After a hard freeze, we often see damage to plants that had survived normal winter weather. When that happens, it’s useful to look around your neighborhood and other landscapes to see what shrubs not only survived, but also look good. They are likely to be natives. Here are a few of our favorite native shrubs that are sure to survive the next hard freeze.
1Southern Wax Myrtle (Myrica cerifera)
Southern Wax Myrtle is a multi-trunked, evergreen shrub that can reach 20 ft. in height. Light olive-green foliage has a spicy fragrance. Female plants produce pale blue berries in the winter that were once used to make fragrant candles. Makes an excellent screen plant or a tall hedge. Prefers moist soil and full sun to part shade. There is also a dwarf variety that stays about 4’ tall by 4’ wide.
Dwarf Yaupon Holly (Ilex vomitoria ‘Nana’)
The Dwarf Yaupon Holly is an adapted native. It is a hardy, attractive compact landscape shrub that reaches 3-4’ in height and width. Like its native relative, Yaupon Holly, it is evergreen and deer resistant. It is a popular landscape foundation plant and can be used for a low hedge.
Virginia Sweetspire (Itea virginica)
Virginia Sweetspire is a small flowering shrub that is native to the southeast United States. The mound-shaped, semi-evergreen deciduous shrub reaches 3 to 6 ft. Fragrant white, flower spikes droop on arching branches. Leaves turn red to purple in fall and persist well into the winter. It prefers moist soil and tolerates part shade. Most effective in massed plantings as opposed to a single specimen.
Texas Sage (Leucophyllum frutescens)
Texas Sage, also known as Purple Sage or Cenizo, is a slow-growing evergreen shrub that can reach 5-6 ft. tall (sometimes taller) and 4-6 ft. in width. Leaves are silvery gray to greenish. Flowers are violet to purple or pink and appear intermittently from spring to fall, usually after a rainstorm. Extremely drought tolerant and thrives in full sun or part shade. Loved by bees, butterflies and hummingbirds.
American Beautyberry (Callicarpa americana)
American Beautyberry is a deciduous shrub that often grows 3-5 ft. tall and usually just as wide. It can be allowed to grow freely or can be pruned back in spring to maintain a more compact plant. Its most striking feature is the abundant clusters of glossy, iridescent-purple fruit which appear on arching branches in the fall and winter. The berries are not only beautiful, they are attractive food for many species of birds.
Visit Buchanan’s Native Plants today and our native plant experts will help you pick out the right plants for your garden.
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