Quick answer: 48 native Texas plants have a recorded bloom range that includes October.
48 species
- Antelope-horns milkweed Asclepias asperula · 2 states
- Apache plume Fallugia paradoxa · 8 states
- Autumn sage Salvia greggii · 2 states
- Big bluestem Andropogon gerardii · 41 states
- Black-eyed Susan Rudbeckia hirta · 44 states
- Blackfoot daisy Melampodium leucanthum · 6 states
- Blue grama Bouteloua gracilis · 19 states
- Blue mistflower Conoclinium coelestinum · 32 states
- Buffalograss Bouteloua dactyloides · 19 states
- Cardinal flower Lobelia cardinalis · 41 states
- Carolina jessamine Gelsemium sempervirens · 10 states
- Chocolate flower Berlandiera lyrata · 6 states
- Common sneezeweed Helenium autumnale · 40 states
- Common sunflower Helianthus annuus · 18 states
- Cutleaf coneflower Rudbeckia laciniata · 43 states
- Desert marigold Baileya multiradiata · 4 states
- Desert willow Chilopsis linearis · 5 states
- Dotted blazing star Liatris punctata · 17 states
- Flowering spurge Euphorbia corollata · 29 states
- Great blue lobelia Lobelia siphilitica · 36 states
- Gulf muhly Muhlenbergia capillaris · 16 states
- Indiangrass Sorghastrum nutans · 37 states
- Little bluestem Schizachyrium scoparium · 42 states
- Longleaf pine Pinus palustris · 10 states
- Maximilian sunflower Helianthus maximiliani · 3 states
- Maypop passionflower Passiflora incarnata · 21 states
- Mealy blue sage Salvia farinacea · 1 states
- Mexican hat Ratibida columnifera · 17 states
- Mexican olive Cordia boissieri · 1 states
- Orange coneflower Rudbeckia fulgida · 23 states
- Partridge pea Chamaecrista fasciculata · 30 states
- Pink-scale blazing star Liatris elegans · 9 states
- Prairie blazing star Liatris pycnostachya · 19 states
- Rocky Mountain zinnia Zinnia grandiflora · 6 states
- Rubber rabbitbrush Ericameria nauseosa · 17 states
- Scarlet gilia Ipomopsis aggregata · 13 states
- Scarlet sage Salvia coccinea · 3 states
- Sideoats grama Bouteloua curtipendula · 38 states
- Spotted beebalm Monarda punctata · 29 states
- Swamp milkweed Asclepias incarnata · 37 states
- Swamp sunflower Helianthus angustifolius · 21 states
- Switchgrass Panicum virgatum · 43 states
- Virginia saltmarsh mallow Kosteletzkya pentacarpos · 11 states
- White heath aster Symphyotrichum ericoides var. ericoides · 26 states
- Witch-hazel Hamamelis virginiana · 33 states
- Woolly paperflower Psilostrophe tagetina · 7 states
- Yellow bells (esperanza) Tecoma stans · 3 states
- Yellow necklacepod Sophora tomentosa · 1 states
October in a Texas native garden
October is a quieter month in Texas: 48 of the state's 249 native plants flower in October, compared with 164 at the May peak. That makes these plants valuable for keeping color, and food for pollinators, going outside the main season.
27 finish in October, including Antelope-horns milkweed, Black-eyed Susan and Blue grama, so this is the last chance to see them in flower.
42 of them grow in full or partial sun and 11 tolerate shade, so there are options for open beds and woodland edges alike. Sizes run from low plants like Antelope-horns milkweed and Black-eyed Susan to trees such as Carolina jessamine and Desert willow. For wildlife, 45 support pollinators, 30 provide food or cover for birds and 15 are caterpillar host plants.
37 of the 48 have a seed or plant listing we verified as the wild species. Be careful buying Apache plume, Autumn sage, Black-eyed Susan: common listings for these are often a bred variety or a different species.
Good places to start
Verified wild-species listings that take sun and are widely native, so they are forgiving first plants.
- Cutleaf coneflower Rudbeckia laciniata · Sun, Part Shade, Shade · blooms Jul-Oct
- Little bluestem Schizachyrium scoparium · Sun, Part Shade · blooms Jun-Dec
- Big bluestem Andropogon gerardii · Sun, Part Shade · blooms Aug-Nov