Native Plants

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Monday - July 14, 2008

From: Austin, TX
Region: Southwest
Topic: Groundcovers
Title: Natural groundcovers beneath live oaks in Austin
Answered by: Barbara Medford

QUESTION:

We are moving to a home in NW Austin set in a forest of live oaks (15 of them). What plants are the natural groundcovers? We want to replace the 'grass' completely. There is no sun so we don't believe we can use buffalo grass which would be our preference.

ANSWER:

These groundcovers will spread in the dappled shade of live oaks. They are all perennials, but not all necessarily evergreen. In a mild Winter, they should remain at least partly green.

Hydrocotyle bonariensis (largeleaf pennywort)

Phyla nodiflora (turkey tangle fogfruit)

Calyptocarpus vialis (straggler daisy)

Dichondra argentea (silver ponysfoot)

Hydrocotyle bonariensis

Phyla nodiflora

Calyptocarpus vialis