Native plants · Texas

Native plants of Johnson County

123 plant species are recorded as native to Texas in Kew’s World Checklist of Vascular Plants and USDA PLANTS, and recorded in Johnson County by USDA PLANTS. 38 of them have growing records you can filter by light, moisture, height and estimated cold hardiness. 1 more species is listed as both native and introduced and kept in a separate section.

County summary · USDA PLANTS and Kew WCVP

Johnson County, Texas

Native species: 123 Typical Texas county: 145 (median of 254 counties)
Garden-ready natives: 38 Typical Texas county: 61
Share by type (all 123 native species): Percent of the 123 native species in each growth type

Tree 4% (5)
Shrub 2% (3)
Wildflower (forb) 63% (78)
Grass or grass-like 22% (27)
Vine 7% (8)
Fern 2% (2)

Wildflowers make up the largest share of the native list (63%), followed by grasses and grass-like plants (22%).

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 zone 8b (2023 map).

The native plant list

Garden-ready natives 38

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

Garden-ready native plants of Johnson County, Texas
Plant	Type	Height	Light	Water use	Hardy to
American pokeweed Phytolacca americana	Wildflower (forb)	7.3 ft	Shade-tolerant	Medium	Zone 4a
Atlantic camas Camassia scilloides	Wildflower (forb)	2.5 ft	Shade-tolerant	Medium	Zone 4b
boxelder Acer negundo	Tree	60 ft	Shade-tolerant	Medium	Zone 2b
buffalograss Bouteloua dactyloides	Grass or grass-like	6 in	Sun	Medium	Zone 3b
Canada germander Teucrium canadense	Wildflower (forb)	3.3 ft	Sun–part shade	High	Zone 3a
Canada wildrye Elymus canadensis	Grass or grass-like	3 ft	Shade-tolerant	Medium	Zone 3a
Carolina buckthorn Frangula caroliniana	Tree	20 ft	Shade-tolerant	—	Zone 4b
common maidenhair Adiantum capillus-veneris	Fern	1.7 ft	Shade-tolerant	High	Zone 4a
composite dropseed Sporobolus compositus	Grass or grass-like	3 ft	Sun	Low	Zone 3b
dotted blazing star Liatris punctata	Wildflower (forb)	2 ft	Sun	Medium	Zone 3a
eastern cottonwood Populus deltoides	Tree	190 ft	Sun	High	Zone 3a
eastern woodland sedge Carex blanda	Grass or grass-like	2 ft	Shade-tolerant	High	Zone 4b
false daisy Eclipta prostrata	Wildflower (forb)	3.2 ft	Sun–part shade	Medium	Zone 10b
fragrant flatsedge Cyperus odoratus	Grass or grass-like	2 ft	Sun	Medium	Zone 11b
giant goldenrod Solidago gigantea	Wildflower (forb)	8.2 ft	Sun–part shade	Medium	Zone 4a
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
graybark grape Vitis cinerea	Vine	50 ft	Sun–part shade	Medium	Zone 6b
green sprangletop Leptochloa dubia	Grass or grass-like	3 ft	Sun	Medium	Zone 6a
hairy grama Bouteloua hirsuta	Grass or grass-like	6 in	Sun	Low	Zone 3b
Indian blanket Gaillardia pulchella	Wildflower (forb)	2 ft	Sun	Medium	Zone 10b
knotgrass Paspalum distichum	Grass or grass-like	11 in	Sun	High	Zone 6a
limestone wild petunia Ruellia strepens	Wildflower (forb)	3.6 ft	Shade-tolerant	Low	Zone 6a
marsh flatsedge Cyperus pseudovegetus	Grass or grass-like	2.5 ft	Sun	High	Zone 8a
Maryland senna Senna marilandica	Wildflower (forb)	6.6 ft	Sun–part shade	Low	Zone 5b
needlepod rush Juncus scirpoides	Grass or grass-like	3 ft	Shade-tolerant	High	Zone 7a
possumhaw Ilex decidua	Tree	33 ft	Shade-tolerant	Medium	Zone 5b
purple lovegrass Eragrostis spectabilis	Grass or grass-like	11 in	Sun	Low	Zone 3a
purple threeawn Aristida purpurea	Grass or grass-like	1.4 ft	Sun	Low	Zone 4a
sand dropseed Sporobolus cryptandrus	Grass or grass-like	3 ft	Sun	Low	Zone 3b
skunkbush sumac Rhus trilobata	Shrub	4 ft	Sun–part shade	Low	Zone 2a
sturdy bulrush Bolboschoenus robustus	Grass or grass-like	4.9 ft	Sun	High	Zone 8a
sugarberry Celtis laevigata	Tree	80 ft	Shade-tolerant	High	Zone 5a
swamp smartweed Polygonum hydropiperoides	Wildflower (forb)	—	Sun	Medium	Zone 10b
sweetscent Pluchea odorata	Wildflower (forb)	4.9 ft	Sun	Medium	Zone 6a
switchgrass Panicum virgatum	Grass or grass-like	5 ft	Sun	Medium	Zone 3a
upright prairie coneflower Ratibida columnifera	Wildflower (forb)	3.1 ft	Sun	Medium	Zone 3a
white avens Geum canadense	Wildflower (forb)	3.9 ft	Shade-tolerant	Medium	Zone 4a

Other native species recorded here 85

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.

Amazon sprangletop Leptochloa panicoides
American bird's-foot trefoil Lotus unifoliolatus
American star-thistle Centaurea americana
American wild carrot Daucus pusillus
annual phlox Phlox drummondii
arrowfeather threeawn Aristida purpurascens
arrowhead rattlebox Crotalaria sagittalis
azure blue sage Salvia azurea
Baldwin's ironweed Vernonia baldwinii
bigbract verbena Verbena bracteata
blue mudplantain Heteranthera limosa
branched foldwing Dicliptera brachiata
camphorweed Heterotheca subaxillaris
Carolina coralbead Cocculus carolinus
Carolina geranium Geranium carolinianum
Carolina larkspur Delphinium carolinianum
Carolina puccoon Lithospermum caroliniense
Carolina woollywhite Hymenopappus scabiosaeus
clasping Venus' looking-glass Triodanis perfoliata
common cinquefoil Potentilla simplex
Cuman ragweed Ambrosia psilostachya
curlycup gumweed Grindelia squarrosa
Davis' sedge Carex davisii
downy ragged goldenrod Solidago petiolaris
Drummond's halfchaff sedge Lipocarpha drummondii
dwarf horseweed Conyza ramosissima
Engelmann's daisy Engelmannia peristenia
field pansy Viola bicolor
fiveangled dodder Cuscuta pentagona
Florida paspalum Paspalum floridanum
green antelopehorn Asclepias viridis
hairy woodland brome Bromus pubescens
hairyfruit chervil Chaerophyllum tainturieri
Heller's rosette grass Dichanthelium oligosanthes
hogwort Croton capitatus
Jersey tea Ceanothus herbaceus
lanceleaf blanketflower Gaillardia aestivalis
largebracted plantain Plantago aristata
lateflowering thoroughwort Eupatorium serotinum
licorice bedstraw Galium circaezans
Louisiana vetch Vicia ludoviciana
man of the earth Ipomoea pandurata
meadow garlic Allium canadense
narrowleaf gumweed Grindelia lanceolata
narrowleaf purple coneflower Echinacea angustifolia
narrowleaf stoneseed Lithospermum incisum
Nuttall's prairie parsley Polytaenia nuttallii
obedient plant Physostegia virginiana
poverty dropseed Sporobolus vaginiflorus
prairie groundsel Packera plattensis
prairie sunflower Helianthus petiolaris
prairie tea Croton monanthogynus
prairie threeawn Aristida oligantha
purple cliffbrake Pellaea atropurpurea
rough dropseed Sporobolus clandestinus
roundleaf ragwort Packera obovata
silverleaf nightshade Solanum elaeagnifolium
sleepy silene Silene antirrhina
slender fimbry Fimbristylis autumnalis
slender snakecotton Froelichia gracilis
slickseed fuzzybean Strophostyles leiosperma
slimflower scurfpea Psoralidium tenuiflorum
smallflower fumewort Corydalis micrantha
soft goldenaster Chrysopsis pilosa
southern annual saltmarsh aster Symphyotrichum divaricatum
southern dewberry Rubus trivialis
Spanish gold Grindelia papposa
spotted sandmat Chamaesyce maculata
spurred butterfly pea Centrosema virginianum
standing-cypress Ipomopsis rubra
stemless Townsend daisy Townsendia exscapa
Texas vervain Verbena halei
tiny bluet Houstonia pusilla
toothed spurge Euphorbia dentata
trailing pearlwort Sagina decumbens
twistspine pricklypear Opuntia macrorhiza
warty spurge Euphorbia spathulata
wavyleaf thistle Cirsium undulatum
wedgeleaf draba Draba cuneifolia
western rough goldenrod Solidago radula
white crownbeard Verbesina virginica
white four o'clock Mirabilis albida
white heath aster Symphyotrichum ericoides
whorled milkweed Asclepias verticillata
witchgrass Panicum capillare

Also listed as native and introduced here 1

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.

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, Johnson County and Texas
Measure	Johnson County	Typical county	Statewide
Native species	123	145	1,683
Garden-ready natives	38	61	656
Tree	5	—	164
Shrub	3	—	90
Wildflower (forb)	78	—	877
Grass or grass-like	27	—	431
Vine	8	—	83
Fern	2	—	38

Neighboring counties

Counties that share a ZIP code with Johnson County.

Ellis County, TX 75 garden-ready
Hill County, TX 29 garden-ready
Hood County, TX 21 garden-ready
Parker County, TX 93 garden-ready
Somervell County, TX 14 garden-ready
Tarrant County, TX 167 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: Johnson County (county FIPS 48251), 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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