Bluebells, lilies, poppies, and more: These are the native wildflowers blooming near you
Jason Busa // Shutterstock
Bluebells, lilies, poppies, and more: These are the native wildflowers blooming near you
A mountainside filled with orange poppies.
The perfect yard with a green lawn and manicured garden is as American as baseball and apple pie—but that doesn’t mean it’s good for the land.
Lawns and gardens featuring non-native plants, flowers, and grasses require a great deal of water and fertilizer for maintenance. In drier areas of the country, lawn maintenance can drink up three-quarters of a household’s annual water usage, and the U.S. Environmental Protection Agency estimates that as much as half of all water used outdoors for activities like lawn care is wasted due to evaporation and runoff. Meanwhile, fertilizers and weed killers used to maintain non-native turf may contain harmful chemicals that run off into larger bodies of water and contaminate local ecosystems and drinking water.
Many gardeners have turned to native gardening, a technique incorporating plant species that occur naturally within an ecosystem, for a more eco-friendly take on the American lawn and garden. These plants then provide food for local wildlife, including butterflies, birds, and other animals native to a region. Pollinating insects, bees, and butterflies help the plants we eat bear fruit and vegetables, further providing a benefit to humans.
Native gardening reduces the need for fertilizer and pesticides, requires less water, and promotes biodiversity. For states that regularly experience moderate to severe drought, in particular, reining in water by gardening with native plants can more easily promote a healthier environment. Native gardening requires less maintenance, too: Homeowners don’t have to spend as much time or money on mowing, weeding, fertilizing, watering, and maintaining lawn equipment.
For those interested in incorporating native grasses and plants into their yards, Texas Real Estate Source compiled a list of wildflowers native to various U.S. regions from the Lady Bird Johnson Wildflower Center at the University of Texas at Austin. All flowers on this list have bloom times between August and December and are native to one of these six regions of the U.S.: Central Texas, Eastern Woodland, Pacific Northwest, Rocky Mountains, Southwestern Desert, and Tallgrass Prairie. The flowers are grouped together by region, and the regions are shown in alphabetical order.
trinityfoto // Shutterstock
Melampodium leucanthum
White daisies with orange centers.
Common name: Blackfoot Daisy
Native region: Central Texas, Southwestern Desert
Canva
Gaillardia pulchella
Bright orange and yellow firewheel flowers.
Common name: Firewheel
Native region: Central Texas, Tallgrass Prairie
Canva
Asclepias asperula
Round ball-shaped flowers in light green.
Common name: Antelope-horns
Native region: Central Texas
Canva
Calylophus berlandieri
Delicate, bright yellow flowers.
Common name: Sundrops
Native region: Central Texas
Canva
Commelina erecta
A dayflower with two light blue petals on top and a yellow center.
Common name: Dayflower
Native region: Central Texas
Owen Suen // Shutterstock
Cooperia pedunculata
A field of white flowers.
Common name: Rain Lily
Native region: Central Texas
Johanna Veldstra // Shutterstock
Eustoma exaltatum
Delicate purple flowers with yellow centers.
Common name: Bluebell Gentian
Native region: Central Texas
Canva
Glandularia bipinnatifida
Light purple flowers.
Common name: Prairie Verbena
Native region: Central Texas
Canva
Lobelia cardinalis
Bright red tall flowers.
Common name: Cardinal Flower
Native region: Central Texas
Canva
Ratibida columnifera
Orange and yellow coneflowers.
Common name: Prairie Coneflower
Native region: Central Texas
agatchen // Shutterstock
Cornus canadensis
A low green plant blooming with white flowers.
Common name: Bunchberry Dogwood
Native region: Eastern Woodlands
Agnieszka Bacal // Shutterstock
Cypripedium parviflorum
Yellow Lady’s Slipper Orchid.
Common name: Yellow Lady’s-slipper Orchid
Native region: Eastern Woodlands
Canva
Cypripedium reginae
Pink and white orchid flowers.
Common name: Showy Lady’s Slipper
Native region: Eastern Woodlands
Canva
Linnaea borealis
Light pink funnel-shaped flowers hanging down.
Common name: Twinflower
Native region: Eastern Woodlands
Agnieszka Bacal // Shutterstock
Silene virginica
Bright red star-shaped flowers.
Common name: Scarlet Catchfly
Native region: Eastern Woodlands
Canva
Aquilegia formosa
Different color combinations of Western Columbine flowers, including purple, yellow and red.
Common name: Western Columbine
Native region: Pacific Northwest
Toshio Umekawa // Shutterstock
Chimaphila umbellata
Small pink flowers with green centers.
Common name: Pipsissewa
Native region: Pacific Northwest
Canva
Clarkia amoena
Bright pink flowers.
Common name: Farewell To Spring
Native region: Pacific Northwest
Canva
Eriophyllum lanatum
Bright orange flowers with a blurred out mountain background.
Common name: Oregon Sunshine
Native region: Pacific Northwest
Canva
Erythronium montanum
Large white star-shaped flowers with yellow centers.
Common name: White Avalanche-lily
Native region: Pacific Northwest
Canva
Eschscholzia californica
Shades of orange funnel-shaped blooms.
Common name: California Poppy
Native region: Pacific Northwest
Canva
Eurybia integrifolia
Light purple flowers with yellow centers.
Common name: Thickstem Aster
Native region: Pacific Northwest
Canva
Lilium columbianum
Bright orange Lily with dark orange spots.
Common name: Wild Tiger Lily
Native region: Pacific Northwest
Canva
Penstemon newberryi
Bright pink bell-shaped flowers bloom on a rocky mountainside.
Common name: Mountain Pride
Native region: Pacific Northwest
Canva
Chamerion angustifolium
A field full of blooming purple fireweed in front of snow-capped mountains.
Common name: Fireweed
Native region: Rocky Mountains, Pacific Northwest
Canva
Aquilegia coerulea
Pale purple and white flowers with yellow centers in the foothills of the mountains.
Common name: Rocky Mountain Columbine
Native region: Rocky Mountains
Canva
Arnica cordifolia
Yellow Arnica flowers near a small stream in a rocky valley.
Common name: Heartleaf Arnica
Native region: Rocky Mountains
Canva
Calochortus nuttallii
A pink Sego Lily cup growing on a rocky mountainside.
Common name: Sego Lily
Native region: Rocky Mountains
Canva
Caltha leptosepala
Large white flowers with yellow centers in the marsh.
Common name: White Marsh-marigold
Native region: Rocky Mountains
Canva
Campanula rotundifolia
Blue bell-shaped flowers.
Common name: Bluebell
Native region: Rocky Mountains
Kristi Blokhin // Shutterstock
Cardamine cordifolia
Closeup view of dainty white flowers in front of a lake on a mountain summit with snow on top.
Common name: Heartleaf Bittercress
Native region: Rocky Mountains
Canva
Castilleja rhexiifolia
Fire-red flowers growing down a mountainside with the sun setting in the background.
Common name: Splitleaf Indian Paintbrush
Native region: Rocky Mountains
Canva
Dasiphora fruticosa ssp. floribunda
Small yellow flowers.
Common name: Shrubby Cinquefoil
Native region: Rocky Mountains
Canva
Delphinium barbeyi
Dark purple flowers growing on a green mountainside.
Common name: Subalpine Larkspur
Native region: Rocky Mountains
Canva
Baileya multiradiata
Tiny bright yellow flowers in a dry landscape.
Common name: Desert Marigold
Native region: Southwestern Desert
Sundry Photography // Shutterstock
Enceliopsis nudicaulis
Bright yellow leggy flowers growing in a valley.
Common name: Sunray
Native region: Southwestern Desert
Canva
Fallugia paradoxa
Pale pink wispy flowers against a dark blue sky.
Common name: Apache Plume
Native region: Southwestern Desert
Charles T. Peden // Shutterstock
Hibiscus coulteri
A yellow funnel shaped flower in front of a desert background.
Common name: Desert Rosemallow
Native region: Southwestern Desert
Canva
Kallstroemia grandiflora
Orange Poppies in a green meadow in front of a mountain.
Common name: Desert Poppy
Native region: Southwestern Desert
Canva
Mentzelia pumila
Bright yellow flower with bees in the center.
Common name: Dwarf Mentzelia
Native region: Southwestern Desert
Canva
Phlox tenuifolia
Field of small white flowers in the middle and pink and purple flowers on the outsides
Common name: Santa Catalina Mountain Phlox
Native region: Southwestern Desert
Canva
Psilostrophe cooperi
Yellow flower bush in a desert landscape.
Common name: Whitestem Paperflower
Native region: Southwestern Desert
Canva
Scabrethia scabra ssp. scabra
Yellow flower bush in a desert landscape.
Common name: Badlands Mule-ears
Native region: Southwestern Desert
Canva
Anaphalis margaritacea
White flowers with yellow centers.
Common name: Western Pearly Everlasting
Native region: Tallgrass Prairie
Canva
Asclepias tuberosa
Two orange butterflies on an orange milkweed flower.
Common name: Butterfly Milkweed
Native region: Tallgrass Prairie
Canva
Coreopsis palmata
Bright orange flowers.
Common name: Finger Coreopsis
Native region: Tallgrass Prairie
Canva
Eryngium yuccifolium
Circular prickly looking flowers with stiff stems.
Common name: Beargrass
Native region: Tallgrass Prairie
Canva
Euphorbia marginata
White and green leaves blooming.
Common name: Snow On The Mountain
Native region: Tallgrass Prairie
Canva
Eustoma exaltatum ssp. russellianum
Bright blue flower with orange center.
Common name: Texas Bluebell
Native region: Tallgrass Prairie
Canva
Glandularia canadensis
Bright violet flowers with tiny petals.
Common name: Sweet William
Native region: Tallgrass Prairie
Canva
Helianthus maximiliani
Yellow Maximilian Sunflower with dark orange center.
Common name: Maximilian Sunflower
Native region: Tallgrass Prairie
Canva
Iris versicolor
Large blue irises with yellow centers in a garden.
Common name: Large Blue Iris
Native region: Tallgrass Prairie
This story originally appeared on Texas Real Estate Source and was produced and
distributed in partnership with Stacker Studio.
