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
Saturday - July 09, 2011
From: Houston, TX
Region: Southwest
Topic: Shade Tolerant, Herbs/Forbs, Trees
Title: Plants for under live oak in Houston
Answered by: Barbara Medford
QUESTION:
Hi, We have a live oak in our back garden in Houston and would like to plant a combination of some native shrubs and flowers near it (preferably perennial). The garden bed is about 4 metres from the base of the oak but is still under the tree canopy and is mostly in shade. Please can you advise which native plants would do well in this environment? Thanks very much!ANSWER:
Of course, you already know that you need shade-tolerant plants, but let us tell you a little bit more about planting under a live oak. We get lots and lots of questions about plants not growing under trees and/or what plants will grow under trees. Let us refer you to a previous Mr. Smarty Plants question to keep from repeating ourselves. Then we will suggest some shade tolerant plants native to South Texas that might do all right, but we hope you remember that the tree is probably more valuable than anything else you might plant. You may need to modify your expectations, move the shrubs, etc. farther away from the oak, or even cover the ground under the oak with mulch. The mulch is attractive, helps keeps weeds down, protects the roots from heat or cold, depending on the weather and, as the mulch decomposes, improves the soil beneath the tree.
On our Recommended Species page, we have some lists of plants just for Texans. You are in the Gulf Prairies and Marshes ecosystem in Texas. When you go to that list, you will find 296 plants that are native there. By using the sidebar on the right hand side of the page, you can select on "shrub" under General Appearance, then "part shade" (2 to 6 hours of sun a day) and "shade" (less than 2 hours of sun) under Light Requirements, then Narrow Your Search. This will give you a list of 35 possibilities; you can repeat the procedure using "herb" (herbaceous blooming plant) under General Appearance, which will result in 74 selections. Follow each plant link to our webpage on that plant to learn bloom time and color, soil needs, projected height, water use and so forth. We are going to give you some suggestions and you can go from there finding the right plants for you.
Herbaceous Blooming Plants for Houston:
Echinacea purpurea (Eastern purple coneflower)
Lobelia cardinalis (Cardinal flower)
Osmunda cinnamomea (Cinnamon fern)
Shrubs for Houston:
Erythrina herbacea (Coralbean)
From the Image Gallery
More Herbs/Forbs Questions
Butterfly plants from Austin TX
December 17, 2012 - I have a butterfly garden in the front part of the house facing the south side. However it is also mostly under a few Oak trees that cast shadow over half of the front yard starting early afternoon.
...
view the full question and answer
When do you put out bluebonnet seeds in Bastrop, TX?
April 17, 2012 - When do you put out bluebonnet seeds?? I hear fall but don't the seeds pop out of dried up plants in early summer?
view the full question and answer
Need perennials for front beds in south-facing house ib San Angelo, TX.
February 12, 2012 - What perennials will work in my front beds of southern facing house in West Texas?
view the full question and answer
Tropical plants for a pool-side planter in Cape Coral FL
April 19, 2010 - I live in Southwest Florida and have a pool inside a cage with a pool planter built into the deck around part of the pool. What kind of tropical plants can I put in the planter that are not root inva...
view the full question and answer
Controlling Straggler Daisy
July 07, 2011 - Is there a barrier I can use that will keep Straggler Daisy under control so that I will not be a problem for my neighbors?
view the full question and answer
| Support the Wildflower Center by Donating Online or Becoming a Member today. |