40 Native Texas Flowers and Wildflowers (2024)

Texas, the Lone Star State, is the second-largest state in the United States. With so much land and diverse climates for supporting life, a long list of flowers, plants, and animals call Texas home. Keep reading to learn more about the ecoregions of Texas and 40 of the state’s most prized native flowers.

Texas Native Range and Growing Zones

Texas is positioned at the crossroads between North America’s eastern and western topography as well as the continent’s tropical climate to the south and the temperate zone to the north. As a result, it features ten areas that are classified as separate ecoregions with different topography, landscapes, and climate features in each.

These areas include:

• The Piney Woods
• The Gulf Prairies and Marshes
• The Post Oak Savanah
• The Blackland Prairies
• The Cross Timbers
• South Texas Plains
• The Edwards Plateau
• The Rolling Plains
• The High Plains
• The Trans-Pecos

In addition to these different ecoregions, Texas has five zones, called the “Texas Gardening Zones” that correspond with specific USDA Hardiness Zones and are arranged by their average minimum temperatures as follows:

• Zone I (USDA Hardiness Zone 6): -10 to 0°F
• Zone II (USDA Hardiness Zone 7): 0 to 10°F
• Zone III (USDA Hardiness Zone 8): 10 to 20°F
• Zone IV (USDA Hardiness Zone 9a): 20 to 25°F
• Zone V (USDA Hardiness Zone 9b): 25 to 30°F

The different ecoregions, climate zones, and their unique geological features lend the state a great amount of biodiversity in both flora and fauna.

How Are Texas Native Flowers Defined?

The plants and flowers that are native to Texas are defined as those that historically grow naturally in the region without having been introduced by human activity.

40 Beautiful Types of Native Texas Flowers

1. American Basketflower

A member of the Asteraceae (daisy, aster, composite, or sunflower) plant family, the American basketflower is a show-stopping native Texas flower that produces egg-shaped buds that feature a basket-like woven appearance – hence the flower’s common name. The buds open up to reveal large (4-inch diameter), disc-shaped flowers with loads of skinny petals, that lend the flowers a thistle-like texture. The flowers can be lavender to light pink in color and feature creamy white centers that attract both butterflies and bees.

2. Blackfoot Daisy

Another member of the Asteraceae plant family, the Blackfoot daisy, commonly grows on rocky slopes of limestone where it bursts out of the barren landscape with clumps of green foliage and brilliantly cheerful-looking daisy flower heads. Each flower consists of a small, bright-yellow disc flower surrounded by eight to 13 larger white rays which resemble petals. The honey-scented flowers attract pollinators like bees, butterflies, and birds.

3. Blazing Star

Although blazing star is also a member of the Asteraceae plant family, its flowers are quite different in appearance when compared to the two previous wildflowers on the list. Sturdy stalks sprout upward from basal clumps of foliage and are topped with terminal flower spikes. These elongated inflorescences produce bursts of deep-purple or magenta flowers. Blazing star is a native Texas flower commonly found growing in wetlands, swamps, and marsh areas.

4. Common Sunflower

This annual belonging to the Asteraceae plant family might be native to Texas, but it is a gardener’s favorite worldwide. The common sunflower produces tall stalks and large, gorgeous, golden-yellow flowers that follow the path of the sun. Sunflowers are popular for their striking flowers and as a food crop thanks to the use of their seeds. Sunflowers symbolize constancy and loyalty. In the Victorian language of flowers, they represented haughtiness (due to their impressive height).

5. Cutleaf Daisy

The cutleaf daisy, also called Engelmann’s daisy, gets its genus name from the botanist and physician George Engelmann who first recorded and classified Engelmannia peristenia. One unusual fact about this plant is that it’s the only species belonging to the Engelmannia genus within the Asteraceae plant family. These cheerful-looking plants grow in clumps from basal rosettes of foliage and produce profusions of lemon-yellow, star-shaped, daisy-like flowers. These native Texas flowers are quite drought-tolerant and can often be spotted growing along the shoulders of highways and dirt roads.

6. Drummond’s Phlox

A Polemoniaceae (phlox) plant family member, Drummond’s phlox is an attractive wild-growing plant that is also great for garden cultivation. It grows into small mounds with pretty foliage and lovely flower blossoms in spring. These native flowers attract hummingbirds and butterflies with abundant clusters of fragrant blooms. Most often, the flowers are rose-red in color but can also be white or light pink. Drummond’s phlox is also known as pride-of-Texas, Texas pride, and annual phlox.

7. Drummond’s Skullcap

A member of the Lamiaceae (mint, sage, or deadnettle) plant family, Drummond’s skullcap is an herbaceous, annual shrub that produces clumps of vibrant-green foliage and stalks of five-petaled, bluish-purple flowers on axils of the plant’s bracts. Along with Drummond’s phlox (and many other plants native to the southern United States), Drummond’s skullcap is named for the Scottish botanist Thomas Drummond, who recorded many native plants during a trip to the U.S. in 1833.

8. False Dayflower

See Also

Texas State Flower: The Bluebonnet & The Amazing Story Behind It - Texas ProudBlue Flowers Native To Texas - Discover The Best Varieties | Feathered Realm19 Texas Wildflowers (With Pictures) - Identification Guide22 BLUE Wildflowers Found in Texas! (ID GUIDE)

Despite its common name, false dayflower, Tinantia anomala does belong to the Commelinaceae (spiderwort and dayflower) plant family. These native Texas flowers are attractive and unusual in shape and appearance, with two prominent lavender-blue petals and one smaller, white petal. They produce semi-succulent foliage that, when naturalized in a wooded area, can create an excellent ground cover through the cooler seasons.

9. Featherleaf Desertpeony

A member of the Asteraceae plant family, the featherleaf desertpeony is a drought-tolerant, herbaceous perennial that grows in clumps of dark-green, ladder-like foliage. The prominent flowers feature bursts of slender petals in a formation similar to, yet more organized than, that of a true peony. The flowers are light pink to white or purplish in color and attract butterflies.

10. Flame Acanthus

A member of the Acanthaceae (acanthus) plant family, the flame acanthus is a drought-tolerant, deciduous shrub with a spreading growth habit. When in bloom, these native Texas flowers produce fiery, orangish-red flowers that are tube-shaped and about one to one-and-a-half inches long. These flowers are filled with nectar and attract hummingbirds and butterflies. Other common names include desert honeysuckle, hummingbird bush, and Mexican Flame.

11. Four-Nerve Daisy

A member of the Asteraceae plant family, the drought-tolerant four-nerve daisy is a lovely addition to rock gardens and xeric gardens. It grows in clumps of green foliage and produces sunny-yellow, solitary flowers atop slender stalks. The flowers feature yellow disc rays marked with four purple-colored veins. Toothed, yellow petals surround the ray.

12. Gayfeather

Another plant of the Asteraceae plant family with spike-form flower racemes, the gayfeather is also known as prairie liatris, cat-tail liatris, and hairy button snakeroot. This upright, clump-forming, herbaceous perennial produces tufts of narrow foliage from which thick flower stalks rise. The flowers are purple or pink in color and, rarely, white. These flowers attract a wide variety of pollinators, including butterflies, hummingbirds, and several other avian species.

13. Golden Wave

Also commonly called goldenmane tickseed, golden wave is a member of the Asteraceae plant family. This is made evident by the plant’s daisy-shaped ray flowers and toothed petals. These native Texas flowers are golden-yellow in color with reddish-brown markings toward the center. The centers of the flowers are bluish-black and rimmed with yellow. In the language of flowers, coreopsis flowers mean “always cheerful.”

14. Goldeneye

Goldeneye is another member of the Asteraceae plant family. It is an herbaceous perennial that grows in clumps with many branches and stems that produce pretty, yellow flowers with prominent golden centers. Goldeneye is very drought-tolerant, making it an excellent option for xeric gardens and natural planting in arid regions. Additional common names include plateau goldeneye, sunflower goldeneye, and toothleaf goldeneye.

15. Gregg’s Mistflower

Gregg’s mistflower (also commonly called palmleaf thoroughwort and Texas ageratum) belongs to the Asteraceae plant family. A perennial, this native Texas flower produces vibrant foliage and palmate leaves with three prominent lobes. Gregg’s mistflower grows with a spreading habit, creating a lush ground cover. The flowers have a pincushion-like shape and cluster together, forming misty-looking clumps of periwinkle blue. These blossoms are a favorite of migrating monarch butterflies.

16. Gulf Coast Penstemon

A member of the Plantaginaceae (plantain) plant family, the Gulf Coast penstemon (also known as sharpsepal beardtongue) is an herbaceous, evergreen perennial with an upright growth habit and ovate, almost heart-shaped leaves. Its tall, slender stems produce delicate clusters of bell-shaped flowers in a light shade of purplish blue. These plants prefer moist soils and do well in garden borders and beds. They also make lovely cut flowers in arrangements.

17. Horsemint

Monarda citriodora (horsemint) is an aromatic annual belonging to the Lamiaceae plant family. This native Texas flower produces cone-shaped inflorescences with rows of purple and white flowers, but it is best known for its fragrant foliage. Early in the season, the foliage smells like lemon. Later on, it takes on an aromatic profile that can be compared to oregano. Other common names include lemon beebalm, lemon mint, plains horsemint, purple horsemint, and purple lemon mint. The fragrance attracts butterflies, bees, and hummingbirds. The plant’s leaves are also commonly used to brew tea.

18. Indian Blanket

A member of the Asteraceae plant family, Gaillardia pulchella is commonly called Indian blanket or firewheel in reference to the shape and colors of its flowers. The petals are deeply toothed at their broad ends and narrow to points where they connect to the central flower rays. They are red at the base and bright yellow at their tips. The centers are deep, reddish-brown. At one to two inches in diameter, the flowers are showy with their striking gradienThen diameter.

19. Indian Paintbrush

A member of the Scrophulariaceae (figwort) plant family, the Indian paintbrush is a hemiparasitic plant. This means that the plant’s roots actually penetrate neighboring roots (called host roots) of other plants (mainly grasses) to steal the nutrients they take up. These native Texas flowers produce attractive flower spikes with inconspicuous white or green flowers tipped with bright-red bracts resembling paintbrushes dipped in red paint. The bracts can sometimes also be yellow or all-white.

20. Meadow Pink

Sabatia campestris (commonly called meadow pink, Texas star, and rose gentian) belongs to the Gentianaceae (gentian) plant family. Meadow pink is an annual plant that produces slender stems with opposing leaves. The flowers form in cymes at the tops of the long stems. Each bloom is about one-and-a-half inches in diameter and has five petals which are round and slightly pinched to points at their tips. The flowers are usually pink (rarely white) with yellow eyes.

21. Maximilian Sunflower

A member of the Asteraceae plant family, the Maximilian sunflower or Max sunflower is a rhizomatic branching perennial herb. This native Texan sunflower plant is a garden show-stopper, as it grows to be about 10 feet in height and produces clusters of large (two to four-inch) flowers on raceme-like inflorescences. The flowers feature golden-yellow ray florets that circle a center of yellow-tipped, brown disc florets. The sunny blossoms attract a variety of pollinators, including butterflies, birds, and bees.

22. Mexican Hat

Ratibida columnifera (commonly called the Mexican hat or upright prairie coneflower) belongs to the Asteraceae plant family. The herbaceous perennial plants are heavily branched with leaves on their lower parts. They have long, slender, and leafless stems that produce three to seven flower heads each. With brown, prominent, central, cone-shaped discs and drooping petals in dark red or yellow, the flowers bear a unique shape that resembles the high-crowned, broad-brimmed sombreros that are traditional in Mexico.

23. Pink Evening Primrose

Oenothera speciosa is an herbaceous perennial wildflower that belongs to the Onagraceae (evening primrose) plant family. This native Texas flower has several common names, including pink evening primrose, pink ladies, amapola, Mexican evening primrose, show primrose, showy evening primrose, pink buttercups, and buttercups. The plants grow as shrubs and produce nodding, pink or white, cup-shaped flowers. They are hardy and have a fierce spreading growth habit. As a result, they form large colonies when left unchecked. The green parts of this plant are edible and often used in salads when harvested before flowers develop.

24. Plains Coreopsis

A member of the Asteraceae plant family, Coreopsis tinctoria is also known as plains coreopsis, golden tickseed, and goldenwave. These herbaceous annuals produce feathery foliage and petite (1-1.5 inch) flowers atop wispy stems. The flowers are daisy-shaped with maroon or brown, button-shaped central discs that are surrounded by toothed flowers that are golden-yellow and stained red at their bases. The flowers are self-seeding and spread quickly.

25. Prairie Verbena

Glandularia bipinnatifida is an herbaceous perennial belonging to the Verbenaceae (verbena) plant family. These native Texas flowers produce vibrant, heavily separated foliage along long, slender stalks. From the tips of these stalks bloom bulbous clusters of petite flowers. They can be pink, purple, or violet. Typically, the plants are either taller with pink flowers or more compact with purple or violet flowers. Prairie verbena attracts a variety of birds.

26. Purple Coneflower

Commonly called the purple coneflower or simply echinacea, Echinacea purpurea is an herbaceous perennial belonging to the Asteraceae plant family. The purple coneflower produces alluring flower heads with fiery central, cone-shaped discs that fade from scarlet to maroon and a circle of drooping flower petals that fade from light pink to violet. Purple coneflowers represents health and healing due to its many medicinal properties, which can be enjoyed in various ways with the plant’s use in various teas and herbal supplements.

27. Red Columbine

Aquilegia canadensis is an herbaceous perennial of the Ranunculaceae (ranunculus) plant family that is commonly called the red columbine, eastern red columbine, or wild red columbine. The plant has an upright growth habit and deeply lobed leaves, but it is most prized for its intricately ornate flowers. The nodding flower blossoms feature alternating red and yellow petals with upward, tube-shaped spurs that are filled with sweet-smelling nectar that attracts hummingbirds and insects with long, skinny proboscises.

28. Showy Evening Primrose

A member of the Onagraceae plant family, the Oenothera rhombipetala is a biennial. In its first year of growth, the plant produces a basal rosette of foliage. In its second year, it produces a tall stalk, and flower raceme. The buttery-yellow flowers open up from long, slender tubes with four broad, pointed petals. Each flower spike produces copious flowers, but each flower opens in the evening and is spent by the following morning. As a result, only a handful of flowers might be in bloom on any given day. In the language of flowers, evening primrose symbolizes inconstancy.

29. Silverleaf Nightshade

A member of the Solanaceae plant family, Solanum elaeagnifolium (silverleaf nightshade or white horse nettle) is an herbaceous perennial with long, lance-shaped, silvery-green leaves that have wavy edges. The stems and branches are sometimes prickly or hairy. Flowers appear in loose clusters atop the stems. These native Texas flowers are violet-purple, lavender, or white in color and shaped like stars with five triangle-shaped petal-like lobes that connect at their bases. They produce poisonous, yellow, tomato-like fruits. In the language of flowers, nightshade symbolize truth.

30. Skeleton Plant

Lygodesmia texana is a species in the Asteraceae plant family. Commonly called the skeleton plant, it features exceedingly skinny, bone-like stems. In fact, the plant’s genus name is a compound of the Greek words for “plant twig” and “bundle,” in reference to the plant’s resemblance to a bundle of twigs. The flowers open up individually atop the stems and feature an elegant array of orchid-pink or light-purple petals. The petals are long and toothed at their tips, and they surround a cluster of delicate, white, and magenta stamens that arch gracefully upward from the flower’s center.

31. Snow-on-the-Prairie

Euphorbia bicolor (commonly called snow-on-the-prairie) belongs to the Euphorbiaceae (spurge) plant family alongside other ornate plants like poinsettias. Snow-on-the-prairie is upright and features attractive foliage that is solid green lower on the plant and white-rimmed closer to the tops of the stems and branches. The flowerhead produces terminal clusters of small, inconspicuous, white flowers that have either a single stamen or a single pistil. The flowers are surrounded by a corona of slender bracts that are silvery-green and rimmed with dusty white. Snow-on-the-prairie plants produce a white sap containing a skin-irritating chemical called euphorbium.

32. Texas Blue Star

Amsonia ciliata (Texas bluestar) is a flowering perennial that belongs to the Apocynaceae (dogbane) plant family. The plants are clump-forming and grow to be up to three feet tall. With two-inch long blade-like leaves born along the stem and growing shorter as they near the stem’s terminal. This native Texas flower is most easily recognized for its loose, almost-spherical, terminal flower clusters. The flowers are powder blue with central white circles and star-shaped with five petals. The flowers attract butterflies, and the shrubs do well in borders, beds, rock gardens, and cottage gardens.

33. Texas Coneflower

A flowering perennial plant, Rudbeckia texana (Texas coneflower or shiny coneflower) belongs to the Asteraceae plant family. The plants produce long straps of elliptical foliage and terminal composite flowerheads atop slender stems. The inflorescences consist of a tall cone of small (red or green) disc florets encircled by a ring of drooping, bright-yellow ray florets. The flowers attract bees, butterflies, and small birds. In the language of flowers, rudbeckia flowers, such as Texas coneflower, represent justice.

34. Texas Lantana

A member of the Verbenaceae plant family, Lantana urticoides (Texas lantana or calico bush) grows as a bushy shrub with a spreading growth habit. It is deciduous, dropping its toothed, ovate leaves at the end of fall. Texas lantana remains in bloom throughout spring, summer, and fall, covered with clusters of small, tubular flowers. These bulbous clusters feature a gradient color appearance as the flowers fade from yellow to orange to red as they mature. Fleshy, purple fruits (poisonous to people and animals, except birds) appear after the flowers. Texas lantana attracts birds, bees, and butterflies. Its bright colors, attractive foliage, spreading growth habit, and resilience make it a perfect ground cover. In the language of flowers, lantana symbolizes rigor.

35. Texas Sage

Salvia coccinea is an herbaceous plant belonging to the Lamiaceae plant family. It can be either annual or perennial. Its common names include Texas sage, scarlet sage, blood sage, red sage, tropical sage, and Indian fire. The plants grow in clumps of slender stems with ovate, slightly hairy leaves, and terminal racemes of flower spikes. The flowers are tube-shaped and scarlet-red. They attract butterflies and hummingbirds for pollination. Scarlet sage also offers a variety of healing benefits in herbal medicine, such as anti-inflammatory effects and wound treatment, in addition to antimicrobial and anticoagulant properties.

36. Texas Star Hibiscus

Hibiscus coccineus is an herbaceous perennial belonging to the Malvaceae (mallow) plant family. Its common names include Texas star hibiscus, scarlet rosemallow, wild red mallow, crimson rosemallow, and brilliant hibiscus. The plant itself produces foliage that closely resembles that of Cannibis sativa (marijuana). However, it produces gorgeous true-scarlet flowers with five petals that can be more than six inches in diameter. Each flower features a prominent central stamen. These types of hibiscus plants require lots of moisture and are recommended for rain gardens, marshes, ponds, and riverbank plantings.

37. Twistleaf Yucca

Yucca rupicola is a succulent-like plant that belongs to the Agavoidea (agave and yucca) subfamily within the Asparagaceae (asparagus) plant family. The plant is formed from a rosette of twisted, lance-shaped, slightly succulent foliage that grows from an underground, branched caudex. The plants spread through their root systems to produce colonies. In spring, flowering stalks grow up to six feet in height and bear clusters of white, pendulous, bell-shaped flowers. Common names include twistleaf yucca, Texas yucca, and Spanish dagger.

38. White Prickly Poppy

Argemone albiflora is a flowering annual or biennial plant belonging to the Papaveraceae (poppy) plant family. Common names include the white prickly poppy, bluestem prickly poppy, and the Texas prickly poppy. As its common names suggest, the plants produce sharp prickles along their stems, but they’re prized for their pure-white, papery flower petals that open up around golden-yellow centers. In the language of flowers, white poppies have a few different symbolic meanings, including sleep, my bane, and my antidote.

39. Winecup

Callirhoe involucrata (winecup or purple poppy mallow) is an herbaceous perennial belonging to the Malvaceae plant family. The winecup has a mounding growth habit and commonly forms mats of foliage and plants in dry and rocky soils. They have deeply lobed foliage and produce cup-shaped blossoms in a deep shade of magenta or purple that grow white at their centers. The flowers open up in the mornings and close in the evenings. Once pollinated, the flowers remain closed.

40. Yellow Columbine

Aquilegia chrysantha (yellow columbine, golden columbine, or canary columbine) is an herbaceous perennial that belongs to the Ranunculaceae plant family. The plants take on a shrub-like form with lush, lobed foliage. Flowers form from tall stalks that extend above the leaves. The erect flowers are canary yellow, featuring five pointed sepals and five petals with a single, backward-stretching spur. The ‘Yellow Queen’ cultivar of this Texas native has been awarded the Royal Horticultural Society’s Award of Garden Merit. In the language of flowers, columbines symbolize folly.

Texas Flowers FAQs:

Native Texas Flowers: Is Everything Really Bigger in Texas?

While the native flowers in Texas might not necessarily be bigger than anywhere else, they do offer a whopping serving of diverse beauty and color. So, if you live in the Lone Star State, consider supporting the local animal, pollinator, and insect populations by adding these native plants to your garden. Remember that it’s illegal to pick native flowers unless you’re on private land and have the landowner’s permission.