5 Plants I Never Recommend
If you’ve gathered anything about me from my social media, you might have noticed, I have a lot of strong opinions about certain plants.
It’s not because I like to complain or shame people about what they plant; it’s because I know the damage that the wrong plants can do, and I know that there are better plants to choose from.
I can’t stress this enough: when selecting plants, you have OPTIONS. Endless options, actually. But to get you started on what NOT to do, here are 5 plants I never recommend planting, and why. I also offer alternatives because I’m a hater with solutions.
Boxwoods
Boxwood belong to the genus Buxus and are native to parts of Europe and Asia. People love them because they’re a classic hedge plant, and are a staple in the manicured garden look.
My beef with them:
There are better native options. If you want a hedge plant, try something like Dwarf Yaupon Holly or Texas Sage.
They don’t do well in Texas. Maybe they used to do well in Texas, but with the freezes and droughts, there has been a massive decline in the health and viability of the shrub.
Their wildlife benefits are slim. They do flower- although it’s insignificant- so there’s maybe some pollinator benefit I guess. Compared to other options though, they are pretty much non-contributors to local food webs.
Boxwood is prone to a fungus called Phytophthora. There are many forms of Phytopthora, but if your boxwoods are infected with it, the results are disastrous.
It causes crown rot, leaf yellowing and eventual dealth. It happens mostly due to overwatering, and I’ve also heard theories that infections start at the grower’s level so…why not just skip this and plant something better?
Phytopthera’s are often species-specific. It’s in your soil and is specific to boxwoods, so any replacements you might try to nurture into replacing that one part of your hedge that died will soon become infected.
The Traditional English/French garden girlies will hate to hear this one, but it’s the truth.
Nandina
I despise this plant so much I actually denounced it in front of the Houston City Council.
Nandina, aka Heavenly Bamboo is a genus of plants in the Barberry family, native to China. They’ve been a popular choice in Texas landscapes for a long time because they’re hardy as f***.
But the hardiness is actually just invasiveness.
All parts of the plant are toxic to mammals and birds. During the winter months, nandinas produce berries that contain cyanide. Birds foraging during the scarce winter months can be posioned by eating them.
It’s difficult to remove. They have very strong, rhizomatus root structures. Any pieces left behind can re-sprout. You’re going to need chain and a truck for this one.
It is invasive. Seeds are spread by birds (after they posion themselves a little bit) and will invade wild spaces, outcompeting our native plants.
In my opinion: they’re not very attractive. They’re often hedged haphazardly, sun scorched, or planted in nutrient deficient soil giving them an unpleasant look.
A disclaimer though, there are “sterile” varieties of Nandina such as Obsession and Flirt. However, sterile versions of plants can often revert back to being fertile. And bottom line, there are better options so why bother planting something useless anyway?
For a native alternative, tryplanting Inland Sea Oats. It’s got a similar beautiful, flowing texture and provides food for birds and caterpillars.
Asiatic Jasmine
I hate to hate on Asian Jasmine because it’s everywhere, so what can I really do but shout into the abyss about how stupid it is?
It’s in the same family as Star Jasmine, which I have no problem with, but doesn’t produce noticeable flowers, really. It’s a “good” shade-tolerant ground cover commonly planted under trees and in hellstrips.
My beef with it:
It has no wildlife value. It can flower, although I’ve never seen it because people always mow or hedge it. If there is wildlife benefit to this plant, it is slim.
It’s difficult to remove. If you plant Asian Jasmine, you are cursing anyone who lives on your property for the rest of eternity to a lifetime of Asian Jasmine. Smothering, mowing, and pulling are often ineffective.
Boooring. It’s just boring. There, I said it. Why is this plant taking up space when that space could be filled with something that attracts pollinators, is soft to walk on, or is at least kind of pretty?
Try planting a mixture of Frog Fruit and Horse Herb. They are native options that are more preferred by wildlife, and are actually compatible with many oak species.
Which FYI, if you can’t get anything to grow under your oak trees it might be becasue oaks are slightly alleopathic. In other words, they make the soil around them a little bit toxic. However, many native plants are immune to to the toxicity.
Tropical Milkweed
This might confuse people but, I will never grow Asclepias curassavica, aka Tropical or Mexican Milkweed.
Tropical Milkweed
Milkweed is the larval host plant for our Monarch butterfly caterpillars, but it’s more important than ever that everyone is informed about growing it properly. Tropical Milkweed, a non-native variety is one that no longer has a place in my garden.
There are about 30 milkweeds native to Texas, and over 100 native to the US! Their life cycle includes a dormancy period, where the plant dies completely back to the ground after producing seed pods.
The problem with the non-native Tropical milkweed is that it doesn’t expereince this dormancy period due to mild climates in its native habitat.
Because it does not die back in the winter, spores of the parasite OE (Ophryocystis elektroscirrha) accumulate on the leaves. Freshly hatched caterpillars will eat the leaves and ingest the spores and multiply in their body during the chrysalis stage.
The parasite causes problems in monarchs like crumpled, deformed wings, decreased flight endurance and problems mating.
To make matters worse, tropical milkweed is the most common species sold in stores. Native milkweeds are a bit of a longer journey, often taking several years to really get their footing as plants. Because capitalism, growers will choose to grow tropical milkweed over the native one most of the time.
There is hope, though! The increase of native plant growers and clubs willing to trade plants and seeds is a great help to the monarch population.
If you can, avoid growing tropical milkweed OR cut it down to the ground at the end of October and do not allow it to re-sprout until March.
If you want to really help hte monarchs, grow native milkweeds. I recommend getting seeds from Native American Seed Company. I also have a more detailed fact sheet for free on the resources tab of my website.
Tropical Hibiscus
Hibiscus × rosa-sinensis, the evergreen hibiscus family that is native to China, is a no-grow for me for a couple of reasons.
I’m aware that people love this plant so I’ll be holding space for you, don’t worry. This plant isn’t problematic enviromentally, it just doesn’t fit my lifestyle so if you like it, don’t let me stop you.
Tropical hibiscus, it’s just that we want different things…its not you, it’s me.
My issues with the plant:
It’s not cold hardy. I cannot be bothered to bring in certain plants for the cold weather. I’ve tried the tropical hibiscus in the ground too, and while they do come back from the roots after a freeze, it’s a slow comeback.
They don’t do well long-term in containers. Eventually, these plants become root bound in pots. They may be surviving, but they’ll be stressed and stressed plants bring me to my next point…
They are a pest magnet. I can’t tell you how many tropical hibiscus I’ve seen that have this weird ménage à trois of mealy bugs, aphids and white flies going on. I don’t know if the pests are prevalent in the growing operations and that’s how they’re spread, or what. But it’s a no from me, because you know what else all those pests attract? Fire ants.
There are better, cold hardy options, that do well in containers! Look for dinner plate hibiscus. These are a group of hibiscus that naturally go dormant every winter and pop back up in the late spring. Cold hardy as far as Chicago, btw! Bigger flowers, less pest problems, and they do well in containers and don’t need freeze protection? I’m there.
Hardy dinner plate hibiscus
Ok, I said what I said.
My reason for writing this list isn’t to shame anyone who grows these plants. They’re just my opinion (which happen to be based on facts and experience) so if you’re team Asian Jasmine I’m really not personally bothered, although when invasive plants are involved I struggle to empathize with those choices.
I just know that better options exist and I hope you’ll take my list into consideration when you’re looking for new additions to your garden.
If you’re ready to make better choices or correct some wrong ones, book a free discovery call right here on my site to see if I can be of assistance to you. I offer 1 on 1 garden coaching virtually and in person, in the Houston area!
I’m passionate about this field and want to help you achieve your garden goals.
-Rachel @ RR Dreamscapes
