groundcover
Frogfruit
Phyla nodiflora
Preview: plant data is awaiting horticulturist review. A professional horticulturist hasn't reviewed our plant table yet. Lists still follow fixed rules for zone, sun, pets, deer and invasive status.
Frogfruit is a fast-growing semi-evergreen groundcover hardy in zones 8–11. It grows 1–3 in tall and 1–3 ft wide, so plant it 1.5 ft apart. Give it full sun to part sun and little water once established, and it copes with wet soil. It flowers white in April to October. In a FloraVista list it usually plays the edge role: a low plant that finishes the front edge. It is native to Florida and the Gulf, the Southeast, Texas and the South-Central states, California and the Desert Southwest. Deer may browse it when other food is short, and it is toxic to dogs and cats.
Facts from our plant table
- Botanical name
- Phyla nodiflora
- Plant type
- Groundcover, semi evergreen
- Hardiness zones
- 8 to 11
- Sun
- Full sun (6+ hours); Part sun (4–6 hours)
- Water
- Low; tolerates wet soil
- Soil
- Adaptable; tolerates sand, salt and brief flooding.
- Mature size
- 1–3 in tall × 1–3 ft wide
- Spacing
- 1.5 ft apart (centre to centre)
- Growth rate
- Fast
- Bloom
- Apr–Oct · white
- Roles in a bed
- Edge
- Styles
- natural, low water
- Deer resistance
- Medium: browsed when deer are hungry
- Pets
- Toxic to dogs and cats. No ASPCA entry found for frogfruit; marked toxic until a reviewer confirms.
- Native to
- Florida/Gulf, Southeast, South-Central, California and Desert Southwest
- Pot size and price
- quart pot, typically $5–$9 (sometimes stocked)
- Plant in
- Spring or Fall
- First-year watering
- Water deeply once or twice a week for the first 6-8 weeks, then every 10-14 days in dry spells through the first summer; after that only in long droughts.
- Pruning
- Mow or trim edges occasionally; spreads quickly.
Sources: Missouri Botanical Garden Plant Finder; state extension service fact sheets; ASPCA toxic and non-toxic plant list; Rutgers NJAES deer resistance ratings; state extension service; Invasive Plant Atlas of the United States; state noxious weed and invasive plant lists; US garden-centre and home-improvement retail listings (general knowledge, 2026 estimate); USDA PLANTS database; state extension service native plant lists. Not yet reviewed by a horticulturist.
Good companions
The plants our list engine most often puts in the same bed as Frogfruit, across the sun, zone, pet, deer and style combinations it fits.
- Dwarf yaupon holly 'Nana'Ilex vomitoria 'Nana'shrub · zones 7–10
- Weeping redbud 'Ruby Falls'Cercis canadensis 'Ruby Falls'small tree · zones 5–9
- Autumn sageSalvia greggiishrub · zones 7–11
- Pink muhly grassMuhlenbergia capillarisornamental grass · zones 6–11
- Turk's capMalvaviscus arboreus var. drummondiiperennial · zones 8–10
- Butterfly weedAsclepias tuberosaperennial · zones 3–9
If you can't find it
Substitutes our engine offers for Frogfruit: same role in the bed, passing the same rules.
How this page was made
This page was generated from this plant's record in FloraVista's plant table by fixed rules. The companions and substitutes come from the lists our rules engine composes. No named expert has reviewed this page.
Data status: the plant table is awaiting review by a horticulturist. Check each plant with a local nursery or extension office before you buy.
Sources
- Missouri Botanical Garden Plant Finder, state extension services and the USDA PLANTS database (zones, size, sun, water, bloom, native range)
- ASPCA toxic and non-toxic plant lists (dog and cat toxicity)
- Rutgers NJAES and regional extension deer-resistance ratings
- State noxious-weed and invasive-plant lists and the Invasive Plant Atlas of the US
- Typical US garden-centre listings (pot size and price band)
Generated . How FloraVista chooses plants