#texas native landscaping

[essiedoessummer]

Contemporary Landscape - Vegetable Garden This is an illustration of a sizable modern stone vegetable garden in the backyard that can withstand drought.

[avilaemmy]

Landscape Fountain in Dallas Design ideas for a small modern drought-tolerant and shade side yard concrete paver water fountain landscape.

[gardenwitch13]

Frogfruit, frogfruit, everywhere there's frogfruit!

What is frogfruit?

It's a grass that is native to the southern portion of North America. It spreads from coast to coast, then south from Oklahoma into Mexico. It was here before us and was the most common grass before the US decided to turn our yards into pretty lawns.

Frogfruit works best in full sun, but will survive in partial shade - if the tenderals will wonder in that direction and live, then so be it. This native grass has a counterpart - horseherb. Horseherb grows in mostly shade, but can tolerate sun - again, if the tenderals wonder in that direction and can survive, then it was meant to be. Both are also pollinator plants - you guessed it, they flower all summer long.

In my yard, I do not have enough shade, I'm in sun 6+ hours a day. so frogfruit is my choice of native grass for now.

Here's some background on this little patch of sunshine. I live in north TX (USA) and my yard is primarily of clay origin. I decided to throw down some cardboard, spread a bag of mulch and planted a 4 inch container of this juicy little plant. That was in May of 2023. I watered it 3x a week during the summer with the alloted times set aside for water restrictions and I didn't mow it that first summer.

Now look at it!

She spread her tenderils in all the right directions, she has stretched to both garden borders and is making her way around the wheelbarrow/container garden. I'm trying to nudge her more into the middle of the yard now. I've tried propagating this little plant so that I can plant plugs around my yard and help it spread some more and also move some of the plugs to the front yard for certain areas to grow. I will admit that propogating them is not as easy as the many YouTube clips say it is. So far I'm 1 out of 10 in the success rate. But I'll keep trying.

So if you live in the southern portion of the US/northern Mexico, give this little plant a try for a traditional lawn alternative.

[quaraly]

Texas pollinators:

1. Monarch butterfly, Danaus plexippus

2. Variegated Fritillary, Euptoieta claudia

3. Monarch butterfly, Danaus plexippus

4. Common Buckeye, Junonia coenia

5. Snowberry Clearwing, Hemaris diffinis

6. Common Buckeye, Junonia coenia

7. Western honeybee, Apis mellifera

8. Zabulon skipper (Lon zabulon) or Fiery skipper (Hylephila phyleus)

All appreciating the large amount of crimson clover (Trifolium incarnatum) we got this year!

[dijitwitch]

Lap in Austin An enormous traditional backyard lap pool with a rectangular shape is an example.

[wynonasrider]

Lap Pool Swimming pool: large traditional backyard concrete lap pool design

[xmisschivousx]

Desert Look Austin Photo of a mid-sized southwestern drought-tolerant, desert and full sun front yard river rock and metal fence landscaping in summer.

[ccchauffe]

Landscape in Austin Ideas for a sizable, contemporary, full-sun mulch walkway in the front yard that can withstand drought.

[echopi]

Landscape Decking

Image of a sizable, contemporary, decked backyard with drought tolerance.

[metuere]

Rustic Pool in Austin Large concrete and custom-shaped natural pool fountain in the backyard with a mountain theme

[shunkoku]

Lap Pool in Austin Large concrete and custom-shaped lap pool fountain in a mountain style in the backyard

[wyrm-o-lantern]

River Rock Landscape Austin Inspiration for a sizable, contemporary, drought-tolerant, and summertime front yard water feature made of river rock.

[hairbymetalmoose]

Front Yard Mulch in Austin

Photo of a large modern drought-tolerant and full sun front yard mulch walkway in summer.

[psychoslave]

Gravel Houston An example of a mid-sized farmhouse full sun courtyard gravel formal garden in winter.

[wrongonyou]

Austin Pool An illustration of a sizable backyard fountain in the form of a natural pool in the style of the mountains.

[i-am-mycroft-holmes]

Modern Landscape Austin In the summer, ideas for a sizable, contemporary, gravel walkway in the front yard in full sun.