4 plants
Purple Passionflower
Passiflora incarnata
An extravagant, fringed purple flower unlike anything else native, followed by egg-sized edible fruit.
Purple Prairie Clover
Dalea purpurea
A fine-textured prairie legume with thimbles of purple bloom ringed in orange pollen.
Sideoats Grama
Bouteloua curtipendula
The state grass of Texas, hanging its tiny oat-like seeds along one side of each stem, tinged with orange-red pollen.
Texas Kidneywood
Eysenhardtia texana
An airy shrub that throws spikes of vanilla-scented white flowers after every rain, drawing clouds of bees and butterflies.
Choosing caterpillar host plants for Texas
These 4 species are all native to Texas and suited to this use. Because they belong to the local climate, they'll do the job with far less water and care than the non-native alternatives usually sold for it. Open any plant for full growing details, or use the finder to narrow further by sun, size, and bloom.