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Other plants in our yard

The very word, landscaping, doesn't set well with us who were kids on a farm. Back in the midwest we had grass to mow and trees in our yards, but we were never made a big deal out of it. "Landscaping" sounds like destroying nature and creating some artificial scenery. But now I'm in Arizona so I'll go along with it. We of course have trees that were planted here at our house before we got here, and have put in low-maintenance plants for shading here and there. Sometimes plants come up volunteer and they're left to grow to watch and to be amazed at a plant that actually decides to sprout up in the desert.

Summer color in Arizona desert
It's hard to find flowers to have color in the peak of the Arizona desert summer. I've stumbled across something that I would recommend: a mixture of sweet allysum, verbena, and rose moss. Here's a not-too-great photo of this in September. The combination was colorful all summer long.
flower combo


Various plants with notes
  • desert milkweed (Asclepias subulate) --grown from seed
    Doing well
  • winterfat (Ceratoides lanata) --from seed
    Continues to plug along, but still only a few inches tall afer several years
  • paperflower (Psilostrophe Cooperi) --from seed
    paperflower pic Yellow and elegant flowers, but not seen well from a distance
  • feathery cassia
    Continue to come up volunteer in front yard. Never have to water
  • desert cassia
    Put in one to shade some interesting unidentified grass in back yard. Grows fast. Never have to water
  • Queen's wreath
    Froze down to nothing after first year. Came back strong the next spring
  • Valentine emu bush
    Nice appearance and low maintenance. Would like to see a longer flowering period
  • Outback Bluey emu bush (Eremophila divaricata)
    Doing very well, flowering now and then without warning
  • vitex
    Pretty flowers, but generally disappointing. Still shrub-looking after several years and was wanting a tree. Takes more water than I'd like
  • purple three awn grass
    Visually attractive. Comes up volunteer needing very little water if any. Seeds stick in socks
  • side oats grama
    A nice-looking grass that never needs watering
  • sweet bush
    Had for several years not knowing what it was. Either came up volunteer or from seeds I'd gathered years ago out somewhere. Haven't been able to propagate from its seeds though. Bees love it
  • pearl bluebush (Maireana sedifolia)
    Read about this one in a magazine in a waiting room and after some time tracked one down at a nursery in Phoenix. One of my personal favorites, but no compliments from anyone else
  • totem pole (Melaleuca decussata)
    No flowers yet after a few years. Slowly growing
  • Chenille Honeymyrtle (Melaleuca huegelii)
    Like other Melaleuca, no flowers yet.
  • Krusee's mallee (Eucalyptus kruseana)
    Get lots of compliments from passersby. Unique and interesting
  • Yellow orchid vine
    Finally found something that thrives in a northeast corner (maximum sun)
  • Three bouganvilleas: one a Pink Pearl.
    For years avoided bouganvilleas, now regret that, so much beauty with so little water
  • . . . and others not listed
    Bad luck stories
  • roses
    Neighbors have nice roses. Mine always decline to oblivion. I never really try to save them telling me I'm not that interested in having them.


I get a kick how the mulberry leaves fall and get skewered by the aloe vera plant beneath the tree. Kind of hard to see in the photo.
skewered leaf photo



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