Native Plants
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Thursday - August 28, 2008
From: San Marcos, TX
Region: Southwest
Topic: Shade Tolerant
Title: Native evergreen for shade
Answered by: Nan Hampton
QUESTION:
Hi, I am looking for a plant that is evergreen (or semi evergreen), native to central Texas, and shade tolerant. This is for a Wildscape area in San Marcos. Do you have any suggestions? Thanks!ANSWER:
Here are some evergreen and semi-evergreen plants that will tolerate part shade (2-6 hours of sunlight/day) and a few will tolerate shade (<2 hours of sunlight/day).Vines:
Lonicera sempervirens (trumpet honeysuckle) semi-evergreen, sun and part shade
Gelsemium sempervirens (evening trumpetflower) evergreen, sun and part shade
Bignonia capreolata (crossvine) semi-evergreen, sun and part shade
Shrubs/Small Trees:
Sophora secundiflora (Texas mountain-laurel) evergreen, sun and part shade
Ilex vomitoria (yaupon) evergreen, part shade
Mahonia trifoliolata (agarita) evergreen, sun and part shade
Morella cerifera (wax myrtle) evergreen, sun and part shade
Rhus virens (evergreen sumac) evergreen, sun and part shade
Leucophyllum frutescens (Texas barometer bush) evergreen, sun and part shade
Herbaceous plants:
Calyptocarpus vialis (straggler daisy) semi-evergreen, sun, part shade and shade
Phyla nodiflora (turkey tangle fogfruit) semi-evergreen, sun and part shade
Grasses and sedges:
Carex texensis (Texas sedge) evergreen, sun and part shade
Carex planostachys (cedar sedge) evergreen, part shade
There are several grasses that aren't evergreen, but they are still attractive when they begin to brown. For example:
Chasmanthium latifolium (Inland sea oats) part shade and shade
Elymus canadensis (Canada wildrye) sun, part shade and shade
Schizachyrium scoparium (little bluestem) sun and part shade
More Shade Tolerant Questions
Shade-loving plants for a long, narrow bed.
October 31, 2007 - We are installing a bed with a student-made sculpture dedicated to mothers at our high school in Austin, Texas. The bed is against the two-story school, east facing,and shaded by cedar elm. What can...
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Low evergreen shrubs for shade in Spring TX
February 19, 2009 - I am looking for an evergreen plant that grows no taller than 2 feet and will grow in shade. I would love to have one that would also produce flowers. Please help and thanks.
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Native plants for heavy clay soil in east Austin
May 02, 2007 - I live in East Austin and have very thick clay soil on my property. I also have a lot of shade and partial sun/shade. Can you suggest some native plant varieties that are well-adapted to these condi...
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Replacing mature Arizona Ash trees in Austin
August 26, 2011 - Mr. Smarty Plants,
I have 2 very large, very old Arizona Ash trees in my yard. I want to remove them and replace them with something like Cedar Elm or Chinquapin Oak. The problem is that they are t...
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Shade trees for horses in Merced, CA
January 21, 2011 - I would like to plant some trees to provide shade for horses in the pasture. What native trees are drought resistant (water may be spotty in the summer) yet safe for the animals? I live in the Calif...
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