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Plant profile · Austin & Hill Country

Bush Croton

Croton fruticulosus
native · Hill Country

Bush Croton is a shrub native to the Texas Hill Country that grows 1–3 ft tall and 3 ft wide. It wants full sun or part shade and low water, and handles caliche soil. Blooms green in Apr–May. Deer rarely browse it. Good for bees, birds, butterflies and nectar insects.

Will it grow in your yard?

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The facts

4 sources
Type
Shrub
Sun
Full sun to part shade (3–6 hrs of direct sun)
Water
Low
Height
1–3 ft
Spread
3 ft
Bloom
Apr–May · green
Foliage
Deciduous or dies back in winter
Soil
Takes caliche · recorded on calcareous, caliche, dry, limestone, rocky, well drained
Deer
High — deer rarely browse it
Wildlife
Supports bees, birds, butterflies and nectar insects

Where it grows

Recorded in these EPA Level IV ecoregions in the Austin and Hill Country launch area:

Balcones CanyonlandsLlano UpliftEdwards Plateau Woodland

1,656 occurrence records in Central Texas (GBIF).

Can you buy it?

Also grows here — hard to find. Native and recorded growing in Central Texas, but not on the grower stock lists we read. Sourcing varies: some are stocked widely, others you will have to hunt for.