Native plants · Texas

Native plants of Goliad County

123 plant species are recorded as native to Texas in Kew’s World Checklist of Vascular Plants and USDA PLANTS, and recorded in Goliad County by USDA PLANTS. 42 of them have growing records you can filter by light, moisture, height and estimated cold hardiness. 2 more species are listed as both native and introduced and kept in a separate section.

County summary · USDA PLANTS and Kew WCVP

Goliad County, Texas

Native species: 123 Typical Texas county: 145 (median of 254 counties)
Garden-ready natives: 42 Typical Texas county: 61
Share by type (all 123 native species): Percent of the 123 native species in each growth type

Tree 8% (10)
Shrub 2% (3)
Wildflower (forb) 56% (69)
Grass or grass-like 28% (35)
Vine 5% (6)

Wildflowers make up the largest share of the native list (56%), followed by grasses and grass-like plants (28%).

Recorded native ranges can include long-established populations that spread from gardens; check your state’s native plant society list for local guidance. How native status is decided.

ZIP codes mainly in this county fall in USDA hardiness zones 9a to 9b (2023 map).

The native plant list

Garden-ready natives 42

Native species with PLANTS growing records (height, light, moisture, minimum temperature). “—” means PLANTS has no value.

Garden-ready native plants of Goliad County, Texas
Plant	Type	Height	Light	Water use	Hardy to
blackeyed Susan Rudbeckia hirta	Wildflower (forb)	1 ft	Sun	Medium	Zone 5a
boxelder Acer negundo	Tree	60 ft	Shade-tolerant	Medium	Zone 2b
brownseed paspalum Paspalum plicatulum	Grass or grass-like	3.3 ft	Sun–part shade	Low	Zone 8a
bushy seaside tansy Borrichia frutescens	Shrub	2.6 ft	Sun	Medium	Zone 9a
butterfly milkweed Asclepias tuberosa	Wildflower (forb)	2 ft	Sun	Low	Zone 4a
California bulrush Schoenoplectus californicus	Grass or grass-like	6.6 ft	Sun	High	Zone 9a
clasping coneflower Dracopis amplexicaulis	Wildflower (forb)	2 ft	Sun	High	Zone 10b
common hoptree Ptelea trifoliata	Tree	25 ft	Sun–part shade	High	Zone 4a
common threesquare Schoenoplectus pungens	Grass or grass-like	4.9 ft	Sun	High	Zone 3b
dotted blazing star Liatris punctata	Wildflower (forb)	2 ft	Sun	Medium	Zone 3a
fourwing saltbush Atriplex canescens	Shrub	4 ft	Sun	Medium	Zone 3a
golden crownbeard Verbesina encelioides	Wildflower (forb)	2 ft	Sun	Medium	Zone 5a
golden tickseed Coreopsis tinctoria	Wildflower (forb)	3 ft	Sun–part shade	High	Zone 12b
green sprangletop Leptochloa dubia	Grass or grass-like	3 ft	Sun	Medium	Zone 6a
honey mesquite Prosopis glandulosa	Tree	50 ft	Sun	Low	Zone 6a
Indian blanket Gaillardia pulchella	Wildflower (forb)	2 ft	Sun	Medium	Zone 10b
little barley Hordeum pusillum	Grass or grass-like	1.2 ft	Sun	Medium	Zone 10b
live oak Quercus virginiana	Tree	50 ft	Sun–part shade	Medium	Zone 8a
longspike tridens Tridens strictus	Grass or grass-like	4.9 ft	Sun–part shade	Low	Zone 2a
mescal bean Sophora secundiflora	Tree	15 ft	Sun	Medium	Zone 8a
partridge pea Chamaecrista fasciculata	Wildflower (forb)	2.4 ft	Shade-tolerant	Medium	Zone 7a
pecan Carya illinoinensis	Tree	120 ft	Sun	High	Zone 5a
Philadelphia fleabane Erigeron philadelphicus	Wildflower (forb)	2.8 ft	Sun–part shade	Medium	Zone 4b
plains lovegrass Eragrostis intermedia	Grass or grass-like	2.7 ft	Sun	Low	Zone 5a
post oak Quercus stellata	Tree	60 ft	Sun	Medium	Zone 4a
prairie wedgescale Sphenopholis obtusata	Grass or grass-like	3.2 ft	Sun–part shade	Medium	Zone 3a
purple lovegrass Eragrostis spectabilis	Grass or grass-like	11 in	Sun	Low	Zone 3a
purple poppymallow Callirhoe involucrata	Wildflower (forb)	1 ft	Sun	Medium	Zone 3b
purpletop tridens Tridens flavus	Grass or grass-like	2.5 ft	Sun	Low	Zone 5a
redtop panicgrass Panicum rigidulum	Grass or grass-like	3.3 ft	Sun	High	Zone 4a
sideoats grama Bouteloua curtipendula	Grass or grass-like	3 ft	Sun	Medium	Zone 3a
southern waternymph Najas guadalupensis	Wildflower (forb)	1 ft	Sun	High	Zone 3b
squarestem spikerush Eleocharis quadrangulata	Grass or grass-like	4 ft	Sun	High	Zone 4b
stiff marsh bedstraw Galium tinctorium	Wildflower (forb)	10 in	Shade-tolerant	High	Zone 4a
sugarberry Celtis laevigata	Tree	80 ft	Shade-tolerant	High	Zone 5a
tapertip rush Juncus acuminatus	Grass or grass-like	3 ft	Sun–part shade	High	Zone 4a
trumpet creeper Campsis radicans	Vine	2 ft	Sun	Low	Zone 6a
turkey tangle fogfruit Phyla nodiflora	Wildflower (forb)	2 in	Sun–part shade	Low	Zone 5b
waterthread pondweed Potamogeton diversifolius	Wildflower (forb)	3.2 ft	Sun	High	Zone 3b
wild tantan Desmanthus virgatus	Wildflower (forb)	2 ft	Shade-tolerant	Low	Zone 9a
winter bentgrass Agrostis hyemalis	Grass or grass-like	3.5 ft	Sun–part shade	High	Zone 4a
yellow trumpetbush Tecoma stans	Tree	20 ft	Sun	Low	Zone 9a

Other native species recorded here 81

PLANTS has no growing records for these, so light, moisture, height and zone filters cannot include them. Many are wild species seldom sold by nurseries.

American bluehearts Buchnera americana
annual phlox Phlox drummondii
Baldwin's flatsedge Cyperus croceus
bigtop lovegrass Eragrostis hirsuta
branched foldwing Dicliptera brachiata
bristly greenbrier Smilax tamnoides
carelessweed Amaranthus palmeri
Carolina anemone Anemone caroliniana
Carolina canarygrass Phalaris caroliniana
Carolina geranium Geranium carolinianum
Carolina larkspur Delphinium carolinianum
chickenthief Mentzelia oligosperma
clasping Venus' looking-glass Triodanis perfoliata
coastal sandbur Cenchrus spinifex
crowpoison Nothoscordum bivalve
Cuman ragweed Ambrosia psilostachya
cutleaf evening primrose Oenothera laciniata
Dakota mock vervain Glandularia bipinnatifida
diamond-flowers Stenaria nigricans
downy hawthorn Crataegus mollis
Engelmann's daisy Engelmannia peristenia
false aloe Manfreda virginica
fringed nutrush Scleria ciliata
gaping grass Steinchisma hians
hairy bedstraw Galium pilosum
hairy fimbry Fimbristylis puberula
hairy woodland brome Bromus pubescens
hairyfruit chervil Chaerophyllum tainturieri
Harvey's beaksedge Rhynchospora harveyi
heartleaf nettle Urtica chamaedryoides
Heller's rosette grass Dichanthelium oligosanthes
herb of grace Bacopa monnieri
hogwort Croton capitatus
Jersey tea Ceanothus herbaceus
juniper leaf Polypremum procumbens
lanceleaf blanketflower Gaillardia aestivalis
largebracted plantain Plantago aristata
lemon beebalm Monarda citriodora
Louisiana vetch Vicia ludoviciana
marsh bristlegrass Setaria parviflora
meadow garlic Allium canadense
narrowleaf stoneseed Lithospermum incisum
neckweed Veronica peregrina
nits and lice Hypericum drummondii
pasture heliotrope Heliotropium tenellum
Pennsylvania everlasting Gamochaeta pensylvanica
Pickering's dawnflower Stylisma pickeringii
pinkladies Oenothera speciosa
poorjoe Diodia teres
poverty dropseed Sporobolus vaginiflorus
prairie sandmat Chamaesyce missurica
prairie spiderwort Tradescantia occidentalis
prairie tea Croton monanthogynus
prairie threeawn Aristida oligantha
queen's-delight Stillingia sylvatica
red lovegrass Eragrostis secundiflora
sand spikerush Eleocharis montevidensis
showy evening primrose Oenothera grandis
silverleaf nightshade Solanum elaeagnifolium
slimspike threeawn Aristida longespica
smallflower fumewort Corydalis micrantha
smallhead doll's daisy Boltonia diffusa
sneezeweed Helenium amarum
soft-hair marbleseed Onosmodium bejariense
southern cutgrass Leersia hexandra
southern dewberry Rubus trivialis
spotted beebalm Monarda punctata
spring coralroot Corallorhiza wisteriana
spurred butterfly pea Centrosema virginianum
stemless evening primrose Oenothera triloba
tapered rosette grass Dichanthelium acuminatum
Texas star Sabatia campestris
Texas vervain Verbena halei
thin paspalum Paspalum setaceum
threeflower melicgrass Melica nitens
tiny bluet Houstonia pusilla
velvetweed Oenothera curtiflora
Virginia pepperweed Lepidium virginicum
western tansymustard Descurainia pinnata
whitemouth dayflower Commelina erecta
whorled milkwort Polygala verticillata

Also listed as native and introduced here 2

PLANTS labels these species both native and introduced in this state: some forms are native and others were brought in from elsewhere. Most gardeners should choose plants from the main list.

cayenne pepperCapsicum annuum
Mexican teaDysphania ambrosioides

Compared with Texas

The typical county is the median of the 254 Texas counties with PLANTS county records; the statewide figure counts every species native anywhere in the state. More species is not better or worse: counties differ in size, habitat and how thoroughly they have been surveyed.

Native species counts, Goliad County and Texas
Measure	Goliad County	Typical county	Statewide
Native species	123	145	1,683
Garden-ready natives	42	61	656
Tree	10	—	164
Shrub	3	—	90
Wildflower (forb)	69	—	877
Grass or grass-like	35	—	431
Vine	6	—	83
Fern	0	—	38

Neighboring counties

Counties that share a ZIP code with Goliad County.

DeWitt County, TX 50 garden-ready
Victoria County, TX 73 garden-ready

Source & data date

Source: USDA NRCS PLANTS Database: county distribution records, native status and plant characteristics. CC0 (public domain dedication, per the data.gov catalog record).; Kew’s World Checklist of Vascular Plants (WCVP): native or introduced status by state. CC BY 3.0.; USGS US-RIIS (ver. 2.0): species listed as introduced are excluded. CC0.
Citation: USDA, NRCS. 2026. The PLANTS Database (https://plants.usda.gov, 11/04/2026). National Plant Data Team, Greensboro, NC USA.; Govaerts R. (ed.) (2026). WCVP: World Checklist of Vascular Plants. Facilitated by the Royal Botanic Gardens, Kew. Data file dated 2026-06-04, http://sftp.kew.org/pub/data-repositories/WCVP/ (retrieved 2026-11-04). Paper: Govaerts R. et al. (2021) The World Checklist of Vascular Plants, a continuously updated resource for exploring global plant diversity. Scientific Data 8, 215.
Data date: Retrieved from PLANTS on November 4, 2026; WCVP data file dated June 4, 2026.
Zones: USDA Plant Hardiness Zone Map (2023) ZIP table: PRISM Group, Oregon State University, https://prism.oregonstate.edu, accessed November 3, 2026. Plant zones on this site are our estimate, not the official map.
Scope: Goliad County (county FIPS 48175), Texas. 123 native species from PLANTS county distribution records; garden-ready = species with a PLANTS characteristics record.
Method: A species is listed when it is recorded as native to the state in Kew’s World Checklist of Vascular Plants and USDA PLANTS, and recorded in the county by USDA PLANTS. Species PLANTS labels both native and introduced are listed separately. Full method · All sources

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