Desert Broom

Baccharis sarothroides

Hills guide picknative · Central Texas

Desert Broom is a shrub native to Central Texas that grows 3–6 ft tall and 3–4 ft wide. It wants full sun and low water. Blooms yellow in late winter. Deer rarely browse it.

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From our guide

Village of the Hills

Nearly leafless green-stemmed shrub with an upright broomlike form.

Why it works here

Green structure with essentially zero water. Useful where nothing else will hold.

Watch out

Female plants produce copious windborne seed and it can become weedy. Plant males where available.

The facts

6 sources

Type: Shrub
Sun: Full sun (6+ hrs)
Water: Low
Height: 3–6 ft
Spread: 3–4 ft
Bloom: Late Winter · yellow
Foliage: Semi-evergreen
Deer: High — deer rarely browse it. Resinous stems; deer avoid it.

Size, sun, water and foliage from the Village of the Hills guide; the rest resolved across sources.

Where it grows

2 occurrence records in Central Texas (GBIF).

Can you buy it?

In the Village of the Hills guide, but not on the grower stock lists we read yet. Ask a native-plant nursery.

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.