Texas Superstar® Plants
The goal of most gardeners is to plant beautiful plants that come back year after year, preferably with very little care and not much water. In North Texas this can be particularly challenging due to our extreme heat, unexpected freezes, and inconsistent rainfall. Yet, we have all seen plants on abandoned properties that, with no watering, fertilizing, or other care for years, nonetheless have been completely unfazed by the elements. Some of these plants have made the Texas Superstar list.
We gardeners have all heard of or seen Texas Superstar® plants, and most of us have probably included several in our landscapes without even realizing it. In fact, there are ninety different plants that have received this designation and there is a website dedicated solely to them. www.texassuperstar.com. They are deemed superstars by Texas A&M AgriLife Extension Service because they perform well in a variety of Texas climates, are resistant to pests and diseases, are marketable, and can be grown readily enough to provide garden centers with adequate supplies. As a bonus, when Texas Superstar®-labeled plants are purchased from garden centers, five cents is donated to the Horticulture Program at Texas A&M to aid in the funding of research of more Texas Superstar® plants.
Many of the Superstar® perennials qualify as passalong plants and are shared freely among friends and neighbors who garden. Among the many wonderful perennial passalongs are ‘Texas Gold’ Columbine Aguiligia chrysantha, Turk’s Cap Malvaviscus arboreus var. drummondii (although it is a bear to dig up), ‘John Fanick’ Phlox paniculata, and ‘Tangerine Beauty’ Bignonia capreolata, known as crossvine supposedly because of the shape of the pith in the vine’s stem when viewed in cross-section. My sister has recently retired and has taken up gardening, much to my delight. It pleases me no end to dig up and share some of my plants, and these have included Dwarf Mexican Petunia, Texas Gold columbine, Tangerine Beauty crossvine, and Turk’s Cap. I told her to put the Turk’s Cap where she wants it to remain, because even a year after planting, she will find that moving it would take an hour of hard digging.
Among annual Superstars® are colorful and almost indestructible Whopper Begonias. When shopping in the garden center, there are fluffy little rose-looking begonias, rex begonias, and dozens of other types of begonias, and many dollars have gone down the drain with the purchase of some of them. On the other hand, the Whopper Begonia has large flowers that are outstanding in shade and partial shade. They
are not fond of full afternoon sun except in cooler parts of Texas, but otherwise, you can expect to see them loaded with blooms throughout the entire season. Their waxy leaves are quite attractive and come in either bronze or green. The flowers are available in red, a rose-pink, or a beautiful coral shade and the non-stop blooms add nice color to garden beds. These begonias are very striking in containers which can be moved into the garage or greenhouse in the winter. After overwintering, they should produce another full season of blooms the following year.
I was delighted to learn that one of my favorite plants, Holly Fern Cyrtomium falcatum, was designated a Superstar® in 2022. This abundant, beautiful, dark green fern with its holly-like leaves has many places in my own garden, and hopefully you will enjoy it in yours. It stands two feet tall and at least that wide, with stiff and glossy fronds. It does well in morning sun and afternoon shade but thrives in almost full shade. It gives shady areas a look of fullness when planted in groups, contrasting nicely with lighter-colored plants, and it is a stunning container plant. Simply snip off browned leaves when necessary to keep it looking its best. In the spring and again in late summer, I mix liquid fish emulsion fertilizer in a large bucket of water and drench the entire plant, and soon it is even more lush. These beauties will survive most freezes in our area and damaged leaves can simply be trimmed off in the spring. I sometimes move container holly ferns into the garage over winter to give them a head start in the spring.
Tangerine Beauty Bignonia capreolata, agrilifetoday.tamu.edu often simply referred to as crossvine, is another plant that I have been devoted to for the past several years. It easily survives our winters and blazing hot summers. The dark green glossy leaves make a shady cover for a west wall of my house, no doubt reducing the heat on the brick by at least ten degrees. This vine needs a trellis to climb in the beginning, but eventually the vines cling to each other and travel rapidly. The tangerine colored, trumpet-shaped flowers cover the plant several times a summer, and when the booming stops or slows, an application of fertilizer will produce a new crop of flowers. Ruby throated hummingbirds love this plant. Tangerine Beauty can easily reach fifteen feet tall and wide, and while the best blooming happens in full sun, the vine can survive with a considerable amount of shade. Try this beauty on fences, walls, gazebos, and arches.
A few more Superstar® Perennials: Blue Princess Verbena, Cape Plumbago, Dwarf Mexican, Petunia, Gulf Muhly Grass, Lindheimers Muhly grass, New Gold Lantana, Trailing Lantana, ‘Henry Duelberg’ Salvia, ‘Mystic Spires Blue’ Salvia, Butterfly Vine, Red Yucca, Texas Gold Columbine, and Flare Hibiscus. Many of these perennials can be divided for passalong sharing. The salvias are easy to uproot and will quickly fill back in where you removed a plant. I have used a sharp knife to divide the holly fern and Gulf Muhly grass. As with the salvias, these will soon fill back in and your garden will be just as beautiful as ever.
Some of the Superstar® Annuals: Angelonia Summer Snapdragon, Baby’s Breath Euphorbia, Blue Daze, Larkspur, New Look® Celosia, Purslane, Pentas, Texas Bluebonnet, Tidal Wave® Red Velour Spreading Petunia, Tidal Wave R Silver and Cherry Petunia, and Larkspur.
Grab a container and a small shovel or trowel when showing a friend around your garden, and dig out some Purslane, Pentas, Bluebonnets or Larkspur to share.
The Superstar® list also includes woody shrubs, various trees, and specialty plants like Tycoon tomato and Green Magic broccoli. Do yourself a favor and go to www:texassuperstar.com for the full list and great information on each plant. We should all make a habit of preparing our garden shopping list from this group of tough and tolerant plants.
Enjoy your planning and planting!
