Huisache
Vachellia farnesianaHuisache is a small tree native to the Texas Hill Country that grows 15–20 ft tall and 20 ft wide. It wants full sun and very low water, and handles caliche and clay soil. Blooms orange and yellow in Jan–Apr. Deer rarely browse it. Good for birds, butterflies, moths, nectar insects and small mammals.
Will it grow in your yard?
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From our guide
Village of the HillsFine-textured spreading tree covered in intensely fragrant golden puffball flowers in late winter.
Why it works here
The earliest strong fragrance of the year and a magnet for early pollinators. Utterly drought-proof.
Watch out
Thorny. Considered invasive in rangeland and it will seed into a pasture. Freeze damage at the northern edge of its range.
The facts
7 sources- Type
- Small tree
- Sun
- Full sun (6+ hrs)
- Water
- Very low
- Height
- 15–20 ft
- Spread
- 20 ft
- Bloom
- Jan–Apr · orange, yellow
- Foliage
- Semi-evergreen
- Soil
- Takes caliche and clay · recorded on caliche, clay, dry, limestone, sand
- Deer
- High — deer rarely browse it. Thorny
- Wildlife
- Supports birds, butterflies, deer, moths, nectar insects and small mammals
Where it grows
Recorded in these EPA Level IV ecoregions in the Austin and Hill Country launch area:
1,525 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.