Potted verbena. Adobe Stock image; all other photos courtesy of Lady Bird Johnson Wildflower Center
Brighten your living space with potted native flowering plants that thrive no matter how hot and dry the weather is. All these blossoming beauties require are a well-draining potting soil.
You can aid drainage by placing small, broken pieces of pottery or marble-size rocks in the bottom of the container. This is especially important for pots without drain holes.
You should also mix perlite, coarse sand, or vermiculite into the potting soil to keep it from becoming impacted and encourage drainage.
Water these plants when the soil goes dry and until only water runs out of the bottom into the holding pan under your pot. If the plant is in a pot with no holes, be careful not to overwater it. Roots should never stay wet over long periods.
Always water slowly and lightly for best results. Gushing water from a water hose, for example, will strip the soil of nutrients, disturb roots, and pack down soil so it doesn’t dry properly.
The Lady Bird Johnson Wildflower Center in Austin recommends these natives for pots:
HINKLEY’S GOLDEN COLUMBINE
This gold-colored flowering native, along with Texas Gold columbine, is among the Lone Star State’s hardiest. It likes shade but needs some bright light during the day. It is drought-tolerant but could use a little extra water during the hottest part of the summer. Good drainage is a must for success.
DAMIANITA
This West Texas native can take the heat. In fact, it’s best to avoid too much water! The Damianita loves both full sun and partial shade. It’s also a fan of rocky soils, so drainage is important to its future health.
VERBENA
Verbena looks very much like lantana and comes in multiple varieties, including prairie verbena, Dakota vervain, Dakota mock vervain, and moradilla. It blooms from March through October.
BLACKFOOT DAISY
A creeping plant, this native blooms almost all of the time. It can take full sun or light shade. It’s drought-resistant but needs good drainage. The blackfoot daisy will withstand below-freezing temperatures and hot Texas summers.
GOLDEN GROUNDSEL
A member of the aster family, golden groundsel can grow from 1-3 feet tall. It does well in shady areas or morning sun. The evergreen plant flowers early and attracts pollinators.
PRIDE-OF-TEXAS PHLOX
The red version of this plant is also known as Texas Pride. If looking for purple flowers, try the downy phlox, prairie phlox, or fragrant phlox. By the way, phlox means “flame,” which explains a lot when you see the vibrant color scheme of this hardy plant.
AUTUMN SAGE
Try putting scarlet sage, blood sage, red sage, cherry sage, or salvia greggii (autumn sage) in a pot for bursts of bright reds and oranges. The perennial autumn sage often flowers in February, takes a break in the summer, and comes back in the fall. All sages are loved by pollinators.
