Tropical Trees for West Houston (9a)

[Vindicus]

Hi all, we just moved to our new house in Fulshear, just west of Houston, and looking for some more inspiration on plantings. Been taking a business in the front, party in the back approach, with native trees and flowering plants in the front yard and a more tropical vibe in the back yard. Mostly done in the front, we've got our Live Oak, Sassafras, Redbud, TX Mountain Laurel, TX Madrone, Red Buckeye, Desert Willow, and Anacacho Orchid Trees figured out. Waiting for this heat to calm down before planting a couple more things and starting on the shrubs, but that's not what I need help with here. 

 

I'm looking for suggestions for the backyard. So far we have a Jacaranda, a Hong Kong Orchid, and a Red African Orchid. I really seem to have unintentionally started a Bauhinia collection but that's beside the point. I'm looking for a couple more species but having trouble settling on some that I like and which can be expected to survive most winters. I'm fine pushing zones and replacing fast-growing species in the event of a hard freeze, just as long as it's not a yearly occurrence lol. Some of these trees will also be on an unfortunately sizeable utility easement. No power or water lines so no concerns there, but I obviously don't want any particularly rare or slow-growing trees there in the event that they do eventually dig around back there. Hence my willingness to zone push, might as well if they might get dug up anyways.

Very partial to broad or unusually shaped leaves, and anything with flowers butterflies and hummingbirds will appreciate is certainly a bonus. We're doing a whole pollinator garden around the side yard.

A couple species I've been kicking around in my head are Ficus microcarpa, Umbrella Trees (actinophyllum, not arboricola), Tabebuia, Tipu, Cassia, Peltophorum, Poinciana, etc.

Certainly open to suggestions and experiences, as well as suggestions for shrubs and other unusual or rare flowering plants that are likely to do well.

Thanks in advance,  happy to be here!

 

[Silas_Sancona]

1 hour ago, Vindicus said:

Hi all, we just moved to our new house in Fulshear, just west of Houston, and looking for some more inspiration on plantings. Been taking a business in the front, party in the back approach, with native trees and flowering plants in the front yard and a more tropical vibe in the back yard. Mostly done in the front, we've got our Live Oak, Sassafras, Redbud, TX Mountain Laurel, TX Madrone, Red Buckeye, Desert Willow, and Anacacho Orchid Trees figured out. Waiting for this heat to calm down before planting a couple more things and starting on the shrubs, but that's not what I need help with here. 

 

I'm looking for suggestions for the backyard. So far we have a Jacaranda, a Hong Kong Orchid, and a Red African Orchid. I really seem to have unintentionally started a Bauhinia collection but that's beside the point. I'm looking for a couple more species but having trouble settling on some that I like and which can be expected to survive most winters. I'm fine pushing zones and replacing fast-growing species in the event of a hard freeze, just as long as it's not a yearly occurrence lol. Some of these trees will also be on an unfortunately sizeable utility easement. No power or water lines so no concerns there, but I obviously don't want any particularly rare or slow-growing trees there in the event that they do eventually dig around back there. Hence my willingness to zone push, might as well if they might get dug up anyways.

Very partial to broad or unusually shaped leaves, and anything with flowers butterflies and hummingbirds will appreciate is certainly a bonus. We're doing a whole pollinator garden around the side yard.

A couple species I've been kicking around in my head are Ficus microcarpa, Umbrella Trees (actinophyllum, not arboricola), Tabebuia, Tipu, Cassia, Peltophorum, Poinciana, etc.

Certainly open to suggestions and experiences, as well as suggestions for shrubs and other unusual or rare flowering plants that are likely to do well.

Thanks in advance,  happy to be here!

 

Welcome to the forum..  @Xenon,  who knows the Houston area pretty well,  would likely be able to guide you best, though i'd say when selecting, keep those rare ..but crazy ..extremely cold winters that occur there  in mind when narrowing your list,  just to avoid serious heartbreak / discouragement when you plant ..say a Royal Poinciana, and it gets wiped out after 5, or 10 years of growing. 

On your list, hardier, deciduous Tabebuia sps ( ** Now listed as  Handroanthus )  Flowery Senna / Cassia ( Senna corymbosa )  Tipu??,  ...possibly Peltophorum ( P. dubium..  pterocarpum would be too cold sensitive )  would be those i'd look at first, before anything more tender.

W/ Ficus, just make sure they have plenty of space for roots..  because those roots can invade water /sewer pipes to get at any water they want in time.  Can also check out what has been growing long term at the John Fairey garden too.

 

[Xenon]

2 hours ago, Vindicus said:

Hi all, we just moved to our new house in Fulshear, just west of Houston, and looking for some more inspiration on plantings. Been taking a business in the front, party in the back approach, with native trees and flowering plants in the front yard and a more tropical vibe in the back yard. Mostly done in the front, we've got our Live Oak, Sassafras, Redbud, TX Mountain Laurel, TX Madrone, Red Buckeye, Desert Willow, and Anacacho Orchid Trees figured out. Waiting for this heat to calm down before planting a couple more things and starting on the shrubs, but that's not what I need help with here. 

 

I'm looking for suggestions for the backyard. So far we have a Jacaranda, a Hong Kong Orchid, and a Red African Orchid. I really seem to have unintentionally started a Bauhinia collection but that's beside the point. I'm looking for a couple more species but having trouble settling on some that I like and which can be expected to survive most winters. I'm fine pushing zones and replacing fast-growing species in the event of a hard freeze, just as long as it's not a yearly occurrence lol. Some of these trees will also be on an unfortunately sizeable utility easement. No power or water lines so no concerns there, but I obviously don't want any particularly rare or slow-growing trees there in the event that they do eventually dig around back there. Hence my willingness to zone push, might as well if they might get dug up anyways.

Very partial to broad or unusually shaped leaves, and anything with flowers butterflies and hummingbirds will appreciate is certainly a bonus. We're doing a whole pollinator garden around the side yard.

A couple species I've been kicking around in my head are Ficus microcarpa, Umbrella Trees (actinophyllum, not arboricola), Tabebuia, Tipu, Cassia, Peltophorum, Poinciana, etc.

Certainly open to suggestions and experiences, as well as suggestions for shrubs and other unusual or rare flowering plants that are likely to do well.

Thanks in advance,  happy to be here!

 

Most of the stuff you listed is not going to work. Fulshear gets COLD, much much colder than central Houston and even colder than where I am in east Katy. Cassia and poinciana (assume you mean Delonix) absolutely not. 

Peltophorum dubium, Jacaranda, and Tipuana tipu are going to freeze to the ground probably every 2 to 5 years and may never flower unless you get lucky with a long string of mild winters. These trees reached large flowering size in central Houston before the 2021 freeze but central Houston is often 5-10 degrees warmer than you on a cold night. Bauhinia purpurea is more vigorous than the Hong Kong hybrid. 

Most Ficus and Schefflera will return from the roots but will become smaller and eventually fizzle out if frozen to the ground too often (likely the case). The exception are some of the ultra vigorous Ficus like Ficus religiosa and Ficus racemosa. 

A good zone push would be Ceiba speciosa. A freeze like 2021 will kill it but I've seen decent specimens survive for over a decade in Katy Area and larger trees in the warmer parts of Houston. Erythrina crista-galli and Cordia boissieri are two other trees that deserve more use here, mostly hardy with some dieback in the low 20s to upper teens. Radermachera sinica or china doll is another surprisingly hardy "houseplant". These will come back from the ground otherwise in a apocalyptic freeze. Ehretia anacua and Ebenopsis ebano are two pollinator magnets from S.  Texas, anacua is hardy while Ebenopsis is ok down to around 20F but may die to the ground at 15F. Most citrus would fall in this category as well, except limes and lemons (Meyer is ok). 

Fulshear really is fuctionally more like zone 8b...zone 9 starts around SH 99 to your east in Katy. It's too cold for queen palms even before the 2021 freeze. 

Edited August 30, 2023 by Xenon

[Vindicus]

43 minutes ago, Silas_Sancona said:

Welcome to the forum..  @Xenon,  who knows the Houston area pretty well,  would likely be able to guide you best, though i'd say when selecting, keep those rare ..but crazy ..extremely cold winters that occur there  in mind when narrowing your list,  just to avoid serious heartbreak / discouragement when you plant ..say a Royal Poinciana, and it gets wiped out after 5, or 10 years of growing. 

On your list, hardier, deciduous Tabebuia sps ( ** Now listed as  Handroanthus )  Flowery Senna / Cassia ( Senna corymbosa )  Tipu??,  ...possibly Peltophorum ( P. dubium..  pterocarpum would be too cold sensitive )  would be those i'd look at first, before anything more tender.

W/ Ficus, just make sure they have plenty of space for roots..  because those roots can invade water /sewer pipes to get at any water they want in time.  Can also check out what has been growing long term at the John Fairey garden too.

 

Thanks! Honestly if I got a Poinciana to survive that long I'd be thoroughly impressed and buy myself another lol. I'm not new to Houston, grew up in the Clear Lake area and was living in Sugar Land for the 2021 freeze. The Jacaranda at that house (about 15' at the time) actually pulled through that freeze without any help, surprisingly. 

This is the first home where I'm putting some serious effort into the landscaping though, and I know fulshear does get colder more often than the areas I've been at before. I don't mind the tradeoff for faster-growing species that may be more tender, most likely I'll be planting some of the more tender, fast-growing species now and start growing potted specimens of the more hardy species with the aim to replace any frozen casualties with them down the road once they're a more considerable size.

Definitely need to check out John Fairey, haven't made it up there in a while.

[Vindicus]

27 minutes ago, Xenon said:

Most of the stuff you listed is not going to work. Fulshear gets COLD, much much colder than central Houston and even colder than where I am in east Katy. Cassia and poinciana (assume you mean Delonix) absolutely not. 

Peltophorum dubium, Jacaranda, and Tipuana tipu are going to freeze to the ground probably every 2 to 5 years and may never flower unless you get lucky with a long string of mild winters. These trees reached large flowering size in central Houston before the 2021 freeze but central Houston is often 5-10 degrees warmer than you on a cold night. Bauhinia purpurea is more vigorous than the Hong Kong hybrid. 

Most Ficus and Schefflera will return from the roots but will become smaller and eventually fizzle out if frozen to the ground too often (likely the case). The exception are some of the ultra vigorous Ficus like Ficus religiosa and Ficus racemosa. 

A good zone push would be Ceiba speciosa. A freeze like 2021 will kill it but I've seen decent specimens survive for over a decade in Katy Area and larger trees in the warmer parts of Houston. Erythrina crista-galli and Cordia boissieri are two other trees that deserve more use here, mostly hardy with some dieback in the low 20s to upper teens. Radermachera sinica or china doll is another surprisingly hardy "houseplant". These will come back from the ground otherwise in a apocalyptic freeze. Ehretia anacua and Ebenopsis ebano are two pollinator magnets from S.  Texas, anacua is hardy while Ebenopsis is ok down to around 20F but may die to the ground at 15F. Most citrus would fall in this category as well, except limes and lemons (Meyer is ok). 

Fulshear really is fuctionally more like zone 8b...zone 9 starts around SH 99 to your east in Katy. It's too cold for queen palms even before the 2021 freeze. 

Thanks! This was my suspicion as well, wanted to get some input before I really went nuts. Knew most of those would be too tender out here, just wanted to confirm and offer examples of the look I'm trying to achieve.

Appreciate the suggestions, I know the Ceiba is a good choice but I just never really liked them that much, could never put my finger on why. Might be the spines, might be the shape. Will definitely look into the other species you suggested though!

Edited August 30, 2023 by Vindicus

[Xenon]

1 hour ago, Vindicus said:

Thanks! This was my suspicion as well, wanted to get some input before I really went nuts. Knew most of those would be too tender out here, just wanted to confirm and offer examples of the look I'm trying to achieve.

Appreciate the suggestions, I know the Ceiba is a good choice but I just never really liked them that much, could never put my finger on why. Might be the spines, might be the shape. Will definitely look into the other species you suggested though!

Forgot to mention Moringa oleifera, not the prettiest tree but the flowers attract a lot of pollinators. It's bulletproof, came back from the ground even after 2021 and 2022 winters. 

Must emphasize that Ficus racemosa is a monster of a Ficus. I had to remove it because it was just so vigorous and got bigger every year despite dying back in the winter. Crazy fast. 

For big leaves, Ficus auriculata would be your best bet. Similar things like Ficus umbellata and Ficus lyrata come back but get smaller and smaller. 

[Vindicus]

1 hour ago, Xenon said:

Forgot to mention Moringa oleifera, not the prettiest tree but the flowers attract a lot of pollinators. It's bulletproof, came back from the ground even after 2021 and 2022 winters. 

Must emphasize that Ficus racemosa is a monster of a Ficus. I had to remove it because it was just so vigorous and got bigger every year despite dying back in the winter. Crazy fast. 

For big leaves, Ficus auriculata would be your best bet. Similar things like Ficus umbellata and Ficus lyrata come back but get smaller and smaller. 

Neat, I'll check that one out too. 

Racemosa is sounding better and better lol. The view from the backyard is mostly a nice meadow and trees beyond that on one side, but there's a house and street across the way on the other. Hoping to obscure those from view a bit with some fast-growing stuff. What sort of growth rate were you seeing on the Racemosa? Any other large Ficus sp you've seen power through the winters like that?

[Xenon]

26 minutes ago, Vindicus said:

Neat, I'll check that one out too. 

Racemosa is sounding better and better lol. The view from the backyard is mostly a nice meadow and trees beyond that on one side, but there's a house and street across the way on the other. Hoping to obscure those from view a bit with some fast-growing stuff. What sort of growth rate were you seeing on the Racemosa? Any other large Ficus sp you've seen power through the winters like that?

Like 15 feet in a season after freezing to ground level with an 8 foot spread....and that's with no fertilizer 😱

 

Not too many Ficus around here at all...F. macrophylla might be worth a shot. Moody Gardens had a big one that did well into the mid 20s in 2010/2011 so it might not freeze to the ground every single winter and is probably more vigorous than something like F. elastica. 

[Vindicus]

24 minutes ago, Xenon said:

Like 15 feet in a season after freezing to ground level with an 8 foot spread....and that's with no fertilizer 😱

 

Not too many Ficus around here at all...F. macrophylla might be worth a shot. Moody Gardens had a big one that did well into the mid 20s in 2010/2011 so it might not freeze to the ground every single winter and is probably more vigorous than something like F. elastica. 

Damn, that's impressive. Did it die back to ground every year, or only some years?

[Xenon]

1 hour ago, Vindicus said:

Damn, that's impressive. Did it die back to ground every year, or only some years?

Very frost sensitive, looks worse than bananas after first frost. Mid 20s will knock it back to the ground. Retained lower half of trunk during mild years (short radiative freezes above 28F). But once it warms up in the spring, it just rockets 

[Silas_Sancona]

@Vindicus

While not exactly " tropical ' in the same sense as say Royal Poinciana, or Ficus, one interesting tree you might check out at John Fairey is Clethera pringlei, an uncommon small understory tree from the mid- elevation areas of the Sierra Madre Oriental just south of S. TX...  Has done surprisingly well there.

Usually evergreen ..or is what i've read repeatedly, unless it gets extremely cold.   Leaves have a Loquat  look / feel,  and the flowers -while individually small- are highly fragrant ..Like Nutmeg or Cinnamon.

Doesn't get too big, so it can fit into smaller areas like say near a patio / deck..

Magnolia tamaulipana is another rare, and interesting Eastern Mexico Native  the garden has been growing for awhile now also.

As far as natives go, don't forget options like Texas Kidneywood, and Arroyo Sweetwood,  probably my favorite of the S. TX native trees ..Besides Texas Ebony which is one of the few trees that doesn't seem bothered by 51 days of 110F+ heat lol.. .

[Fusca]

1 hour ago, Silas_Sancona said:

Besides Texas Ebony which is one of the few trees that doesn't seem bothered by 51 days of 110F+ heat lol.. .

Agreed!  I was going to mention this one myself.  It's planted a lot here and I think they are quite attractive and produce nice shade year round.  I've never seen any kind of damage to them, although they do produce a mess of seed pods!  Seeds are easy to germinate after nicking but they don't seem to volunteer.

[Silas_Sancona]

1 minute ago, Fusca said:

Agreed!  I was going to mention this one myself.  It's planted a lot here and I think they are quite attractive and produce nice shade year round.  I've never seen any kind of damage to them, although they do produce a mess of seed pods!  Seeds are easy to germinate after nicking but they don't seem to volunteer.

Great trees when " penned in " ( ..IE:  Grown in more confined spaces, trimmed a little < i wouldn't myself >  ) One of the nicest near- ..but not locally... native tree options when given a little room or grown next to a runoff retention basin / stream to really take off / get big...   While trees like the Ficus and Tipu got burned from the  un-ending extreme heat here this summer, the -much smaller- Tex. Eb out front was as green as can be..

I can imagine a grove of these, 3 or 4 deep,  enclosing a 12 - 40ft long retention basin being a fantastic spot for shade loving tropical-esque stuff  once the trees are tall enough to form a canopy.

Wood makes some nice stuff when worked too.

Pods are more of a minor  than more significant  litter issue, though, since they don't crumble or blow around much, they're a bit easier to round up compared to pods off Mesquites or P.V.s  Woody pods can be used as a coffee substitute as well and seeds themselves may be edible.

One of many articles on that subject by the great Green Deane:

https://www.eattheweeds.com/texas-ebony/

[Xenon]

1 hour ago, Fusca said:

Agreed!  I was going to mention this one myself.  It's planted a lot here and I think they are quite attractive and produce nice shade year round.  I've never seen any kind of damage to them, although they do produce a mess of seed pods!  Seeds are easy to germinate after nicking but they don't seem to volunteer.

This area (or in a "truly long term" sense Houston in general) is too cold for Ebenopsis to be used widely as a landscape tree, especially considering it's not particularly fast growing. There's a reason it mostly disappears north of about Corpus. As a collector's item or curiousity sure, but the inevitable long duration freeze at mid teens or below will take it out. I saw a few mature trees here and there in Houston (flowering and fruiting for years)...all dead wood above ground after the 2021 freeze. But yes, well worth enjoying for however long until the next big one and well adapted for this area otherwise. Cordia boissieri is the "perfect" S. Texas import...decent cold hardiness, returns from dieback quickly, ornamenetal flowers, etc. 

Galveston planted a ton of Ebenopsis after Hurricane Ike in '08 and I'm not sure how those fared, might be ok at the immediate coast. Another S. Texas native, Leucaena pulverulenta, is fully naturalized in Galveston and probably froze to the ground. Leucaena is another super fast growing tree (invasive in the tropics, fine here) and looks pretty impressive this far north. Saw a huge one next to the parking lot at Common Bond in Montrose years back. On the topic of legumes, Seneglia pennata is another rocketship that looks very tropical (bright green pinnate leaves). It's a common vegetable in Laos/Thailand that I've tried to become accusotmed to but can't (the crushed leaves smell like gasoline and sulfur lol). 

 

[MikeB]

Way back in December of 1989 California had a terrible freeze for many days.  The ultimate low in my garden in the Bay Area was 16 degrees.  There were several "tropical" flowering trees that performed very well.  The most surprising to me was Cassia leptophylla.  It's wood is very hard and dense and was able to handle the cold.  Erythrina crista-galli should do well for you along with some of the other hardier coral trees.  Hymenosporum flavum is another flowering tree that turned out to be zone 9 hardy and I feel worth a try in 8b based on my experience.  The key to success with marginal trees is to protect them until they grow a decent sized caliper for the trunk and main branches.  Let us know how it  works out for you.

[thyerr01]

I'll add some of my favourites, although most have been mentioned already. I guess its also subjective what is a tree vs large shrub.

Cordia boissieri - I agree with @Xenon, a fantastic and underused tree in Houston. None of the ones I see regularly were seriously affected by either of the two severe recent freezes - just a little dieback of the branch tips.

Senna bicapsularis - Small tree, easily shaped. Mine all came back from the roots after the freeze last winter. Great host plant for various Sulphur butterflies.

Eysenhardtia texana - Texas Kidneywood, no amount of Houston cold will affect this. One of the best pollinator plants in my garden.

Magnolia virginiana - East TX native. M. tamaulipana is also a nice tree. Definitely make the trip to John Fairey Garden to see them in person.

Callistemon sp.  - Most of the commonly available ones (except the weeping C. vimminalis) are extremely cold hardy and will quickly become tree sized with regular water. There are some really large ones in the Memorial area.

Zanthoxylum clava-herculis - Another great native tree, although if you dislike Ceiba speciosa it might not be for you. Butterfly host.

Osmanthus fragrans - Fragrant, some nice orange/red cultivars are around. Fairly slow growing.

Feijoa sellowiana - Another great small tree for Houston. Pretty common in commercial landscaping where it is maintained as a shrub.

Certain Eucalyptus and friends - I'm still not sure on what the consensus is for species adapted for the gulf coast, but there are definitely some that will work and most grow quickly.

 

 

 

 

[Fusca]

On 8/31/2023 at 5:09 PM, Xenon said:

This area (or in a "truly long term" sense Houston in general) is too cold for Ebenopsis to be used widely as a landscape tree, especially considering it's not particularly fast growing.

Perhaps, however I am aware of at least one good-sized tree in Chappell Hill that got to a decent size in zone 8b so might be worth giving it a shot.  Photos below.  It didn't survive Palmageddon but still must have survived several years to get this size.  Maybe it got some good protection from the live oaks - don't have any details regarding winter damage or planting site/timing.  This photo of it flowering isn't its best look in my opinion but I love the color of the new growth.

[Xenon]

3 hours ago, Fusca said:

Perhaps, however I am aware of at least one good-sized tree in Chappell Hill that got to a decent size in zone 8b so might be worth giving it a shot.  Photos below.  It didn't survive Palmageddon but still must have survived several years to get this size.  Maybe it got some good protection from the live oaks - don't have any details regarding winter damage or planting site/timing.  This photo of it flowering isn't its best look in my opinion but I love the color of the new growth.

 

 

Yep does fine most of the time, it's those once in 30-50 years events that are killer. Some of the trees in Houston were much bigger than that. Similar to the total wipeout of tens of thousands of mature citrus (fruiting since the 90s) here. 

[D Palm]

Yellow (golden) rain tree. American Hornbeam (I really like the bark).  Good luck!