Carla Albright, February 25, 2026

I have had a love-hate relationship with my local coyote population this past year. having been stalked by three of them on the beach last May, I have taken steps to avoid these natives as much as possible. Especially when I am walking the dog which seems to agitate the coyotes.

But there is a lovely type of coyote that I welcome to my garden and that is the Dwarf Coyote Bush.

A wiry, woody perennial found in coastal scrub areas, they are also known as Chaparral broom or coyote brush. This was a plant I was unfamiliar with until a group of them were planted by the Ford Family Foundation’s Cohort III at Kilchis Point Reserve many years ago. I wasn’t sure it would work for our damp climate, but since it likes dry summers and well-drained soil, it has thrived. They are hardy in USDA zones 5 through 11, and since we are an eight here in Tillamook, it suits us.

The prostrate form has a listed height of 12 to 18 inches and a spread of 6 to 10 feet, making it a good ground cover for erosion control. But the ones at the Reserve are an upright cultivar and have grown taller – about 36 to 48 inches – and haven’t spread quite as wide. The nicest thing to me about this plant is that it starts blooming in late summer and blooms through the fall and into early winter, and not too many shrubs can boast that blooming period.

Coyote bushes prefer full sun and a neutral-ish pH of between 6 and 7. It does like a bit richer soil, so amend the hole as you plant the shrub. I would also fertilize it in the early spring and maybe again after it starts to bloom in the late summer. It will take a good bit of water as you plant it, so the best thing to do is dig a hole about the depth of the root ball but twice as wide and then fill it with water. Let the water drain, and then put the plant into that moisten hole, being certain to have the top of the root ball be level with the soil around it. Fill in the hole around the plant with amended soil, tamp it in and re-water it. If you can let a water hose drip slowly around the base of the bush for 30 minutes, that should do it. Water it twice the week you plant it and then you can gradually reduce the watering to just keeping the soil lightly moistened. Having said all this, if you plant in the fall, Mother Nature will do the watering for you. Once they are established, they will survive nicely without much further nurturing.

These shrubs are pretty care-free but may have aphids if they are planted too close together. I would space them at least 4 feet apart if you are planting a group. They are pretty much deer resistant, but, as we all know, the deer don’t always read the manuals and may give it a try if other foraging materials are scarce. Since the leaves are covered in a substance much like wax, once tasted by the deer, they generally leave them alone. The predatory wasps, bees and the small native “skipper” butterflies love the nectar of the flowers.

One thing to be aware of is that the coyote bushes have male and female plants. Both bear flowers; the male flowers are stubby, flat and a creamy white while the female flowers are long, whitish green and almost glisten. You don’t need a pair of them to flower however, like you would for holly. In both cases they bloom on clustered heads of leafy branches. Leaves of the coyote bush are covered in a wax-like substance that helps retain moisture as well as act as a fire-retardant. Seeds are small and black and hang on a tuft like dandelions. Also like the dandelions, these tufts catch the fall winds and spread the seeds.

Coyote bush is called a “pioneer species” as it is one of the first plants to reappear after a fire, floods, or clearing. The roots are dense and extend yards from the plant to absorb as much rainfall as possible during droughts, and it’s these dense, spreading roots that help the plant to reestablish.

It’s a plant not easily found in nurseries unless they specialize in Oregon native plants. But it is well worth having in your native garden if you can find one or two… or three.