Carolina Desert-thorn

Lycium carolinianum

native · Central Texas

Carolina Desert-thorn is a shrub native to Central Texas that grows 4–6 ft tall and 3 ft wide. It wants full sun or part shade and high water, and handles clay soil. Blooms purple in fall. Evergreen — it holds its leaves through winter. Good for birds.

Wet ground only. Usually found in wetlands and creek bottoms. It wants reliably moist ground and struggles in a dry upland bed.

Will it grow in your yard?

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The facts

5 sources

Type: Shrub
Sun: Full sun to part shade (4–8 hrs of direct sun)
Water: High
Height: 4–6 ft
Spread: 3 ft
Bloom: Fall · purple
Foliage: Evergreen
Soil: Takes clay · recorded on clay, loam, moist, saline, sand, well drained
Wildlife: Supports birds

Where it grows

Recorded in this EPA Level IV ecoregion in the Austin and Hill Country launch area:

Floodplains and Low Terraces

9 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.

also grows from seed It starts readily from seed, so a packet from a native-seed supplier, or seed collected with permission, is often the easiest way to get a plant no nursery pots.