Native Plants
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Friday - March 24, 2006
From: Grand Prairie, TX
Region: Southwest
Topic: Xeriscapes, Drought Tolerant
Title: Drought-resistant plants for Grand Prairie, TX
Answered by: Nan Hampton
QUESTION:
Can you tell me where I may obtain a list of drought-resistant plants for landscaping?ANSWER:
There is no assembled list of drought-tolerant plants for North Central Texas that I have been able to find. Andy and Sally Wasowski in their Native Texas Plants: Landscaping Region by Region have recommendations for landscape plants for the different regions of Texas. This is an an excellent book that should be easy for you to find at your local library, bookstore, or garden center. North Haven Gardens in Dallas has a 2006 Texas Natives List with some notations about drought-tolerant species for your area. In our Native Plants Database, drought tolerance is given for each plant under "Growing Conditions" in the menu at the top of the page for each plant.
Here are some recommendations for drought-tolerant species for your area compiled from a combination of the resources listed above:
Trees
Yaupon holly (Ilex vomitoria), an evergreen
Mexican plum (Prunus mexicana)
Eve's necklace (Sophora affinis)
Mexican buckeye (Ungnadia speciosa)
Rusty blackhaw (Viburnum rufidulum)
Easter red cedar (Juniperus virginiana), an evergreen
Deciduous Shrubs
American beautyberry (Calicarpa americana)
Black dalea (Dalea frutescens)
Fragrant sumac (Rhus aromatica)
Smooth sumac (Rhus glabra)
Prairie flameleaf sumac (Rhus lanceolata)
Perennials
Butterfly weed (Asclepias tuberosa)
Sundrops (Calylophus berlandieri)
Blue larkspur (Delphinium carolinianum)
Cutleaf daisy (Engelmannia peristenia)
Maximilian sunflower (Helianthus maximiliani)
Gayfeather (Liatris mucronata)
Texas star (Lindheimera texana)
Barbara's buttons (Marshallia caespitosa)
Missouri primrose (Oenothera macrocarpa)
Prickly pear (Opuntia macrorhiza)
Foxglove (Penstemon cobaea)
Mexican hat (Ratibida columnifera)
Mealy sage (Salvia farinacea)
Western spiderwort (Tradescantia occidentalis)
Arkansas yucca (Yucca arkansana), or
Pale-leaf yucca Yucca pallida)
More Xeriscapes Questions
Need to plant something in the cracks in my patio in Skipperville, AL.
February 06, 2012 - Mr. Smarty Pants,
I have a cement patio full of cracks. I would like to grow some sort of plant or plants in the cracks. I live in lower Alabama, and my patio is in full sunlight. Do you have an...
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August 18, 2011 - I've been trying to grow native trees in my yard for the past 3 years and I'm starting to question whether the amount of time required to spend watering them during the long hot season in Texas is r...
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July 11, 2012 - I live in Grand Beach, MI. My house sits on a sand dune. I want to plant a flowering vine that will grow up a fence. The area has plenty of sand and I have a trickle watering system. Can you pleas...
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August 31, 2012 - I have a 1/2 yard covered by a tree, shady. Bermuda grass previous owner planted has all turned brown this summer. I don't have lots of money to work with but would love to landscape that side of fr...
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