Red

The color red or closer to the color red than other colors.

Common Name: Coneflower, Mexican Hat

You can't have just one. As soon as you plant one, you'll have a drift, then a sweep, then a field if you have the space. But I still don't consider the prairie coneflower to be invasive, merely pleasant. Next to the Indian Blanket, the Mexican Hat shouts Southwest prairies. And its a tough hombre. If your stand becomes too dense or too much, just weed some out. They're adaptable to most native soils and will thrive on available or once a month supplementation. Coneflowers bloom yellow, reddish or brown late spring into fall and make an attractive display when mixed.

Common Name: Hollyhock

Old fashion garden and English cottage garden herbaceous perennial that works well in the Southwest Cottage Garden. Hollyhocks are considered to be either a biennial or perennial. They produce copious seed but are not considered invasive or troublesome. Plant seed in the fall, or early spring.  Avoid watering the foliage if irrigating, a drip system works better that above ground sprinklers.

Common Name: Yellow Gaillardia

Another tough and pretty wildflower that populates a wide area from the plains of Oklahoma down to the Chihuahua Desert and over to Colorado and Utah. Leaves are lower near the base of the plant from which stems emerge and bloom in late spring to early summer. Yellow rays with a red to brownish center.

Common Name: Black Knight Butterfly Bush

Butterfly bush is a perennial shrub that comes in many colors from white, yellow, pink, rose, to mauve and deep purple. Native to China and is available in many different hybrids, cultivars or varieties. Quite fragrant, attracts butterflies. Butterfly bush needs very good drainage, it will not tolerant wet clay soil. It will grow in poor soil with good drainage. Butterfly bush trives quite well in low water-use areas. Alternate spelling is Buddleja. Not invasive in the Texas Panhandle.Several species are native to parts of Texas and Mexico. B.

Common Name: Texas Red Yucca

Texas red yucca is technically not a yucca, but has many of the same qualities as yuccas. Thick, succulent dark olive green leaves grow out of the base, as it is stemless. The coral red flowers appear at the top of a long raceme, often 4-6 feet tall. 'Yellow' and 'Red' blooming yuccas are also available. Although it's natural range is north eastern Mexico and West Texas, it is cold hardy throughout much of the Southwest. Allow for sharp drainage in moister climates to prevent root rot.

Common Name: Red Canna

A great plant for those people who must have their foliage fix. Despite their large foliage, cannas will do quite well in a medium water-use area with well amended soil.There are dwarf varieties and others that will reach 7 feet. Leaves shred easily by hail, but will recover after several weeks. Cannas sprout from thick rhizomes. Although subtropical, cannas easily winter over in the Texas Panhandle and spread to form a thick root mass.

Common Name: Cactus

Not all succulents are cacti, nearly all cacti are succulents (a few exceptions). Nearly all cactus species are native to the Americas, providing a prickly evergreen presence. There are many cactus that are cold hardy for the Texas Panhandle. There might be one for your garden.

Common Name: Burgundy Gaillardia, burgundy blanket flower.

Sometimes referred to as Gaillardia x grandiflora ‘Burgundy’.  A cross between G. aristata and G. puchella. I’ve not been able to determine whether these are 2 different varieties, or just name confusion. They must be quite similar, nonetheless. It reseeded once for me, so I'm not sure at all. Medium water for this plant through the heat of summer will prolong blooms, as will afternoon shade. A stunning plant and prolific bloomer for your border.

Common Name: Bee Balm

An American native requiring medium to high water, it is a prolific grower, an old fashion pass-along plant. Perfect for a mixed border or at the edge of the vegetable garden to attract bees. The variety shown is most likely 'Violet Queen', although I'm unsure. However, it is not the common scarlet bee balm or red bergamot, that also grows well here. Blooms throught the summer and is an attractive addition.

Common Name: Indian Blanket, basket flower, firewheel.

Our showiest native wildflower; an annual. Little care required. Grows along roadsides and in natural areas throughout our region. Gaillardias are popular these days, with many new introductions all the time. G. pulchella is a good choice for seeding in prairie areas with other native grasses and wildflowers.

Common Name: Sunflowers

One of North America's favorite annuals. There is much variety in size and colors of flowers, ranging from yellow, golden, orange, red/orange, red and mahogany. The plants themselves can vary from 3-4 feet to 8 feet or more. Seeds sown in springtime will be insure blooms in late summer or fall. Great for cut flowers.

Common Name: Hybrid Daylilies

Green sword-like foliage with striking bell or funnel shaped flowers that last only a day. Hundreds of different hybrids and cultivars in a wide range of colors, some early, mid and late summer blooming. Daylilies do better in medium, well-amended soil and a sunny location that enjoys afternoon shade, but they are versatile. Daylily leaves may exhibit alkalinity in clay soil. If this is the case, amend well with organic matter.

Common Name: Trumpet Vine, Trumpet Creeper

People either love trumpet creeper or hate it. The first three years, I couldn't wait for it to mature, filling with red-orange trumpet shaped flowers. It seems I've spent the next 20 years trying to kill it. Trumpet vine will die, but only for those who want it to live. If a gardener gives it the death wish, it will be sure to flourish. Native to most of the eastern half of the U.S., it is low water-use, thrives in heat. Must be in a sunny location to bloom profusely. Considered to be invasive, especially when over watered. Not particular about its soil.

Common Name: Coral bells, Alum root

Heucheras are native to the North American continent and make wonderful foliage and flower plants for your woodland border. Grown mostly for its interesting, evergreen foliage, coral bells will continue to flower on mature plants if kept deadheaded into the summer. Although the native heucheras are great in themselves, there are hundreds of hybrid cultivars to choose from.

Common Name: Plains coreopsis, Painted Daisy, Tickseed, Calliopsis

Native to the plains, Coreopsis tinctoria, has naturalized throughout most of the U.S., especially in disturbed soil. Prefers moist sandy soil. An annual, it may last more than one year. Very showy flower with yellow outer rays, with a maroon blotch towards the center ray. Sow seeds in early spring. Heat tolerant, once a month watering is recommended for well drained soil.

Common Name: Amaryllis Hybrid cultivar

Typically a Zone 8 plant, the Christmas holiday bulb, Amaryllis, has been successfully wintered over in Amarillo, specifically, the Wolflin area in this case. If you have a warmer, protected micro-niche, try planting your seasonal Amaryllis outdoors, and leave it there well mulched over winter. I 've winter over Amaryllis in my backyard, but it hasn't reliably bloomed. It requires a full sun location and well amended soil to soak up nutrients to be stored in the bulb.

Common Name: Rose mallow, Texas Star, scarlet rosemallow

Two southern native hibiscus suitable for the medium to high water-use garden. Large green leaves are superseeded by very large and showy flowers. H. moscheutos  is cold hardy and has some of the largest flowers, up to a foot across in red, rose and white, usually with a red eye. H. coccineus blooms scarlet 3 inch flowers -- not cold hardy but worth trying as a specimen container plant.

 

Common Name: Standing cypress.

Reseeding biennial, native to Texas, and the southeastern US. The red tubular flowers make it attractive to hummingbirds. The upright stalks are brittle and break off easily.

Standing cypress will flower the first year, and may, or may not come back a second year, but you should see some seedlings. Transplant those. The glossy green foliage to the right in this picture belongs to Anisacanthus quadrifidus wrightii, flame acanthus.

 

Common Name: Cypress Vine

Cypress vine is a native annual tropical vine of the Americas, but has naturalized in Florida and the Gulf Coast areas; said to be cold hardy to Zone 6. Fine lacy or thread-like leaves twine as it grows, putting on scarlet red flowers in summer. In addition to being a climber, it can be used as a groundcover.

Common Name: Red pincushion flower

Perennial with lyre shaped leaves, similar in appearance to scabiosa, native to central Europe. In fact, it's synonym is Scabiosa rumelica. Deep purple red pincushion-like flowers. Knautia macedonica may suffer from our alkaline soil if not well amended with compost and well drained. Will reseed some. Has a pleasant wild look. Popular with nectar feeding insects. Deadheading doesn’t seem to be necessary.

Common Name: Lantana

Lantana urticoides (horrida) is a native perennial, and cold hardy for most of the state, except for areas in the Texas Panhandle. In the Panhandle, several species of Lantana are sold as summer bedding plants. Blooms prolifically summer and fall. Colors normally available are red, red and yellow, yellow, white and purple or mauve. In rare cases they may winter over. In areas south, lantana will grow into a shrub. The blue/black fruit clusters are poisonous.

Attracts butterflies.

Common Name: Bearded Iris, Hybrid Cultivars

Distinctive flat, thin upright leaves with flowers arising from the stem.

Common Name: Honeysuckle, coral

Another American native vine, evergreen in more southern climates than ours, but cold hardy here. Fragrant and attractive coral flowers in spring and early summer. Attracts birds, butterflies and hummingbirds. Pleasant glossy green leaves. Not invasive. Medium water-use.

Common Name: Crape Myrtle

Grown in the South for decades, most people think of crape myrtle as a native American plant; it is however native to China and Japan. Small tree or large shrub that is cold hardy to Zone 7.  I’ve grown the same crape myrtles for over 20 years, but they’re planted close (too close!) to my bricked house on both the northeast and northwest corners. They’ve been stem hardy, not just root hardy, and have grown up to about 10-12’. In most cases, crape myrtle will not grow into tree form in the Panhandle, but there are mature, tree size crape myrtles in Amarillo.

Common Name: Scarlet Sage, Texas Sage

Texas, or scarlet sage is a perennial to the Southern U.S. and Texas. In the Texas Panhandle, it is sold as a bedding plant, since it is not cold hardy. Some varieties will come back due to re-seeding. Many varieties are available, some are more drought tolerant than others, such as 'Forest Fire', while 'Lady in Red' requires medium water-use beds. Summer long blooming, choose your color among scarlet, red, rose, pink, coral and white. As with most sages, hummingbirds, butterflies and bees are attracted to them.

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