The Texas mountain laurel, also called the “mescal bean” tree, is an evergreen shrub-like tree that is native to our area, thriving in the limestone soils of South Central Texas.

The vibrant tree, sometimes likened to a wisteria, forms purple clusters of flowers that some say smell like grape soda, ...

Large shrubs and small trees complement the shade trees and small plants in a landscape and increase the variety and number of wildlife species that the landscape supports. Many of those available ...

Dear Neil: My Texas mountain laurel has been dying back trunk by trunk. I’m wondering if it’s due to the deep freeze of a few years ago or if it’s from the drought. It seems to be spreading. Should I ...

Dear Neil: How hard is it to transplant Texas mountain laurel shrubs? A friend in the Hill Country has offered me some large ones growing on his property. Answer: It's not easy. The first issue comes ...