Piney Woods - Flora

Flora

The region has heavy to moderate rainfall, with some places receiving over 60 inches (1,500 mm) of rain per year. Longleaf, Shortleaf and Loblolly Pines, along with Bluejack and Post Oaks, dominate sandhills. A well-developed understory grows beneath the sparse canopy, and includes Yaupon Holly and Flowering Dogwood. Pine savannas consist of scattered Longleaf and Loblolly Pines alongside Black Tupelos, Sweetgums, and Sweetbay Magnolias. Other common trees in this ecoregion include Eastern Redbud, Southern Sugar Maple, and American Elm. American Wisteria, a vine, may cover groves of trees

Two varieties of wetlands are common in the Piney Woods: bayous are generally found near rivers and sloughs which are generally found near creeks. In bayous Bald cypress, Spanish moss, and water lilies are common plants. Sloughs are shallow pools of standing water that most trees are capable of growing in, and other species such as the Purple bladderwort, a small carnivorous plant, have found a niche in sloughs.

Hardy species of Prickly pear cactus and Yucca can be found both in the forests and wetlands.

The indigenous Texas trailing phlox (Phlox nivalis texensis), an endangered species, grows in the sandy soils of Longleaf Pine forests.