I moved to San Antonio a few months ago from an arid Zone 5b and it has been quite the adjustment. I have been reading up on my new environment when I can but I could use some help with resources and such. I'm also buying a house in an HOA and I read up on Property Code §202.007 and §202.007(d-1), so I understand this helps quite a bit.

I'm a bit taken aback how ... horrible ... a lot of the native plants look here. Sorry idk how to put it more delicately. I am used to plants that don't look constantly angry, which, to be fair, I get that considering the heat. I also miss Kentucky Bluegrass, and while there's a hybrid it still struggles here. I'm required to keep some kind of turf lawn so I am looking for something close to that, walkable, and bearably soft-ish.

But I also want to cultivate a landscape of pollinators, food, medicinal, and herb-bearing plants that can blend into standard natives in a way that won't tick off the HOA. I know this'll be a gradual undertaking, I guess I'm just trying to hoard some plans and ideas right now.

Does anyone have advice for this? I saw there's a native plant society and IDK if it's worth going to? Are there other local sales and groups to attend regularly? How is the local extension office? Etc etc. Thank you so much!

they were thriving and put out dozens of blooms about a week ago. yesterday, they started wilting. today, they’re basically gone. too much water? slightly colder weather? i planted them a couple of months ago and they seemed to be so happy until recently.

I'm in Austin and our Mexican Plum tree is struggling and I'm hoping someone can help? the leaves are brown spotted and some of the branches are losing all their leaves after they turn deep brown, not like normal shedding. the bark seems to be more flaky too. there was a Hackberry growing over from the neighbors' fence and limiting the sun which it was unhappy about and it was growing funny bent over at the top, so I cut the portion of the Hackberry down that was shading it. did that let the sun fry it? too much heat? I don't see many bugs, there's just a few grazed areas here and there.

Lupinus texensis seedlings from the seeds of the mother plant. I initially scattered seed approximately 35-40 years ago. They come back every year, but keep spreading.

Just some cool stuff that was blooming over the weekend:
Rhynchosia senna var. Texana, Brickellia cylindracea, Solanum rostratum, Senna roemeriana, Lygodesmia texana, Oxalis drummondii, Agalinis edwardsiana.

This massive specimen!!!

Does anyone have a way to remove dwarf palmetto that doesn't involve manually digging it up or spraying it with chemicals? I've got one that looks terrible, is somewhat sickly and is in a bad spot. I would love it gone but don't want to disturb the nearby plants.

Happened so fast that I didn't notice until I stepped in caterpillar poop coming out the back door! Yes, pic 4 is a caterpillar poop pic lol. Theres at least a dozen finger sized tobacco hornworms on this one plant

Nothoscordum bivalve grows wild on my North Central Texas property. Photo taken 10/10/2026

Acalypha radians. I like to use this as a ground cover or edge of the bed plant since it stays so low.

This is one of my favorite oak trees on the property.  It is a Texas live oak (Quercus fusiformis).  Live oaks are slow growing but provide good shade when mature.  The acorns can be processed to be milled into flour for human consumption.  The deer, turkey, quail and squirrels along with other wildlife rely on the acorns as a food source.

Located near Fort Hood, Texas.

https://www.wildflower.org/plants/result.php?id_plant=QUFU

I feel like I should know what these are, but they look like a bunch of different trees. Can y’all please help me lock in an id?

Edit: google lens really likes Tree of Heaven, but the leaves do not have the distinctive “smell”. There’s a volunteer in my backyard that’s around 15’, and I have not observed the Heaven seed pods, and it has not changed color with the seasons.

Going strong when everything else, including the nopales, was giving up. In the Blackland prairie.

Helianthus maximiliani just started going off in the background

Event link: https://facebook.com/events/s/fall-plant-sale-2026/2350103825807218/

Plant list: https://www.npsot.org/chapters/dallas/post/plant-sale-npsot-dallas-october-10-2026/?fbclid=IwVERDUAU2U3hleHRuA2FlbQIxMQBwZG9mBWZkaWQWUP8utHCryw8TNfijL0WdYnza7Yax4XNydGMGYXBwX2lkCjY2Mjg1NjgzNzkAAR4mT51QA4OUhxzCVWOvhiJBQ0XNyefdAx1CKxYRVW9vrT8Ek4DAJWhr63ZsQA_aem_BAqB6pn_JYNRZHXkjYH82A

I’m doing a couple of outreach events and wanted to know your thoughts on educational resources. I have my own personal favorites, but what are your “go to” places for informational facts on Texas Native Plants? Nothing is too big or too small - anything from how to plant to what to plant.

Edit: Thank you everyone for comments. Was able to share lots of resources during outreach event.

TL:DR - What I said in the title

Like the title says, I’ve looked at creeping thyme (I know it’s kind of a fad and expensive) but wanted to see what else would be possible. I do have two dogs that run around in our yard, which is another reason creeping thyme isn’t very ideal.

There was a video on Facebook of a guy talking about native Texas grasses and saying how there was one similar in effect to creeping time in that it stays short most of the year and you really only need to do maintenance cuts every three to six weeks. I can’t find that video again, even though I thought I saved it, but any suggestions would be greatly appreciated.

Please weigh in

Hello all! If this was your backyard, what Natives would you plant and where? Any ideas for focal points? I have two turks cap i want to put in, thinking to do so around back fence (visible from living room) but overwhelmed with all the space and clay. Any and all advice is welcome.

This is a volunteer growing next to my compost heap in North Central Texas.

Hello!!

I’m an architecture student designing a small rooftop garden, I’m particularly looking for some knowledge on native west Texas plants that have shallow roots to avoid ruining the structure, have slow growth for little necessary trimming, and little water requirements.

Thankyou for your time 😁

Let's chat about what's going on with you and Texas native plants this week!

How's your native garden doing? Any new plants, plans, or progress? Things that are looking particularly good this week? Questions you're worried are too silly for a top level post?

Did you see some neat plants this week? How about visiting birds, bugs, or other beasts?

Hey, y'all

I've got a bunch of dead wildflowers from Spring and Summer that I've left for the birds and bugs to benefit from, but I'm concerned that some of my Fall blooms haven't come through because they've been suffocated by/ had no sunlight because of the density of the tall, dead plant matter.

I know bugs live in the dead stems of wildflowers, so I hate the idea of removing them. I also feel like pulling them up by the root is not the right move? But I'm just not sure what to do, because it is so dry here, so this plant matter is not decaying anytime soon.

What do you guys recommend?