Plant Choices + Planting Philosophy

Arizona Native

Plants native to Arizona, and particularly the Sonoran Desert, are by nature going to be the most likely to succeed in a well-designed Sonoran Desert space. These landscapes are important microbiomes and ecological preserves within the city.

Beneficial

Plants should benefit people aesthetically, practically, and emotionally. They should also benefit the local ecosystem. Shade lowers electricity bills, cools local temperature and increases moisture. Well-established rhizospheres save water and create long-lived plants.

Symbiotic

Plants should support Arizona native wildlife, including pollinators, ectomycorrhiza, and more. A well-designed Sonoran Desert space should have a balanced array of native species that organically prevents pest problems by supporting natural, stable food webs.

My Favorite Plants

Most of my favorite plants are going to be native to Arizona, unsurprisingly. The Sonoran Desert is perhaps the most lush, "forest-like" desert in the world due to plants' adaptations to the monsoon season and patterns of humid and dry air throughout the cool season. If you pay attention, there are never-ending sources of inspiration for your landscape spaces that can be found in any natural hillside in the desert.

There are some non-native options among my favorites, as well. The way I see it, the Phoenix area needs SHADE over all else. As long it's not invasive, a non-native plant is still better than no plant at all.

Desert Ironwood (Olneya tesota)

The Desert Ironwood is a beautiful, grey-barked tree with incredibly strong wood and beautiful pink flowers in the late spring or early summer.

Arizona Rosewood (Vauquelinia californica)

The Arizona Rosewood is a large, hardy shrub the blooms clusters of pink-white flowers that harden into ornamental brown stalks as they dry. These are perfect replacements for Oleanders that actually help the ecosystem.

Desert Lavender (Hyptis emoryi)

The Desert Lavender is a large, wispy bush with grey-green leaves that blooms with small purple flowers through most of the year. It is extremely drought-tolerant and a favorite of local pollinators.

Foothills Palo Verde (Parkinsonia microphylla)

The Foothills Palo Verde can be a large bush to a small tree that needs very little human interaction once established. It blooms yellow in the spring and produces countless edible beans that humans and animals can enjoy.

Supporting the Best Bees

Everybody wants to "save the bees," but most popular "Pro-Bee" media only talks about European Honey Bees. European Honey Bees, as the name suggests, are not native to the Americas. While they are indeed great pollinators, they exist in competition with the tens of thousands of species of bees native to the Americas, and have led native bee populations to decline drastically. Arizona alone has approximately 1,300 species of native bees, at least 600 of which live in the Sonoran Desert. Many of these pollinate only one or two plant species total.

I try whenever I can to introduce to landscape spaces plant species that support Arizona native bees. They make your plants healthier, improve the stability of your microbiome's food web, and lessen the likelihood of these native bees going extinct. Also, most Arizona native bee species don't even sting! It's a win-win.

Desert Globe Mallow (Sphaeralcaea ambigua)

These bloom in the spring and fall and are the lifeline for multiple species of bees, including the Globe Mallow Bee.

Desert Milkweed (Asclepias subulata)

These bloom throughout the warm season and are vital for Monarch Butterflies and Tarantula Hawks.

Creosote (Larrea tridentata)

Over 100 species of bees rely on Creosotes in one way or another, from its flowers to its resin to its wood.

Compass Barrel Cactus (Ferocactus cylindraceus)

Dozens of local species of bees, moths, butterflies, and ants pollinate the Compass Barrel Cactus.

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