Texas Ebony
Ebenopsis ebano
A rugged, dark-foliaged evergreen with fragrant cream-yellow blooms and exceptional drought tolerance.
Hardy to about 15-18°F in low and mid desert; young trees are frost-sensitive while mature trees are hardy.
AMWUA Notes
Very low water use; one of the most drought-tolerant evergreen shade trees.
Care Guide
Deep-soak monthly in summer once established; extremely drought tolerant.
Wear gloves for the thorns; prune in late winter to lift the canopy and develop a trunk. It shapes up slowly.
No fertilizer needed; a nitrogen-fixing legume.
Essentially pest-free.
Fragrant cream-yellow flowers late spring into summer; dark evergreen foliage with persistent woody seed pods.
Soil, Feeding & Propagation
Well-draining native, rocky, or decomposed-granite soil; tolerates caliche and alkaline pH 7.5–8.5
Needs well-drained soil.
None — thrives in lean desert soil without fertilizer.
Grown from scarified seed; slow-growing, so start from larger nursery stock
12–15 ft
Deep, non-aggressive roots are foundation-safe; keep 10+ ft from pools and paths for thorns and woody pods
Placement Tips
- •Dense 15 ft evergreen canopy for shade and privacy; keep 10+ ft from pools and walkways because of the medium thorns and woody pod litter.
- •Slow-growing, so buy a larger nursery size to establish faster.
- •Excellent low-water evergreen screen; full sun with good drainage.
- •Site away from high-traffic paths where the thorns could catch.
Features
Best Uses
Companion Plants
Quick Stats
Design Styles
Include in Your Project
Love Texas Ebony? Our landscape team sources from wholesale nurseries and can incorporate it into your design.
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Use this care guide to maintain your Texas Ebony. Questions about your landscape? Reach out anytime.
Data from 2024 AMWUA “Landscape Plants for the Arizona Desert” guide.