Native Plants Endemic To Texas

Texas is a big, big place! 

And, as such, it stands to reason that it’s home to a wide variety of fauna and flora across its many ecosystems and environments. In fact, there are some species that aren’t found anywhere in the world outside our Lone Star state. Here are just a few of the plants that are endemic to the state of Texas!

11 plants endemic to the Lone Star State

Amelia’s sand verbena

Abronia ameliae

This plant is a low-growing shrub with bright pink or purple flowers. It is found in sandy soils and grasslands in the coastal areas of Texas.

Texas barberry

Berberis swaseyi

Found in woodlands and prairies throughout Texas, this tree-like shrub has been used as a medicinal plant for centuries by Native Americans. The shrub, adorned with small yellow flowers and reddish-white berries, is said to be helpful for treating a variety of ailments, including stomach ache, diarrhea, and fever.

Birdfoot cactus

Escobaria minima

Only three populations of this cactus are known to exist, and all of them are within the limits of Brewster County right here in Texas. There, the cactus grows out of soils that are rich in Arkansas stone, a rock type that’s only exposed in a few places in the world: Japan, the Middle East, Arkansas, Oklahoma and the Marathon Uplift here in Texas.

The birdfoot cactus — also known as Nellie’s cory cactus and Nellie’s pincushion cactus — is a minute one, growing no taller than 1 ⅕ inches long. The pink flowers, which grow above the spine covered body, are even smaller, measuring a maximum of ½ an inch long. 

Sand-Brazos mint

Brazoria arenaria

Endemic to southern Texas, this member of the mint family has a tall stem covered in light purple flowers. 

Wand butterfly bush

Buddleja racemosa

You’ll only be able to find this wispy, flowery-stemmed bush along waterbeds between Austin and Rocksprings, where the shrub benefits from the limestone-rich soils and ample water flowing down from the Edwards Plateau.  

The name comes from the shape of the flowering stem — long, thin and covered with small white flowers that attract pollinators like bees, butterflies and moths.

Texas poppy mallow

Callirhoe scabriuscula

The mallow plant family contains a number of recognizable species, such as cacao, okra, cotton, durian and hibiscus, just to name a few. 

This less-common variety can only be found along the Colorado River in Texas, where its wine cup-shaped flowers in deep reds and magentas open and close with the sunrise and sunset. The flowers don’t last long, though — the beautiful petals attract butterflies and bees in search of nectar and, once the flowers have been pollinated, they wither away and die in just a few hours. 

Their short lives means these Texas beauties are a treat to find while they’re still open!

Texas sunflower

Helianthus praecox

Reaching heights of up to 5 feet tall and boasting large, showy yellow flowers, the Texas sunflower is a common sight along the Gulf Coast or the Rio Grande Valley — though those are the only places you’ll find them on the planet!

Old Gay Hill Red China

A long name, yes, but a beautiful flower! This rose cultivar is native to Gay Hill, Texas, and has stunning red and white flowers clustered on bushes anywhere between 4-6 feet tall!

Terlingua Creek cats-eye

Cryptantha crassipes

The Terlingua Creek cat’s-eye is another one of those hyper-regional plants, as it only grows in Brewster County within the drainage area of Terlingua Creek. Not only that, but it also only grows out of a type of rock called Fizzle Flat lentil, a soil which is made of a dry, crumbly sedimentary mineral assortment. Add onto that the fact that it’s self-pollinating and the only known populations are on a handful of privately owned lands, and you’ve got one of the most rare plants in Texas!

Glen Rose yucca

Yucca necopina

Similar to the yucca plants found in California, Arizona and Nevada, the Glen Rose yucca grows about 2 feet tall and features long, sharp spines. This species can only be found in limestone soils in a small region west of Dallas and Fort Worth, making it a rare sighting for plant enthusiasts hiking through the valleys, river terraces and sand bars in the area. 

Texas wild rice

Zizania texana

Unlike regular rice, which is a grain, wild rice is actually a seed from types of water-loving wild grasses found all over North America. 

The only place you can find this particular species of wild rice is in Hays County along the first two miles of the San Marcos River. 

You won’t find any of these plants anywhere outside Texas, making them a real treat to find if you do lay eyes on them! Be sure to look out for them if you’re hiking anywhere around our Dallas apartments.

Have fun!

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Featured photo courtesy Pixabay/Lengyel_Art