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
Ask Mr. Smarty Plants is a free service provided by the staff and volunteers at the Lady Bird Johnson Wildflower Center.

rate this answer

Sunday - August 22, 2010
From: Troy , NY
Region: Northeast
Topic: Soils, Drought Tolerant, Herbs/Forbs
Title: Plants for sunny dry soil location
Answered by: Nan Hampton
QUESTION:
Do any native plants exist in a highly sunny very dry soil location? (high overhang prevents rain but allows sun)ANSWER:
Mr. Smarty Plants assumes you want something to plant in such an area. The easiest way to find such plants is through our New York Recommended page which lists more than 100 commercially available native New York plants that are suitable for landscaping. Use the NARROW YOUR SEARCH option in the sidebar and select 'Sun - 6 or more hrs' from LIGHT REQUIREMENT and 'Dry - no signs of moisture' from SOIL MOISTURE. You can also make a selection under GENERAL APPEARANCE, LIFESPAN, BLOOM TIME or BLOOM COLOR. Here are several herbaceous perennials from the list that do well in dry sunny areas:
Achillea millefolium (common yarrow)
Anaphalis margaritacea (western pearly everlasting)
Lupinus perennis (sundial lupine)
Monarda fistulosa (wild bergamot)
Here are three shrubs that also do well in dry sunny areas:
Gaylussacia baccata (black huckleberry)
Rhus copallinum (winged sumac)
Vaccinium angustifolium (lowbush blueberry)
You can find even more possibilities by doing a COMBINATION SEARCH in our Native Plant Database by choosing 'New York' from Select State or Province and making the appropriate choices in the other categories. Here are several possibilities for various types of plants.
Grass/Grasslike:
Bouteloua curtipendula (sideoats grama)
Schizachyrium scoparium (little bluestem)
Sporobolus heterolepis (prairie dropseed)
Shrub:
Arctostaphylos uva-ursi (kinnikinnick)
Dasiphora fruticosa ssp. floribunda (shrubby cinquefoil)
You can find many more shrubs, trees and herbaceous perennials.
Here are photos from our Image Gallery:
More Drought Tolerant Questions
Erosion tolerant plants for shade from Kerrville TX
August 06, 2013 - We have just cleared a lot of cedar out of a small draw and would like to know the best groundcovers, shrubs, etc. to plant to hold the soil. Deep shade most of the day.
view the full question and answer
California plants poisonous to dogs from Sacramento
July 01, 2012 - Found dodonea viscosa purple. Is it poisonous to dogs? Also Gold Star Potentilla.
Going drought tolerant and need small trees, shrubs and plants not poisonous to dogs for sun and partial sun.
view the full question and answer
Cenizo dropping leaves from Corpus Christi TX
February 20, 2014 - Leucophyllum frutescens:I planted a Texas sage hedge in September of 2012. One of the plants is dropping its leaves. It is situated at the corner of an L-shape at the end of drive and corner of road. ...
view the full question and answer
Groundcover for Sunny Slope in CT
May 11, 2013 - I need a plant to use as groundcover and for erosion control on a sunny slope in southwestern Connecticut. Any suggestions other than juniper?
view the full question and answer
Trees and shrubs turning brown in Dripping Springs TX
October 31, 2011 - Due to the extended drought - a number of trees and shrubs in our Dripping Springs area property have turned brown. Specifically: Live Oak; Agarita; Ash Juniper; Cedar Elm. Is this a dormant stag...
view the full question and answer
Support the Wildflower Center by Donating Online or Becoming a Member today. |