Frog Fruit: The BEST Native Ground Cover for Attracting Pollinators! (Phyla nodiflora)

Frog Fruit is one cool ground cover! Native to over 20 states in the U.S., this pretty ground cover is dotted with tiny white flowers that small pollinators love. 🦋🐝❤️
Get a FREE printable Frog Fruit plant care card here: nativebackyard...
In addition to being an awesome nectar plant, it is a host plant to three different butterflies. Frogfruit is the perfect native plant to attract more pollinators to your yard!
This video shows you how easy it is to grow Frog Fruit in your garden, as a ground cover or as a turf grass replacement in your yard. Frog Fruit is a vigorous grower, likes full to part sun, and is easy to propagate in order to give to friends. It also looks great in container pots or added to flower arrangements.
Its scientific name is Phyla nodiflora. Tip: write this name down when you are heading to the nursery to make sure you get the right plant!

[@clairegreenlea7658]

Lovely video about a lovely plant!

[@Jodelony]

I’m in the Conroe, TX area. My husband and I created a new flower bed in the backyard this weekend. Trying to use mainly native species and chose Frog Fruit as a ground cover option. It’s our first time to have any kind of landscaping (much less to have built it ourselves) so I’m hoping it does well!

[@jennhoff03]

Is it??? I'm in Tomball and toying with putting in frog fruit.

Seems like the perfect groundcover for a butterfly garden. I'm very surprised this plant isn't in southern garden centers.

[@jeffg4686]

never even heard of it before -looks cool

[@markomolson4091]

Great video. I also live in San Antonio, I am going to try this in a portion of my yard.

[@nativebackyards]

Awesome! I hope you do try it and let me know how it grows for you!

[@brookesurlet9753]

I have lanceleaf frogfruit (phyla lanceolata) in my East Texas garden and the small pollinators love it too! I just put in a few phyla nodiflora today. Excited to see how they compare!

[@nativebackyards]

Very cool! It sounds like they are very similar with the Phyla lanceolata having longer leaves. I hope that the Phyla nodiflora works well for you!

[@brookesurlet9753]

@@nativebackyards thank you! Looking forward to seeing more videos from you! 💜

I need some phyla lanceolata but I never see it in the nursery or garden center or in nature. Where did you find it?

[@shawnstangeland3011]

Just found some at an abandoned old cafe and now hopefully they will survive the transplant

[@katiecannon8186]

I planted some here in Florida in a pretty shady area. It doing great, though not as thick as it would be in a sunnier location. Now I’m planning to do a heavy planting in a more sunny location. Also, I have a largish are that has never been sodded (never had a lawn grass). I’m gonna try buying seeds and just spending them out to see what happens.

[@nativebackyards]

Let me know if you find any frogfruit seed sources! I have a lot of people asking for them, but have had trouble finding them online. Frogfruit should definitely thrive in sun!

[@kathleenbieke1543]

What a sweet video! I want to plant Frogfruit in the strip of ground between the sidewalk and street. The ground is super compacted. I wonder if I put a nice layer of compost there if that will be enough for the plants to root..? The other question is that is where my neighbor puts their trash can for the garbage truck. It’s only one and once weekly. Do you think it will survive?

[@nativebackyards]

Hi Kathleen, thanks so much for your comment! That area between the sidewalk and the street is the perfect place to grow Frogfruit. I have seen several people do that here in Texas with success. It is much better than grass! The Frogfruit does not have deep roots, so you should be fine if try to break up the soil a bit and work some compost into it. Also, Frogfruit can handle foot traffic, so you shouldn't have a problem with the garbage can being there once a week. Good luck, and keep me posted on how it goes!

[@Chloe-pc2zt]

Loved the video. How far apart do you plant them? Looking to create a dense patch. Thank you!

[@nativebackyards]

If you are planting 4 inch pot transplants, I would suggest 4 feet or so apart. They should fill in the area over the course of the summer. Frogfruit spreads quickly in an area with plenty of sun and regular water, especially at the beginning to help it get established. Once it puts out more runners you can clip off some that have roots and put them in water to further develop their roots or directly transplant them in another part of your yard. Good luck!

[@242mil]

Im from san antonio tx too, will this die in winter? or is this an evergreen?

[@RErnie-gv1hv]

An online search of nurseries in Arlington, TX for Phyla nodiflora was useless. Any suggestions as to where to find either the plant or seeds?

[@nativebackyards]

Hi there! I have a list of nurseries that carry native plants in the DFW area that I can send you. Please just shoot me an email at [e-mail]

[@RErnie-gv1hv]

@@nativebackyards Email is on the way.

[@joansmith3492]

did you know it is a water plant to? I am growing it in my garden and my pond.

[@aggieliz07]

Your frog fruit looks so full and healthy! I am trying to get some going in my backyard, but it looks a little sad. It is spreading, so maybe I need to give it time!

[@nativebackyards]

Definitely give it some time and it will come back fuller next year. The ones I've see look the best tend to be in full sun.

[@thealternative9580]

Host for phaon crescent and common buckeye butterfly in my region.

[@dpaw60]

Late questions Haeley. Sorry. We've made a determined effort to introduce Frog Fruit into our backyard bird and pollinator sanctuary. So far, we've planted about 40 four inch plants. Some of these are in the same beds with our Turks Cap, Mistflower, Beautyberry and other native shrubs/plants. In those beds, I've used native hardwood mulch(from Natures Way) to maintain moisture(we live just north of Houston) and to keep out weeds. Plus, it gives the yard a tidy look. So, with that as background, here are the questions. Will the Frog Fruit be able to spread properly with the hardwood mulch in place? In other words, can they/will they be able to root through the mulch(maybe 1-2 inches)? If not, what can I do, short of removing all the mulch, to help the Frog Fruit spread? Thanks very much. Again, very sorry for the late comment.

[@alamoareamasternaturalists5056]

Hi David. Your garden sounds beautiful! You could start by pulling mulch away from the edges of your Frogfruit to encourage it to root and spread in those areas. I don't think you need to remove it from the entire bed. I have Frogfruit growing over leaf mulch and it does fine so I don't think 1-2 inches of mulch will prevent its spread too much. It is a pretty aggressive grower in sunny conditions, especially if it receives a lot of water.

[@dpaw60]

@@alamoareamasternaturalists5056 Thank you very much for the comment. Yes, will likely do just as you suggested.

[@MissPiggyLilly]

I'm in San Antonio / Leon's Valley...will it grow and flower under a tree? Also is it deer resistant?

[@haeleyrose]

It will grow under a tree if there is still some sun that reaches it during the day. It needs part sun, it doesn't do well in full shade. It is relatively deer-resistant, but they will eat it if they are really hungry!

[@gergc36]

I live in San Antonio too and would like to grow frog fruit. Where did you find yours?

[@nativebackyards]

I have had success finding Frog Fruit at Rainbow Gardens (they have locations on Bandera Rd. and Thousand Oaks).

[@gergc36]

Thank you! Going today!

[@taylormacdowell]

I live in East Texas and cannot find a source to buy frog fruit. It seems to be the red-headed step-child of native plant sales. Suggestions?

[@nativebackyards]

Hi Taylor, shoot me an email at [e-mail]. I may be able to send you some of mine! 😉

[@Ceejc]

Will frog fruit kill crab grass?

[@nativebackyards]

Good question. I don't have any firsthand experience using it to kill crab grass, so I'm sure. Frogfruit can grow quite densely and up to a foot tall if it is in an area with sufficient sunlight and gets ample water. In that environment, I think it could kill crab grass.

[@mioasisfrutal2634]

Is it pet friendly? Or doesn't tolerate that kind of traffic?

[@nativebackyards]

It can handle light foot traffic but not heavy foot traffic from pets or humans. 😉

[@sixpackyoung9698]

They are relatively hard to transplant, I had many cuttings soaked in water and non survived in direct planted to ground even visible small roots are seen, I will try again first develop root in pot than transplant to ground.

[@nativebackyards]

You're right, I have found it challenging to transplant as well. I have been able successfully to cut off part of the Frog Fruit with some small roots attached and directly transplant it into the yard (without having to soak the cuttings or transplant into a pot first). I found the trick is to keep it very well watered at first. If they dry out they die quickly. You could also try dipping the roots in some rooting hormone before transplanting. Good luck!

[@sixpackyoung9698]

Can you sell me one pound of these seeds please?

[@nativebackyards]

@@sixpackyoung9698 Sorry, I don't have any seeds to sell! I have looked for them online and was not able to find any either. I have never tried collecting or growing it from seeds. If I ever see any for sale, I will let you know!

[@katiecannon8186]

@@nativebackyards There’s a seed company with the word “prairi” in it that has some. Or at least they sometimes do.

[@avscatolinim.ed.2073]

is this native to California?

[@haeleyrose]

Yes it is! You can see its range in CA here: calscape.org/Phyla-nodiflora-()