Quoting myself. “Yes, you can have a lush looking yard and use little water in the desert Southwest. Sounds impossible – but it is not. All that is needed is a careful selection of plants that are already adapted to live here” and paperflower is one such plant. Cover image […]
Lush looking perennial plants but also low water use in the desert Southwest. Sounds impossible – but it is not. All that is needed is a careful selection of plants. Plants with colorful flower because who doesn’t like some bright colorful flowers?! Cover image above, hesperaloe, a native plant that […]
Iris are enchanting flowers and are just starting to flower now in parts of the Southwest. I appreciate iris because the plants are tough as nails, and grow well in the alkaline soils of the Southwest. They will need more water than a cactus to keep going, but they need […]
So many seeds, so little time! Also, so little space. And, so little money for special soils and the like. Here in the Southwest we are also limited by just what plants can possibly take our ultra low humidity, blasting sunlight, constant winds, and voracious wildlife. Water is always an […]
The bunnies hop right on past the desert hopbush, also called desert hops, and occasionally called sand cherry. Other common names include arilla (Spanish); and in Seri, casol caacol. I would love to know the O’odham name if someone reading this knows it. The botanical name is Dodonaea viscosa and […]
Wondering if you should have lawn in our dry and arid climate? Especially with drought for the past umpteen years and weather patterns behaving oddly? And what about if you live at elevation, in the mountains? No, Yes, Maybe There is an entire spectrum of responses to this question. There […]
Jujubes are easy to grow, have few known pests, provide a tasty and nutritious fruit, and make a lovely shade trees. And yes, jujubes used to the basis for a candy. The original candy was made from a paste of jujube fruits, but later the recipe changed. Edible Landscaping Edible […]
Aloysia are attractive to me because they are edible (appetizing!). They are attractive to pollinators as well. But best of all – they are not attractive to javelina and rabbits! This is part of my continuing series of articles that could be titled “Plant Your Yard for Pollinators and People,” […]
Save your holiday amaryllis and plant it outdoors in your landscape! Note- this will work if it doesn’t often get below 15 degrees F where you live. If your climate is good, your amaryllis will grow and bloom for years to come. Amaryllis is Awesome I posted some of […]
The sage we use in cooking is Salvia officinalis. You can grow some of this decorative herb in your yard as part of your multi-purpose landscape. After all – if you have to plant it, water it, and care for it, why not have something you can cook with too?! […]
