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Nandina domestica

I have several in similar location. I'm pretty sure they were put in years ago so they may have gotten established before the trees got large and the whole bed went shady. There's a privacy fence right behind them that also keeps them pretty well shaded.

I agree! They are all over my neighborhood. You might need to baby them a little but once those roots get established you they can take anything and look stunning in winter with berries for birdies too

Warning: bamboo is invasive and hard to kill

This isn't the bamboo you're thinking of. It can throw runners, but for a shrub in the shade with low water needs you can't beat it.

In the shade with low water it will be very slow to grow or spread. Ours planted when the house was built (I assume) 11 years ago are no problem at all. They're small and haven't spread any that I can tell.

Here is a link that might be useful: image

Nandina's are my favorite shrub, beautiful with white flowers in spring, red berries later, evergreen foliage that turns red in fall, and very low maintainance; great for dry alkaline soils. I have dozens of them. Mine are all Nandina domestica. Some say they will spread and call them 'invasive', but I think that must be if they have good deep soil and moisture. They sure aren't invasive around here. I rarely have one come up from seeds. The clump gets larger over time, but it doesn't spread.

The theory is that the berries are consumed by birds and then spread far and wide. You will frequently come across the claim that nandina is "taking over" natural wildlife areas in Central Texas. There are actually organizations in Austin which are obtaining governmental funding for nandina removal. I suspect they are finding most of it at old homesites, where it was originally planted by the hand of man. A lot of "progressive" gardeners have worked themselves into a lather over the "nandina peril."

I've never seen a bird eat a nandina berry. I've boated many miles up the Guadalupe and Colorado rivers, and have never spotted a nandina in the wild. Much ado about nothing, if you ask me.

I love nandina too, we also have the domestica in our yard and don't see it as invasive. Makes a wonderful privacy screen! I have seen it in the river bottom areas of the Fort Worth nature Center but it may have floated in during flooding from a residential yard. The cedar waxwings eat the red berries here. Kinda cool, the berries are there, then a huge flock swoops in and they're gone!

Pam

The birds haven't touched my last crop of berries. I'm going to gather up a plate of them and put them in a tempting location just to see what happens.

There is a natural wildlife area across the way from me (floods so frequently developers can't build there.) It joins up with a municipal park, giving hikers a trail 4 or 5 miles long. There are no nandina to be seen in this area.

One thing that troubles me about this business is the close association between groups promoting "awareness" of the dangers of invasive plants, and the groups seeking grants for their removal.

I have observed naturalized nandina populations in Dallas area parks as well as in more rural North Texas locales, but it does not seem to seem to form the dense monocultures typical of truly invasive plants. In addition, there aren't many native shrubs that thrive in dry, shady sites; the only one I can think of is dwarf yaupon holly.

I think these 'groups' are more invasive than nandina. Nandina is the perfect shrub for your location. If you will plant it, then water it once a week for four or five weeks, it will settle in and be there for ever. Worry free, and very attractive. I take out four or five of the tallest canes every spring, because I like the look when you can see between and through the canes. If you were to plant it in a wet, boggy area, it might spread, but not in the area and conditions you describe. Good luck.
Jim

From the Sustainable and Urban Gardening Blog: ". . . the former president of the Florida Native Plant Society has written publicly that Nandina was designated as invasive in Florida by the very group who benefitted from doing so (by receiving funds for its removal.)" The gentleman in question resigned in protest.

I have the impression that some of this may have to do with providing employment for deserving urban youth.

What I would like to see is persuasive evidence that naturalized growths of Nandina sprang from seeds spread by wildlife.

I agree with melvalena. Nandina. I put in a hedge (1 quart pot) along my back fence when we moved in 16 years ago. I ran a soaker hose and hooked it up once a week. The two oak trees have since reached heights of 40'. They do send out runners but not at a rate that I would consider invasive. I sometimes cut and dig the runner plants and give away. They now hold up the original fence. Zone 9 As to the berries i cut them off when my children were small b/c i read that they were poisonous and didnt want to take chances. Don't notice if the birds eat them.

My 2 cents! I've seen wild privit,pears and ligustrum in fields and near a lake where I've lived in TX. I have never seen nandina. That said there are shrubs that are lovely understory plantings that are native to texas.
Beautyberry,yaupon,possumhaw and red buckeye. Another non-native selection is albelia(sp?) I like it's arching,weepy look.