Texas · Shrubs
Native Shrubs of Texas
Updated 2026-09-11
The 17 species here are the site's full shrub layer, the plants that sit between a groundcover and a tree in height and do most of the structural work in a Texas garden: screening, backdrop, and a home base for birds and pollinators.
17 plants
Agarita
Berberis trifoliolata
A spiny blue-grey evergreen that bees swarm in late winter and birds nest inside for protection.
American Beautyberry
Callicarpa americana
Grown for its show-stopping clusters of electric-purple berries in fall — a feast for mockingbirds and dozens of other birds — on a graceful arching shrub..
Autumn Sage
Salvia greggii
The workhorse of the water-wise Texas garden: a small evergreen shrub that blooms nearly year-round and shrugs off heat, drought, and deer..
Coralberry
Symphoricarpos orbiculatus
A modest suckering shrub for shade that comes into its own in fall, when the arching branches string themselves with clusters of coral-pink berries the birds strip by spring..
Damianita
Chrysactinia mexicana
A low evergreen cushion of fine, aromatic foliage smothered in golden daisies in spring and again in fall.
Evergreen Sumac
Rhus virens
A lush, glossy evergreen that looks far too refined for how tough it is — a superb native screen or hedge that bees work in late summer and birds fruit on in fall..
Flame Acanthus
Anisacanthus quadrifidus var. wrightii
A wispy, tough shrub that throws tubular orange-red flowers through the worst of the summer heat — exactly when hummingbirds are fueling up for migration..
Fragrant Sumac
Rhus aromatica
A low, spreading shrub that blazes orange-red in fall and holds slopes with its suckering roots.
Possumhaw Holly
Ilex decidua
Drops its leaves in fall to reveal branches packed with scarlet berries that glow through winter and feed cedar waxwings and robins in late season..
Texas Kidneywood
Eysenhardtia texana
An airy shrub that throws spikes of vanilla-scented white flowers after every rain, drawing clouds of bees and butterflies.
Texas Lantana
Lantana urticoides
The true native lantana, with orange-and-yellow clusters that never stop through summer heat.
Texas Mountain Laurel
Dermatophyllum secundiflorum
A slow-growing evergreen with glossy leaves and drooping clusters of purple flowers that smell exactly like grape soda each spring.
Texas Sage
Leucophyllum frutescens
A silver-leaved desert shrub that bursts into purple bloom after rain — earning its nickname 'barometer bush.' Thrives on neglect in the hottest, driest corners of a Texas yard..
Turk's Cap
Malvaviscus arboreus var. drummondii
The go-to native for shade that still wants color.
Wax Myrtle
Morella cerifera
A fast, dense, aromatic evergreen that makes an ideal privacy screen and fixes its own nitrogen.
White Mistflower
Ageratina havanensis
A rounded shrub that erupts in fragrant, frothy white bloom in autumn — perfectly timed for migrating Monarchs, which can cover it in numbers..
Yaupon Holly
Ilex vomitoria
An adaptable evergreen holly that takes sun or deep shade, wet or dry, and covers itself in translucent red berries that hold all winter for the birds.
Sorting 17 shrubs by size and job
Wax myrtle and yaupon holly grow largest, both reaching 10 to 20 feet and working as a small tree or tall screen depending on how they're pruned. Evergreen sumac, texas mountain laurel, and possumhaw holly sit in the middle at 6 to 15 feet, substantial enough to anchor a bed on their own. The rest, including agarita, autumn sage, coralberry, damianita, and texas sage, stay under 8 feet and work better as mid-border plants or a mixed informal hedge than as a single specimen.
Picking by bloom season and color
Something on this list blooms in nearly every month. Agarita and fragrant sumac open first, in late winter. Texas mountain laurel and possumhaw holly follow in early spring. Autumn sage, flame acanthus, and turk's cap carry summer into fall, each in red or coral. Texas lantana and texas sage bloom through the hottest stretch of summer, and white mistflower closes the year in October and November. For the narrower lists this page draws from, the site also has dedicated pages for evergreen, hedge, and drought-tolerant shrubs specifically.
FAQ
What's the largest native shrub for a Texas yard?
Wax myrtle and yaupon holly both reach 10 to 20 feet, large enough to work as a small tree or a substantial screen.
Which native Texas shrubs bloom in winter?
Agarita and fragrant sumac both open in late winter, ahead of almost everything else on this list.
What's a good low native shrub for the front of a border?
Damianita and coralberry both stay under 4 feet, making them better suited to the front of a bed than the taller screening shrubs on this list.