Native Plants
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Sunday - November 30, 2008
From: Grand Prairie, TX
Region: Southwest
Topic: Shade Tolerant
Title: Native grasses for shade in Dallas
Answered by: Nan Hampton
QUESTION:
What native grasses can be grown under large Live Oaks in the Dallas Area? The combination of shade and black gumbo soil seem to keep all plant life, except for poison ivy and ferns, out. I would love to replace the spotty St Augustine grass that is currently in place.ANSWER:
If you are looking for turf grass, I'm afraid there isn't going to be a good choice. However, there are taller, attractive native grasses that will grow in the shade of your liveoaks. Here are some examples:Bouteloua curtipendula (sideoats grama), the State Grass of Texas, 2-3 feet
Bouteloua hirsuta (hairy grama), 10-18 inches
Chasmanthium latifolium (Inland sea oats), 2-4 feet, a particularly attractive plant
Elymus canadensis (Canada wildrye), 2-4 feet
Poa arachnifera (Texas bluegrass), 2-3 feet
Schizachyrium scoparium (little bluestem), 2-4 feet
You might also consider using sedges. They make very good groundcovers and they tend to be rather short. You can read about their use for lawns in Sedge Lawns for Every Landscape by John Greenlee.
Carex blanda (eastern woodland sedge), 1-3 feet
Carex cherokeensis (Cherokee sedge), 12-18 inches
Carex planostachys (cedar sedge), less than 12 inches
Carex texensis (Texas sedge), 10-12 inches
Finally, here are groundcovers that aren't grasses or grass-like, are less than 18 inches high and will grow in the shade or part shade.
Calyptocarpus vialis (straggler daisy)
Phyla nodiflora (turkey tangle fogfruit)
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