Space, The Landscape Frontier!

 Say what you like about Phoenix.....hot, the devil lives there, it's hot, water guzzlers, it's really hot.....Jan Brewer.  Hey, it's all true!  But I have to admit one thing about downtown Phoenix.....it's pretty cool.  Let me be more specific....the area around the Convention center is eye candy.  Let's look and see what's going on in this area that makes this part of Phoenix glow!:)

During our convention center fun, I was also looking forward to snapping off some shots from several of the garden spaces around this block area.  The above picture was taken from the 15th floor of the Hyatt.  As we look across the way, we see an area full of date palms. One of the complaints about Phoenix is that it is a city of concrete. And because there is so much concrete, the sidewalks and roads absorb all that 100+ heat and augment the temps by even more.  At night, instead of cooling down like Tucson does, the heat stays!!  Plus many of the people are transplants from green belts in the states.  They bring their water guzzling ways and plant many non native species which increases our states use of the water.  And yes...it does bother me:)  So let's look at what works here.  I don't think you have to sacrifice anything to achieve that "look".

We have to think about what will survive and create an oasis to appeal to the senses.  Look at these planters.  There are a variety of palms including the Canary Palm and the Mediterranean Fan Palm. I will be adding this to our landscape in the next month because as you may or may not know.....it's time to put your palm trees into the ground!!!  How cool is that!  Okay maybe I'm a bit too excited about all of this, but I seriously love landscaping in the desert.

And there's more.  But here is a LOVE about Phoenix.  Check out this shot.  Cactus in the front and skyscraper in the background.  Now that's hot!

 

Sometimes the need for art is overlooked in the landscaping design.  While I'm not so crazy about this sculpture, I would have to say that it makes a statement.  From the wrong angle, this fisherman appears to be peeing in the water.  However, I do like the roadrunner on the rock.  That's pretty cool. 

Lets's look at some of the plants here that are true survivors of our intense summers and at times, cold winter nights.  The most cold sensitive of this bunch is probably the Canary Palm(center, pic below). From left to right(below), you see the Mediterranean Fan Palm, Red Yucca(huge hummingbird favorite with its red/pink flowers.....and a popular plant in Tucson), Agave, Canary Palm(in the middle), and the very sexy Mexican Bird of Paradise.  More on that plant in a sec.

For now, let's combine the element of design....art, plants, water, and an area to relax.  Space is everything.  And I think this is perfection. 

The downtown area of Phoenix uses its space very well.  Any little opening is utilized according to the shade from building etc to create a greener feel for visitors or Arizonans like myself.....and I do appreciate good landscaping.

Now many of you LOVE this plant. It's one of the top searches for Las Aventuras.  And I can understand why....it's fern like and has the most brilliant orange blooms. It's also bushy in appearance and makes a bold statement in landscape.  And this delicate looking plant is one of the TOUGHEST in the desert.  Very little water is required, but I do give it a little extra to grow quicker.  In Phoenix this plant doesn't die back unless their winter is severe.  In Tucson, the Mexican Bird of Paradise is cut back to the ground.  In spring, it will send out its first shoots from the ground.  And remember, the more sun it gets; the more blooms you'll have.  I highly recommend this plant for beginners who want something that will survive.  Xeric to the max and will make people drool all over your yard.  And that's good because any extra moisture during this dry month of June is good for the plants:)

Let's move on.  Space.  It's the topic.  You'd think that I'd be better at it.  But the simple truth is, I'm not.  I love birds and wildlife in my garden.  Therefore I create a lot of area for the birds to hide etc.  Bird landscaping is a bit different in design from a clean landscape design.  Both are cool, but I like waking up to birds in the morning.  I have some work I've been doing around El Presidio coming up in several weeks.....I can't wait to show you.  There's so much going on here that it's difficult not to throw all of it at you all at once.  But that might be too much:)  Let's just say it's an exciting time here.

Some cacti and succulents do better in Phoenix than in Tucson.  An example of this is found behind this jazz player.   While you may see things like the San Pedro etc, you won't find many succulents.  The simple fact is that Tucson gets too cold and you'll end up losing these plants creating a huge mess.  Our historic freeze last year proved fatal for many of these beloved plants.  Remember that if you are working with Euphorbs(especially the African kind), you'll need to take care with the milky sap that will sometimes ooze from a broken piece.  You'll get a nasty burn/rash on your skin.  Always wear gloves when handling these plants.   In fact, I love when a cacti or succulent grows like this.  I have such a cluster in my own side garden and I wrapped that sucker up from last years historic freeze.  Today it stands tall and beautiful like it has for over a decade.  It's in the headlining pic for Las Aventuras. 

Rainbow Bush/Portulacaria afra 'Variegata'

I mentioned succulents.  Gorgeous plants that add a lot of appeal to any garden or art design.  However they thrive in moderate climates like San Diego along the coast. But several do extremely well here in Arizona....mostly in Phoenix.  This(above pic) is the hardiest of the succulents that I experimented on here in Tucson.  It endured our cold nights and LOVES our heat.....with a little bit of water.  It's usually placed along a drip line with a little shade, but not too much.

 When space is tight, there is always a solution.  Date palms, Lantana, Red Yucca, Agaves.....you name it.  If clumped together in the right combo they can make your home or business pop! The nice part about many of our xeric plants is that they clump or are very structural in nature. 

 This pic above was taken at night.  A warm summer breeze with the skyscraper in the background.  Nice!

And voila!  There you have it.  Desert design, IMHO, at its best!  People seem to love it as does the local wildlife.  More tomorrow.....

El Presidio Spring 2012

This year I lost 2 plum trees and a barrel cactus.  However the garden is looking great.  Like every gardener, we experiment some with different plants, place what we know to perform, and put in a couple that need a little extra care:)  But El Presidio is on year 3 and we're on track.  There are lots of things that are working and it's making a difference.   A special thank you to everyone for coming and helping out around the property.  It helps both Donnie and myself focus on watering and jump start our hot summer.  The oak trees really get me down with the acorns, leaves, and pollen.  I love these trees but when most gardeners are prepping up their yards for spring and summer, we're going through fall here!  It can be frustrating.  And the pollen gets everywhere and makes my eyes itchy.

Bougainvillea

Sitting out during our HOA meeting, I really LOVED what was going on around our gardens.  The plants looked great and this year, we've added birds....lots of them!  Just by adding the sounds of birds chirping to our property has created a very unique atmosphere.....and an oasis. I want color, sound, and purpose.  I've written this before but I'll write it again.  The goal is to have our gardens provide shade, fruit, and fun while being xeric and wildlife friendly.  Just no mice. 

Aloe Bloom

I sat back and really loved watching the birds nesting and flying from tree to tree.   My focus will be side planters yet again.....the citrus garden on the east side and the bamboo on the south side.  The north side is nearly complete with the Nandina and Cacti Gardens placed.

House Finches get crazy

These are the beginnings of spring.  While a lot is flowering, there are more trees and bushes that will begin next month.

Mexican Bird of Paradise(the yellow variety)

So as temps warm up, stop and smell a rose from the CC Rose Garden near the palm tree.  Check the Mulberry tree for fruit.  The fig tree may have some treats hiding under the leaves.  We will have lots of peaches in July and plenty of persimmons in November.  And the citrus trees have lots of flowers:)

Lantana

But for now, enjoy the reds, yellows, purples and oranges around our place. It has taken us 3 years to get here and I have much more planned.  The fountain will have to wait for a bit until all the rotten wood is replaced around our homes.  Wood is fine for some things but shouldn't be used as a main feature in the desert.  The beams we have now are full of termites and dry rot.

Red Oleander

Hopefully the plants will distract:)

While pruning near the west wall, we were noticing the palo verdes from our neighbors property encroaching upon the parking area......and then we noticed something else......

...this little hummingbird nest on one of the branches.  I knew we had two families for sure, but I didn't know where the second nest was.  Now I do:)  Love natures best kept secrets.  They are such intelligent little birds who have lately been doing some serious drinking.  Maybe it's the 100 degree weather we've been having!

Again thank you all for your help around our gardens at El Presidio.

Mexican Bird of Paradise

Ladies and gentelmen.....I present one of my absolute favorite shrubs in the Tucson area. Easy to grow. Drought tolerant. Beautiful. Ferny. Lush. And extremely sun friendly. When I first moved to Tucson in the 90's, I fell in love with this plant and today it's still one of my favorites. Two things to remember with the MBOP......it needs full sun or you won't get the brilliant blooms and secondly, it will look scraggly in the winter. Other than that, this plant is extremely easy to grow and can handle a bit of neglect. I added this plant to our fern garden at El Presidio and it makes a nice cluster around a desert fern. This is a fantastic plant for your landscape. There are 3 varieties....the orange and shorter variety, the taller,skinnier and yellow bloomed variety, and the very ferny taller and bushier with unique yellow and orange  blooms variety. Don't worry...the latin names are coming. Again, here is Cathy Biship about this group of plants.

Taken at El Presidio in the Fern Garden

"Visitors and natives alike are always impressed by the profusion of blooms produced by the numerous types of Caesalpinia in the Tucson area. Better known as Red Birds and Mexican Birds to name a couple, it is impossible to go a block without seeing their beautiful blooms. Though we get used to seeing them, visitors to the area seem to be quite in awe, and I’m not surprised. These plants may be one of our very best plants for Tucson landscapes. Though some of the species are a bit frost sensitive, others are not and even the most sensitive pop back up after being knocked back by the worst winter weather. Their best attributes include being very drought tolerant, having an extremely long and brilliant bloom period, they are totally happy in our alkaline soil and they get by on minimal care.  The best spot for these wonderful plants is in full, all day, bright, hot sun. They thrive on heat, truly coming on strong only after the temperatures have reached at least into the 90s and more. Though some believe that they need to be pruned every year, it is actually optional. There are some gorgeous shrubs in medians that rarely get pruned and the result is very large plants with extremely exuberant growth that start blooming as much as two months before their severely pruned counterparts. The reason one would want to prune back their Red Birds, would be to control size. If you need for the plant to remain no more than 4 feet high and wide, then yearly pruning will achieve that end. The best known of these plants is probably Red Bird (Caesalpinia pulcherrima). Sometimes it is mistakenly called Mexican Bird, though this common name rightly belongs to Caesalpinia mexicana, which can grow larger, can handle more cold, is more reliably evergreen in cold weather and is suitable for training into a small tree rather than just a shrub. The flowers of this bird of paradise are a bit smaller, but they are very bright golden yellow which shows up beautifully against the bright green leaves.
There is a gorgeous golden hybrid called the Phoenix Bird (Caesalpinia pulcherrima ‘Phoenix’) that has the exact same characteristics as the Red Bird but with golden flowers. Another yellow species is the Desert Bird (Caesalpinia gillesii) that has soft yellow flower petals with long red stamens that look like floral eyelashes. In addition to these species and hybrids there are also seedling crosses that show just how much genetic diversity can be made from two colors! In the tropics, these seedling plants are very common and give rise to many colors from peach and apricot shades to pinks and corals and even white. No matter which variety you opt for, you can be sure that even with the smallest care, the “Bird” of your choice will bloom and bloom and bloom from the time the weather heats up until the first frosty nights insist that it rest for the winter.
Cathy Bishop, co-owner of Mesquite Valley Growers Nursery, has more than 30 years of gardening experience. E-mail her at weekendplus@tucsoncitizen.com." End of article.  Source: http://tucsoncitizen.com/morgue/2008/07/18/91268-cathy-bishop-red-birds-thrive-in-tucson-s-alkaline-soil-with-minimal-care/

Repetition

In the next several weeks, I'll be starting a new project on the grounds that is going to utilize the idea of repetition.  Many successful gardeners use this idea to bring their spaces together. Through the use of same/ similiar plants, a unified bond is created in the garden that makes everything look planned out and organized. People's eyes are naturally drawn to these groupings of plants. Here are several ways to do this......

Lantana planted in a row makes a nice pathway into your home from the garden.

One is to put the same plant in various spots around the garden to "balance" out the landscape.  By doing this, the garden will feel even.  Second is to put a row of plants together either to create a natural fence or a barrier to hide a road or a neighbor's yard.  There are many other uses for barriers but these are just a couple that come to mind.  What are some plants that I use for repetition in the gardens?  Prickly Pear, San Pedro Cactus, Oleander, Nandina, Bouganvillea, Mexican Palms, Buddha's Belly Bamboo, and Lantana. This is what works in my area but you are by no means limited.  This can be used with ANY plant! So how do I organize the plants stated above at my place?

Roses, grouped together, create a color patch around trees, ramadas, etc.

Let's start with nerium first. The oleanders here are all red flowers(I like this color), check to make sure you have the same color before purchasing and make sure you purchase them all together.  The best time to do this is when the oleanders have flowers on them at your local gardening center.  Here they are placed along a rotting fence and will eventually create a natural fence.  The Nandina is planted sporadically around the property just to balance out the random/showcase plants in other places.  This plant is prominently used in the courtyard and in the North Planters.  Bamboo is placed in the Southern planters because they love the sun. Lantana is used to create a natural walkway to guide visitors onto the property.

Oleander makes a wonderful natural fence

Here are the best parts.  What is the minimal number of plants used to create this unifying look in the garden? The answer.... 3.  For some reason, a repetition of 3 seems to be the magic number. How do you use it in your own garden?  Well for example, I put all my Mexican Birds of Paradise together to create a ferny patch in front of our Canary Palm.  We also have a random HUGE palm growing on the property that had nothing to match it so I purchased 2 other palms and spread them out on the courtyard.  This will eventually create the holy triad and make that lonely palm fit in with everything else.

Bamboo can create a wonderful private screen.

Pairs.  They are also fine like our two large oak trees or bouganvilleas that "frame" the entrance ways or create a canopy over our courtyard. Note that I used the word "frame" with two plants.  Groupings also work well.....like in rose gardens.

Ferny leaves can create a similiar plantings effect....and another way to look at repetition....

You mentioned cactus.  How do you use these? Any place that a trespasser can cross is where a Prickly Pear or San Pedro cactus will be located which leads me into my project for this spring. I will be placing 10 whiskey barrels together that will create a unified cactus garden and make our front entrance pop.....and it will protect our front property from people who don't belong there.  In the upcoming month, I'll have more reporting and images using this idea of repetition.

Too many palms together....much better spread out over a larger area.

Repetition with similiar/same plants allows you to showcase your favorite trees, bushes, or smaller plants. It allows you to play around with new designs over the years within a natural design.  Try it out and see what happens:)  Until next time, happy gardening!

The project on the property for Spring.  The front will be redressed with a repetitive cactus garden in whiskey barrels.

The Fern Garden at El Presidio

I love ferns, but most of them won't grow in Tucson....so I found similiar leaf structures and patterns and put them together to create a "ferny" look.  This is my fern garden.