Native Plants
![](../_images/smarty_plants.gif)
Q. Who is Mr. Smarty Plants?
A: There are those who suspect Wildflower Center volunteers are the culpable and capable culprits. Yet, others think staff members play some, albeit small, role. You can torture us with your plant questions, but we will never reveal the Green Guru's secret identity.
Did you know you can access the Native Plant Information Network with your web-enabled smartphone?
Ask Mr. Smarty Plants is a free service provided by the staff and volunteers at the Lady Bird Johnson Wildflower Center.
![](../_images/mr_smarty_plants_logo_web_200w.jpg)
rate this answer
![](../_images/star_40.gif)
Sunday - August 22, 2010
From: Troy , NY
Region: Northeast
Topic: Soils, Drought Tolerant, Herbs/Forbs
Title: Plants for sunny dry soil location
Answered by: Nan Hampton
QUESTION:
Do any native plants exist in a highly sunny very dry soil location? (high overhang prevents rain but allows sun)ANSWER:
Mr. Smarty Plants assumes you want something to plant in such an area. The easiest way to find such plants is through our New York Recommended page which lists more than 100 commercially available native New York plants that are suitable for landscaping. Use the NARROW YOUR SEARCH option in the sidebar and select 'Sun - 6 or more hrs' from LIGHT REQUIREMENT and 'Dry - no signs of moisture' from SOIL MOISTURE. You can also make a selection under GENERAL APPEARANCE, LIFESPAN, BLOOM TIME or BLOOM COLOR. Here are several herbaceous perennials from the list that do well in dry sunny areas:
Achillea millefolium (common yarrow)
Anaphalis margaritacea (western pearly everlasting)
Lupinus perennis (sundial lupine)
Monarda fistulosa (wild bergamot)
Here are three shrubs that also do well in dry sunny areas:
Gaylussacia baccata (black huckleberry)
Rhus copallinum (winged sumac)
Vaccinium angustifolium (lowbush blueberry)
You can find even more possibilities by doing a COMBINATION SEARCH in our Native Plant Database by choosing 'New York' from Select State or Province and making the appropriate choices in the other categories. Here are several possibilities for various types of plants.
Grass/Grasslike:
Bouteloua curtipendula (sideoats grama)
Schizachyrium scoparium (little bluestem)
Sporobolus heterolepis (prairie dropseed)
Shrub:
Arctostaphylos uva-ursi (kinnikinnick)
Dasiphora fruticosa ssp. floribunda (shrubby cinquefoil)
You can find many more shrubs, trees and herbaceous perennials.
Here are photos from our Image Gallery:
More Soils Questions
Yellow, pale green leaves on Cedar Elms in Texas
August 30, 2008 - I have had several cedar elms of various sizes planted in our yard over the last 10 years. Only the largest has dark green, healthy looking leaves. All the others have yellowish, pale green leaves. Th...
view the full question and answer
Growing non-native Cabernet Sauvignon vines in Central Texas
July 01, 2013 - Hi. I recently moved into a remodeled home in Taylor, TX, and have experimented with Cabernet Savignon vines before. I have a 1/2 acre and a chain-link fence I want to put vines on. (I have a book o...
view the full question and answer
Garden instructions from Austin
June 12, 2013 - I'm a beginning gardener putting in some new landscaping in my front yard in north central Austin, TX. The yard faces almost due east, so it gets full sun until early afternoon, when the house's sha...
view the full question and answer
Native plants for poorly drained clay soil
March 24, 2008 - I am trying to establish a native plant garden in my back yard, I have two places where water stands for a few hours after a heavy rain, and the soil is black clay. Can you recommend any perennials 3...
view the full question and answer
My newly planted Mountain Laurel isn\'t doing well.
March 13, 2009 - My mountain laurel was planted from a container in Dec. It is in part sun, clay soil, and its leaves are turning yellow. should I move it or will that kill it?
view the full question and answer
Support the Wildflower Center by Donating Online or Becoming a Member today. |