Texas Mountain Laurels

We may have written on the virtues of Texas Mountain Laurels before, but because it is one of the best plants for this area, we think it is worthy of another mention. I quote from Landscaping with Native Plants of Texas and the Southwest by George O. Miller: “Many landscapers consider this plant ONE OF THE TEN BEST IN THE NATION.” Also, somewhere along the way, I remember reading that planting the seeds of Texas Mountain Laurels (Sophora secundiflora) or Mescal Bean around the 4 th of July is a good time to do so. The seeds of this plant, which starts blooming in late February, are now ripe for picking. Take the hulls off the pea shaped pods and you will discover red beans. If you wish, you may soak them overnight in warm water or you may scrape them lightly with a file. (This is called “scarifying.”) You might even just toss them onto vacant property, either in full sun or partial shade. This is what I have done and I have dozens of trees as proof that even this casual system works. With some water, once the trees come up, they grow more quickly than I had been led to believe.

The flowers on this spring blooming, evergreen plant (or small tree or shrub) are in cascades of purple flowers which have a fragrance that some people liken to grape kool-aid. The leaves are a shiny green, deer-resistant, perhaps I might say deer-proof. The seeds are poisonous but their hard coats will probably deter anyone from sampling them.

Several years ago, one of our columns asked readers to send in the name of their favorite and most successful hill country plant. Texas Mountain Laurel was the overwhelming favorite, so if you don’t have one, now is the time to either seed or transplant this all-time favorite.

Written by Martha Knies