it doesn't block the fountain and can withstand the heat radiating from the concrete and occasional drying out periods. An evergreen would be preferred but not a necessity. Thanks in advance for your help!ANSWER:
Mr. Smarty Plants isn't sure how much chlorine is produced by the chlorine tablets, but that is certainly a factor you need to take into consideration. In Symptoms of Deficiency in Essential Minerals in A Companion to Plant Physiology (OnLine), 4th Edition by Lincoln Taiz and Eduardo Zeiger, Wade Berry says that "Plants are generally tolerant of chloride..." and listed some plants that are sensitive to chloride (avocados, stone fruits and and grapevines). He also wrote that "Chloride is very abundant in soils, and reaches high concentrations in saline areas...". By the way, chlorine and chloride are often used interchangeably, but chlorine is the element and not really found free in nature. It is found as chloride in the form of its salts (e.g., NaCl—sodium chloride or table salt is the commonest form). This would lead us to believe salt tolerant plants would be good ones to plant by the pool. Several gardening sources on the internet suggested that plants with waxy leaves would probably be more resistant to chlorine in the splashed water from the pool. However, a small amount of chlorine in water (consider that most tap water contains chlorine and is successfully used to water indoor and outddor plants) cause no, or little, harm.
Here are a few plants that meet your criteria of withstanding spray from the fountain, heat, occasional drying out and they are evergreen:
Morella cerifera [Synonym = Myrica cerifera] (Wax myrtle) is evergreen, is able to withstand moisture and is drought and saline tolerant. There are dwarf versions that grow to around 3 feet. Here is more information from All Native Garden Center, Nursery & Landscapes.
Ilex vomitoria (Yaupon) is evergreen and also has a dwarf version, 'Nana', that grows to about 4 feet high but can be pruned to size and shape.
You could also consider sedges (Carex spp.). Many of them are evergreen and can tolerate both wet and dry periods along with heat. In general, they are low, growing to less than 1 foot. Here are a two that grow in Collin County or adjacent counties:
Carex blanda (Eastern woodland sedge) Here is more information from Illinois Wildflowers.
Carex leavenworthii (Leavenworth's sedge ) Here is more information from YuccaDo Nursery and from Plant Delights Nursery.
Carex texensis (Texas sedge) Here's more information from Hoffman Nursery.
The situation around the fountain you describe is very similar to the description of rain gardens—areas which flood when it rains, but are often quite dry between rains. You can find a list of plants that we recommended to the Collin County Master Gardeners here for use in rain gardens.
From the Image Gallery
More Drought Tolerant Questions
Deer resistant, drought- and shade-tolerant plant for Pennsylvania
August 14, 2012 - Hello,
I need a deer/drought resistant, shade tolerant, rocky soil perennial. I would like it to have some winter appeal. I live outside of Philadelphia, PA.
Thank you so much for your time...
view the full question and answer
Ilex vomitoria Sufering from Drought?
January 19, 2012 - My Ilex vomitoria has always thrived. It is about ten years old. This fall, a portion of the leaves on the ends of the branches have turned yellow on the edges with green veining in the center. Othe...
view the full question and answer
Groundcover and Butterfly attractants for LaRue Texas
May 02, 2012 - LaRue, TX - Would like a native low growing plant as a groundcover. I would like it for six+ hours of sun, drought tolerant, and ones that butterflies might enjoy, while deer won't. Some winter int...
view the full question and answer
Groundcover for Austin yard
March 08, 2012 - My main goal is to cover my yard with a "grass" or groundcover that can handle the Texas heat, predicted long drought and some dog paw traffic (without going dormant/brown in the winter). I don't n...
view the full question and answer
Restoring fire damage in Bastrop TX
November 03, 2011 - I live in the Bastrop State Park area. We were severely affected by the wildfire and as we are trying to rebuild our home, we are being very aware of the particularities of the recovery process. We lo...
view the full question and answer
Support the Wildflower Center by Donating Online or Becoming a Member today. |