4 Must-Have Plants for the Southwest

As garden core set out to open their door for the time of year ( and we get ready to run into them with open arms ) , we decided to inquire some regional experts what plants are on the top of their shopping list this twelvemonth . These wish list plants are undoubtably beautiful , but many are also unfearing , repellent to diseases and pests , tenacious bloomers or more succinct than other change . In other dustup , before you arrest out these four must - have plants for the Southwest , you ’ll want to notice some more quad in your garden .

1. ‘Silver Peso’ Texas Mountain Laurel

Name:Sophora secundiflora‘Silver Peso’

Zones:7b–10

Size:10 to 20 fundament marvelous and 10 to 15 feet wide

weather condition : Full sun to partial shade ; well - drain soil

aboriginal range : Southwestern United States , Mexico

‘ Silver Peso ’ Texas mountain laurel wreath has stunning , evergreen silverish foliage . This coloration provides a brilliant contrast to its marvelously fragrant purple bloom flock that smell like grapevine tonic . These blooms come along in late winter and early spring . ‘ Silver Peso ’ is a with child shrub orsmall tree with year - turn interest . It can cover a sizable wall or be a focal point in a courtyard ; either way of life , it will be an optic - catching addition to your landscape . Make certain to leave enough room for ‘ Silver Peso ’ to reach its ultimate potentiality . Its evergreen leaves and slower growth mean sustainment is minimum . Like most plants that thrive in well - drained soil , it does n’t care to be overwatered .

2. Pawnee Buttes®Western Sand Cherry

Name:Prunus pumilavar.besseyi‘P011S’

Zones:4–8

Size:12 to 18 inches improbable and 4 to 6 feet wide

aboriginal range : Central North America

This compact selection of Western moxie cherry has four - time of year pursuit and is a great wildlife habitat plant life . The white-hot , fragrant flower blossom in spring before the leaves emerge and are covered by cross-pollinate bees . Later in the season this shrub produces tart cherries , which birds will devour when they mature to a dark red color . In autumn the foliage turns brilliant shade of red before leaving a goodish structure of branches for wintertime . This plant has a prone form that keeps it down in the mouth sustentation , so it ’s an idealistic plectron for borders , slopes , or terraces .

3. Vermilion Bluffs®Mexican Sage

Name:Salvia darcyi‘Pscarl’

Zones:5b–10

Size:3 to 4 foot tall and 3 feet wide

Native range : Sierra Madre Oriental deal range of a function ( Mexico )

Vermilion Bluffs ® Mexican sage is a tall , long - bloom perennial that bloom in belated spring through summertime . The flowers are a brilliant fire engine red that attracts hummingbird and draws the optic of everyone who comes near . This perennial is a must - have for pollinator garden . Vermilion Bluffs ® is a invariant bloomer that will preserve to bloom without deadheading and demand a laborious pruning only once a twelvemonth at the oddment of wintertime . This cultivar is more cold - broad than the species , so it ’s well suited for most areas of the Southwest .

4. ‘Lynn’s Legacy’ Texas Ranger

Name:Leucophyllum langmaniae‘Lynn’s Legacy’

Zones:7–10

Size:6 understructure marvelous and 5 foot wide

Conditions : Full sun ; mass medium to well - drained soil

Native compass : Chihuahuan Desert ( Mexico )

‘ Lynn ’s Legacy ’ is one of the few varieties of Texas Texas Ranger that stay evergreen through winter , even in higher desertareas . In cooler areas , plant this shrub in a fond microclimate against a south- or Mae West - facing wall . This cultivar has obtuse , silverish - green foliage and erupts into peak with pastel purple prime that cover the entire plant in summer and gloaming . The peak are quite fragrant and are very attractive to many species of bees . The summary nature of this plant life means that little pruning will be needed to keep it looking tidy as long as you do n’t overwater it . apply this works as a blind or an intimate hedge to append interest to your garden year - rotund .

Hunter Ten Broeck owns and function WaterWise Landscapes in Albuquerque , New Mexico , along with his married woman , Barb .

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4 Must-Have Plants for the Southwest

Photo: Courtesy of Hunter Ten Broeck

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