Plant of the Month – August
Desert Almond Prunus fasciculata Plant Form: Deciduous shrub Water Use: Very low Mature Size: 6-10’ tall & wide Exposure: Full sun, part sun Bloom Time: Spring (March – May); fruit Summer (June – July) Native to: California, Arizona, Nevada, & Utah (at elevations below 7,300 feet) Hardiness: Cold Hardy to 20°F Desert Almond is a densely-branched, fast-growing, deciduous shrub that makes a good screen or background plant. Its small, linear leaves are arranged in bundles on the stems, which […]
Plant of the Month – July
Sugarbush Rhus ovata Plant Form: Evergreen Shrub Water Use: Low Mature Size: 8-15’ tall & wide Exposure: Full Sun, Part Shade Bloom Time: Spring (March – May); fruit Summer (June – August) Native to: California, Arizona, & Mexico (at elevations 3,000 – 5,000 feet) Hardiness: Cold Hardy to 0°F Sugar Bush is a very long-lived, evergreen, aromatic shrub with lush, deep green, leathery leaves that are slightly folded like a taco shell. Maroon twigs and leaf stems, as well […]
Plant of the Month – January
Desert Agave Agave deserti Plant Form: Succulent Water Use: Very low Mature Size: 2-3 ft. tall x 2-6 ft. wide Exposure: Full sun Bloom Time: Spring (May); Summer (June-July) Native to: California, Arizona, Baja California Hardiness: Cold hardy to 15°F Desert Agave forms symmetrical rosettes of fleshy leaves in this slow-growing monocot. Stiff, sword-like, blue-green leaves are edged with prickles, and tipped with a sharp spine. After 8-20 years, a flowering stalk shoots up, growing 5-15 feet tall in just weeks, with […]
Plant of the Month – December
Ocotillo Fouquieria splendens Plant Form: Deciduous succulent shrub Water Use: Very low, low Mature Size: 8-20 ft. tall x 5-10 ft. wide Exposure: Full sun, reflected sun Bloom Time: Spring (March – May), Summer (June – Aug) Native to: Southern California, southwest US, Mexico Hardiness: Cold hardy to 0-10°F Ocotillo is an iconic symbol of the southwest that forms a vase-shaped shrub with up to 100 wand-like, thorny stems that radiate from the crown. Small, oval, fleshy leaves appear […]
Plant of the Month – September
Deer Grass Muhlenbergia rigens Plant Form: Ornamental Grass Water Use: Low Mature Size: 2-6 ft. tall and wide Exposure: Full sun, part sun Bloom Time: Fall (September – November) Native to: California, Arizona, Nevada, New Mexico, Texas, northern Mexico Hardiness: Cold hardy to -10°F Deer Grass is an adaptable, large bunch grass with blue-green foliage that softens desert landscapes wherever it is planted. Fast-growing, it typically reaches mature size in one or two years, with leaves reaching lengths of three […]
Plant of the Month
Blue Palo Verde Parkinsonia florida Plant Form: Tree Water Use: Very low Mature Size: 20-30 ft. tall and wide Exposure: Full sun Bloom Time: Spring (March-May) Native to: California, Arizona, Mexico Hardiness: Cold hardy to 12°F Blue Palo Verde is prized as much for its unique green branches and trunk as it is for the masses of lemon-yellow flowers that cover this fast-growing tree in spring. Its green limbs allow this graceful but thorny tree to continue to carry […]
