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 – November
Great Basin Sage Big Sagebrush Artemisia tridentata Plant Form: Evergreen shrub Water Use: Low Mature Size: 3-6 ft. tall x 3-10 ft. wide Exposure: Full sun Bloom Time: Summer (July-Aug), Fall (Sept) Native to: Western North America, Canada, Baja California Hardiness: Cold hardy to -20°F Great Basin Sage is a study in silver and gray. This shrub forms the primary vegetation across vast stretches of the Great Basin desert. A member of the sunflower family, it develops a woody trunk […]
Plant of the Month – September
Evergreen Sumac Rhus virens Plant Form: Evergreen Shrub, Small Tree Water Use: Low Mature Size: 8-12 ft. tall x 10-15 ft. wide Exposure: Full Sun, Part Sun Bloom Time: Summer (June-Aug), Fall (Sept-Nov) Native to: Arizona, New Mexico, Texas Hardiness: Cold hardy to 5°F Evergreen Sumac is a very adaptable, large, evergreen shrub that tolerates every stressful desert situation thrown at it: burning heat, freezing cold, extended drought, nutrient-poor soils, and even difficult clay and caliche soils. Given all these challenges, this […]
Harvesting Bladderpod
~ Bladderpod ~ Spring entices a burst of bright yellow flowers on our native Bladderpod, attracting hummingbirds, hawk moths, gardeners, and ethnobotanists. Besides being an attractive, fire-resistant, evergreen shrub, Bladderpod produces showy clusters of flowers and inflated seed pods that can be eaten if cooked. We’ll share with you how to prepare these treats below. ♦♦♦ Part of my appreciation of our native desert plants comes from the indispensable gifts that these plants have provided for millennia to humans, wildlife, birds, insects, soils, and […]
Uses of SW Native Plants Workshop
Hardy and helpful southwest desert plants can add richness to your kitchen, your medicine chest, your home, and your garden, as well as enhancing the lives of your neighborhood songbirds and wildlife. Our classes and workshops show you easy, fun, and healthy ways to incorporate our native plants into your life. Come enjoy learning with us! Healing, Helpful, & Edible Southwest Native Plants: How to Grow, Harvest, & Prepare Them with Robin Kobaly Saturday, April 6th, 2019 | 12:30 – 4:30 […]
Eco-Discovery Tour – Big Morongo Canyon Preserve
Stroll along a half-mile boardwalk under a lush canopy of cottonwood and willow trees as Robin shares secrets of the same plants that sustained Serrano Indians who inhabited Big Morongo Canyon for centuries. Come enjoy learning about our native plants with us! Spring Fundraiser for The SummerTree Institute Eco-Discovery Tour of Big Morongo Canyon Preserve with Robin Kobaly Thursday May 24th, 2018 All funds raised from this event will be donated to The SummerTree Institute for its environmental […]
