So one of the things on the agenda this winter when I am visiting Joelle in Arizona for a few weeks is to take her backyard and turn it into a usable space. She bought in 2010 or so, and has a very large yard (largest on her block) and it is fenced in and private. It is also COMPLETELY untouched.
Joelle is not gardening or yardwork inclined, so she never got around to it, and I am looking at it like a massive blank canvas. I really want to make it a usable, habitable, and relaxing space, with native shrubbery and trees and plants that will be for the most part self-sustaining and not require extensive irrigation, but also will be a food source for both us and native species.
And I thought to myself- this sounds like something the hive mind would like to do together. What say you?
War for Ukraine Day 464: (Some of) You Have Questions, I (May) Have Answers
Anne Laurie
Serious comment, Cole: You should post this on Sunday morning, for the Garden Chat people. They love this stuff, and they’re experienced with it — several regulars have done & are doing water-saving xeriscaping projects in their own yards.
wonkie
A water feature would be nice for the birds and maybe reptiles.
Baud
@Anne Laurie:
He probably doesn’t know about the Sunday morning garden chat.
p.a.
First thing is soil samples to know your baseline, & ask neighborhood gardeners about the local microclimate.
bbleh
There’s Arizona and there’s Arizona. Would need specifics.
Trivia Man
When we lived in Salt Lake City we killed the lawn and xeriscaped (with a few exceptions like an ancient rose bush and a magnificent peony).
The star of the show was about 8 kinds of sage. There is bound to be some locally native for you. And California Poppy but some people consider those too invasive.
Omnes Omnibus
Rocks.
topclimber
Maybe an urban garden and/or water retention system. Call in the permaculture guys.
Trivia Man
@Omnes Omnibus: I second that. Whenever we were on BLM land, or otherwise unrestricted, we’d look for interesting rocks. My favorites are about the size of my head or a little bigger. We’ve moved to a different state 4 times since than and most of the rocks are still with us.
mvr
I’m with @Omnes Omnibus: Rocks are the way to go.
Though if it is literally untouched, what is there now may be native.
MazeDancer
Arizona has North and South. Vast difference in climate. So where?
SpaceUnit
A cactus.
But not too close to the house like you did with that fucking willow tree.
cope
At least one obligatory piece of unidentifiable, rusty farm equipment and multiple bird feeders should be in the mix.
piratedan
@bbleh: would very much agree…..
if she’s in the Phoenix metro area, there are quite a few xeroscapes that would likely serve but there’s a balance out here, if you tempt critters in with gardens that have edibles, you’ll also attract their predators (i.e. how do you feel about potentially listening to a pack of coyotes howling in the backyard talking about a kill?). Is the yard walled? fenced? do you want shade? Does she have any rainbarrel/water-capture in place? Does she want that?
I live in Tucson and there are a lot of options to go with, I would stay away from grass, even turf can be problematic without shade. Yard orientation matters as well as the afternoon sun (imho) is much harder on plants than the morning sun because you have the heat factor in place, also depending upon the dwelling color, you could have reflective heat to deal with.
Also, if you’re working in the yard yourself….. do it early or do it during dusk and hydrate like a mother because heat stroke/exhaustion is very much a thing.
If you need to reach out, I’m sure as the blog-father you know where to find me…..
PsiFighter37
I’m confused. This post reads like John Cole is leaving West By God Virginia and moving to Arizona. Is that a proper interpretation? I only ask because I have not been frequenting the blog much as of late.
ETA: PF37 +3, even if Cole gave up the drink, this resist lib is still swigging it in his late 30s and counting
James E Powell
@cope:
I just got back from Vermont. My first time there. I noticed that nearly every yard had something like that in it.
Devore
If it’s in the desert. Rocks and cactus make for a great backyard. And easy on the cactus. And the more fully paved. The better
less hiding spaces for deadly insects
worn
@MazeDancer: Sure, enough. If it’s the latter, “trees…that will be for the most part self-sustaining and not require extensive irrigation“ is right on out.
karen marie
@piratedan: Agreed. Even cacti can be intolerant of too much sun.
The only other thing I have to offer is “why, Joelle, why would you live in Arizona.” I personally wish I’d made a different choice than to move here.
I’ve lived a lot of places, and this is the only one I hate with the heat of the thousand suns that turn this place into a hell hole for six months of the year
PS: John, if you’re going to do any yardwork in Arizona, do it in the winter. Any time after April 15th and before October 15th is asking for death.
PsiFighter37
Dare I say, it’s also Arizona. The NYT just ran an article about how they are running out of water. Figuring out how to plant anything other than native vegetation (i.e. things like cactus or whatever else would be included in a xeriscaping) is foolhardy IMO. The state turned blue just in time to get real-time fucked by climate change.
Jackie
@mvr: Ground cover. Rocks absorb and radiate heat. Arizona’s 100+ degrees don’t need rocks adding to the stifling heat.
Ixnay
Would you be allowed to have cisterns (and brethren) to collect water run off? Old friends in NM collect all the H2O they can. Interesting project.
karen marie
@PsiFighter37: As I understood John to say in the post where he announced his impending nuptials, they’re getting married but they’re not going to “live as man and wife.” Kind of a mutual-aid society comprised of two members.
Jackie
Arizona is going under strict water restrictions if this helps.
https://www.fox10phoenix.com/news/arizona-governor-pauses-water-supply-certificates.amp
MazeDancer
@Ixnay: Having lived there for a while, I can vouch for NM folks being great about water collection.
Because so many people live there seasonally, AZ not so much.
No matter which part of AZ, the two most important aspects of landscaping are setting up at least rain barrels. And shade.
No portals, no life.
PsiFighter37
@karen marie: I saw the announcement on FB but I didn’t see any further details. Good on him. That said, I still say that Arizona, just like most of the Southwest, is just a ticking time bomb until they all run out of water. I visited where my grandmother lived (and died – passed away a few months ago) often the past decade plus. The changes from when I lived there for a few years, in the middle of the Californian desert in the early 1990s, until now, is stark. I’m convinced that when it’s time for me to pass, that town won’t exist anymore – along with dozens of other small towns out in the boonies of Kern and Inyo County.
Charluckles
If you’re planning to xeriscape you should see if the local burg has rebates available. Next make friends with the local nursery people as well as a local source for hardscape materials.
Gvg
Low maintenance or really any gardening is really specifically local. You are going to have to name pretty close to where Joelle lives for us to give valid advice. After that, we will be looking up very local advice for her region.
I live and garden in Florida. I can’t tell you how many gardening expert books I have read that are laughably wrong about things here. Especially how many plants must be in full sun. Today the local Lowe’s was selling hydrangeas as requiring 6 hours of sun a day. That will kill them here. So figuring out what to do about a garden in some other state makes me cautious. Some Jackie’s may be local. I would also look for her states equivalent of my agricultural extension agent. Not all states do this well though.
I think rocks sound good though, especially if she isn’t into growing stuff. Patio flagstones, artistic rocks maybe a few native self sustaining plants. Not very many if she isn’t interested.
cain
We all know, whatever we come up with there is going to be some kind of crow attraction thing to bring in the crows.
I hope people realize that whatever it is – it needs a minimal of water cuz Arizona is gonna be reeeal dry.
It’s nce he’s visiting his fiance though. Very nice.
Rebel’s Dad
The best thing to plant is a For Sale sign so she can get out of Arizona.
eversor
Also with rocks and cactus you aren’t doing any gardening out there so get that out of your head.
Also pictures would help. Lay some concrete in a path with a little island for an outdoor fire and some chairs and then do what you are going to do around that.
It’s just that, given where it is, you might be dealing with a desert, don’t go full Dubai there.
Anne Laurie
@karen marie: If Cole & Joelle are (as he claims) looking for a permanent, post-retirement place where they can live out their lives… I sincerely hope they’re upgrading Joelle’s place in Arizona so they can sell it and move somewhere else.
I mean, I get not wanting to deal with West Virginia
politicswinters, but there are warm climates where the groundwater isn’t running out like TFG’s mortality clock…piratedan
@MazeDancer: In the Tucson Area they run a support program for water retention, be it rain barrels/cisterns, to gutters to supportive landscaping that takes water runoff and routes it to trees/shrubs etc. Essentially you go to class and they give you a tax discount/incentive that covers up to 50% of the costs… Granted this is Pima County and they’re doing what they can to keep the local aquifer supplied, not so much in Phoenix metro, but that may be changing.
Instead of doing it himself, it would make sense to contact a local landscape company and discuss what they want… i.e. shade, plants, what kind, water, etc You can have an awesome outdoor experience here if you’re a morning person and enjoy warm nights with fantastic sunsets…. but as others have mentioned, AZ has other challenges like scorpions, spiders, snakes, coyotes etc… much of that is reduced with pest control companies (termites can be an issue too) and proper planning. Is she in a development or does she have some property etc etc etc, depending on those answers will clue them into what kind of challenges they have to deal with. Most critters out here try to give humans a wide berth, but coyotes can be an exception because they’ll go after dogs (because they’re treated as competition) and cats (because they’re food to the coyotes) in addition to quail, birds, bunnies etc…
CaseyL
I think it would be fun for you to plan a garden in a biome so completely different from where you live. You love to do research on subjects that are near and dear to your heart, and you like to create oases for critters as well as humans. A desert garden, welcoming to local fauna, sounds like a dream project for you.
If Joelle lives in Phoenix, there is a municipal irrigation program. The city is crisscrossed with canals, and periodically the City sends river water through them to flood peoples’ yards. This has allowed Phoenicians to garden and even have small (one acre or less) farms on their property. But I would not count on that program continuing much longer: Arizona is staring at water shortages, and may discontinue doing things like that. (I, personally, thought it was an insane policy, but I don’t live there.)
PsiFighter37
@Anne Laurie: Also, the summers suck. It may be a dry heat, but 110 degrees is brutal no matter what.
I have no idea what the climate or the politics of this country will look like when I am old enough / have the means to retire, but it’s going to be somewhere in the Northeast or the non-insane parts of the Great Lakes region. Colorado is out of the question (wildfires); same for California and Washington State (along with earthquakes – especially the big one that will hit WA at some point, and lack of water for good chunks of CA), and Portland, OR really needs to get its shit together before it’s even a consideration.
Dan B
If it’s southern Arizona a shade structure would extend the season and outdoor lighting to be able to be outside after dark would as well.
Madeleine
Ask Quinerly? She’s been writing about what she’s doing with her plot of land out there somewhere for weeks (months).
piratedan
@Madeleine: Santa Fe is a bit different than Phoenix in regards to climate. About 2500 ft higher and a couple hundred miles further North. Still a dry climate, will be some similarities in that respect but the elevation and temperature changes will be significant.
RaflW
The Desert Botanical Garden off Galvin Parkway in Phoenix is gorgeous, and may offer some ideas for plants that might work if the house is in the Phoenix area. It’s worth a bit of extra time to go do the easy climb up to the Hole in the Rock if one is at the gardens.
Another Scott
@Anne Laurie: +1
Maybe Quinerly will give tips on how to find your own Miguel. He’s apparently very good with “cement”.
;-)
Good luck!!
Cheers,
Scott.
karen marie
@Rebel’s Dad: I am available to help her pack if I can shove my stuff in the truck and hitch a ride.
Pennsylvanian
@CaseyL: I agree. John would/will find the right balance. It’s in his nature.
Kelly
Arizona and all the Colorado River dependent regions have plenty of water for cities. Purchase all the water rights currently owned by alfalfa farmers. Anyone know if imminent domain applies to water rights?
karen marie
@Anne Laurie: I could write pages about how hideous the “weather” is here.
I wouldn’t even bother doing any upgrades – just put the house on the market and go. Lots of lunatics willing to buy.
BenInNM
So – I’ve been lurking here forever and been tempted by the welcome to lurkers posts but what has finally sucked me in is to talk about desert plants. From my experience moving from Oregon to New Mexico is to focus on cactus. They are so amazing – you can just take a pad (do not touch – use some sort of pincers – gloves are useless) put it in the ground, give it water for a week or two and then forget about it. It will grow and in a few years you’ll have an interesting plant that gives beautiful flowers in the spring. The animals love it too. We have a Klein’s Cholla in the yard that a family of birds raise their chicks every year and it is so nice.
Narya
Is there an extension service for the state or county? That might help.
Suzanne
Barrel cactus, man. Mesquite and Palo Brea. Red yucca.
mvr
@Jackie: Deosn’t it depend a lot on both where the place is, what else is around, and the alternative being proposed? I’m not an expert so take what follows with a grain of salt. Anything that needs much water is a net drain on the resources available. Grass is out for most of AZ because of water. In Tucson (when I lived there for a bit 20 years ago), gravel w cactus and some shade trees was what people who didn’t waste water often did. What other ground cover alternatives are water light and better?
piratedan
@Anne Laurie: there’s plenty of different in AZ, just a matter of knowing where to go….
Phoenix is Hot, no argument there and it does take getting used to….
Tucson is a bit cooler and has an entirely different vibe to it, but it’s still the Sonoran Desert, but it’s in a tiny basin surrounded by mountains on each compass direction.
Elsewhere, if you like winter and all four seasons, there’s Flagstaff, Prescott and all of the Mogollon Rim communities (Payson, Show Low, Pinetop, Heber, Overgaard). If you want to experience the wide open spaces, then in the northern part of the State you have Winslow and Holbrook. If you like rolling hills and small town life, then there’s the SE part of the state where it’s cooler than Tucson (by 10-15 degrees) with tourist traps like Tombstone, the weirdness of Bisbee, the military town of Sierra Vista and just west of that, the AZ wine country of Sonoita, Tubac and Patagonia.
There’s also the retirement communities of places like Yuma, Quartzite, Green Valley and Lake Havasu City.
As always, your mileage may vary, depending on what you want in a place to live and how “big” it needs to be. Out West it IS different, “close” can mean as far away as 20 to 50 miles…..
pieceofpeace
Look into subscribing to Sunset Magazine or consider buying their book. They’ve been in existence for long, long time and content is devoted to all things in the west. It’s long been considered the garden ‘Bible’ and has articles beyond gardening that include travel, food, restaurants, events, decor and much more. They give month-to-month garden to-do’s that are specific to the local zone you live in.
Here’s an example: https://www.sunset.com/home-garden/landscaping/low-water-garden-care-tips
You can easily find their magazine, and a library will provide the book. They might have one specifically for AZ area.
piratedan
@Anne Laurie: there’s plenty of different in AZ, just a matter of knowing where to go….
Phoenix is Hot, no argument there and it does take getting used to….
Tucson is a bit cooler and has an entirely different vibe to it, but it’s still the Sonoran Desert, but it’s in a tiny basin surrounded by mountains on each compass direction.
Elsewhere, if you like winter and all four seasons, there’s Flagstaff, Prescott and all of the Mogollon Rim communities (Payson, Show Low, Pinetop, Heber, Overgaard). If you want to experience the wide open spaces, then in the northern part of the State you have Winslow and Holbrook. If you like rolling hills and small town life, then there’s the SE part of the state where it’s cooler than Tucson (by 10-15 degrees) with tourist traps like Tombstone, the weirdness of Bisbee, the military town of Sierra Vista and just west of that, the AZ wine country of Sonoita, Tubac and Patagonia.
There’s also the retirement communities of places like Yuma, Quartzite, Green Valley and Lake Havasu City.
As always, your mileage may vary, depending on what you want in a place to live and how “big” it needs to be. Out West it IS different, “close” can mean as far away as 20 to 50 miles…..
Old Dan and Little Ann
@Trivia Man: My wife is currently in Salt Lake City. I dropped her off at the airport at 4 a.m. this morning. It’s the farthest she has ever been away from home. There is huge Pride Festival next to her hotel which she sent me pictures. There were snow capped mountains in the background. I lived in Colorado for a few years and I am jealous. She was, however, taken aback that she had to give up her Irish Coffee getting on the plane (she drank it).
edited for clarity.
Kelly
The only Arizona area I know is Grand Canyon, mostly below the rim. I suspect it’s the most pristine place left in Arizona. Knee high clumps of grass with a 6″ to 24″ of bare ground between them were commonplace. I thought they looked good.
kalakal
Have a look around the area, see what’s thriving. No matter where you are in matters horticultural you have a choice:
You can either spend (and usually) waste a lot of time & money trying to make it look like somewhere else or make it easy on your back & wallet and work with the local environment.
Maxim
@BenInNM: Hi, Ben, and welcome! Now that you’ve broken the ice, stick around and chat a bit. 🙂
BenInNM
@Maxim:
@Maxim: Thanks – I think I’ve finally jumped in
CaseyL
@BenInNM: The yearly bird family sounds just delightful.
I always wonder about the families, the grown offspring, of birds who return to the same nesting spot every year. Do their kids nest nearby or go as far away as they can?
(I guess it depends on the type of bird, whether they’re a flock species or one where every generation has to find its own territory.)
As I think I’ve said before, New Mexico is the only hot-weather state I could see moving to, for its beauty and laid-back vibe. (I’m a Seattleite through and through: hot climates are not at all my thing. But I road tripped through NM back in the early 1990s and had a wonderful time.)
middlelee
See if there is a state nursery. There was one in Nevada where I bought a couple of hundred trees and shrubs that were native or performed like native. Main criteria for me was that everything provide food for birds and small animals and be very low water use. If there is such a thing they will have lots of information and people to learn from. And the prices were extremely reasonable
Growing food for humans would be best done in pots, in my opinion.
BenInNM
One of the the things I’ve loved about New Mexico is that you get four real seasons.
And as for our birds, they are curvebills and we love watching them feed their babies with our grapes
Joelle
@karen marie: Ya know it’s funny you should say that. Just tonight I was shoveling some good Mexican in my pie hole and washing it down with a frosty margarita purchased a mere block or two away from my sweet ass air conditioned house on my bike ride home from work at the local college campus, feelin Happy n healthy n fancy free AF. So much so that I put my taco chip back in the queso sauce bowl, picked up my phone and I texted my colleague and said… “Say it with me… I lOVE ARIZONA!” So there you have it. I freakin love it out here. But then again… I grew up in Ohio. So pretty much anything is an upgrade. It does get hot as Hades out here. But Coke will likely only be here during winter months. My loving lil ole WV snowbird.
Manyakitty
@Joelle: I still live in Ohio. Am visiting my parents in Tampa. I only ever experienced AZ (Scottsdale/Tempe) for a few days one July, where it was 118. Given a choice, I’d pick somewhere else entirely.
All that said, it’s a wonderful thing to be happy where you live and I am glad you found a place (and a person) that/who works for you. 🙂
Steeplejack
@Joelle:
Can you give a little more specific idea of your location, so the gardeners here can tailor their comments to your local environment? I haven’t spent much time in Arizona, but I know that, say, Tucson is very different from Phoenix.
Ms. Deranged in AZ
I also live in Arizona, in the northwest valley and I absolutely despise it here. Can’t wait to move away to the mountains or maybe Canada, if they’ll have me. I have zero advice on gardening. My pitiful efforts in the backyard which was also a blank slate has been fruitless. I’m about ready to give up on growing anything out there but weeds. Between the drought, the heat, the lack of shade, the stupid watering system that I lost the darn key to, and my omnivorous dogs nothing is works anyway. That all being said, is anyone interested in a Phoenix area meetup?
JaneE
A fast growing draught tolerant tree (after it is established) is the chitalpa. It doesn’t need much water and provides a decent light shade and showy flowers. It comes in light and deep pink varieties. Catalpa x desert willow cross.
Mallows are nice and showy too.
Wildflowersearch.org will let you put in your location and show wildflowers in that area so you can find plants that need little care.
Odie Hugh Manatee
Just a heads up if you are going to be disturbing soil in some parts of Arizona: Valley Fever
With increasing water restrictions and a bleak outlook for water in the future, she should sell the farm and get the duck outta Fodge.if she’s in one of the bad areas.
Juice Box
Summer is not planting season in the desert. Otherwise what Suzanne said. Palo Verde “Desert Museum” for shade, if you can get it far enough from the house, because they’re brittle. Desert Museum is a sterile hybrid, so no seedlings. Otherwise prickly pear, ocotillo, red yucca (Hesperaloe), creosote bush, red sage, fairy duster and rocks. Lantana and bougainvillea will provide color with a bit of supplemental water, but may get frosted to the ground in the winter. Roses are also surprisingly sturdy with some water. A small amount of supplemental water will also get you some nice citrus. Cement is nice up close to the house so that you can see the rattlers. A nice king or bull snake helps to keep the rattlers away, if you get lucky.
Joelle
Cole’s winter retreat/love nest is in Tempe, AZ near the ASU campus. No HOA, block wall construction and fencing. Have never seen a scorpion or snake on the property. No irrigation. The epitome of humble mid century modern elegance.
Steeplejack
@Joelle:
Thanks for the deets. That will help us with our kibitzing.
Juice Box
Oooh, mid mod. My favorite. The answer is still rocks and cacti. Look at pictures of houses in Palm Springs. And palo verde. And breeze block.
Mai Naem mobile
@Joelle: hI, neighbor! Cole, I have one piece of advice for you – keep your expectations low for success so you won’t get disappointed when stuff you plant dies. Otherwise, Juicebox is giving you some really good advice. I would add mesquite and desert willow to the palo verde for the trees. No sissoo trees. I wouldn’t put a water feature beyond a small bird bath because I am pretty sure we are heading into a no water features allowed down the road due to drought. Also pay attention to location of plants – will they get too much/ too little shade or too much sun/heat from walls, other plants etc. If Joelle’s electric utility is SRP, they have a cool little deal where you get 2 free trees if you listen to an hour long program about energy/water conservation. The program is totally worth it. Lots of good info. The Desert Botanical Garden is a good place to get ideas. They also have classes and have a plant sale in March and October which is worth going to just to see how much is out there that you can plant in the desert.
Ms. Deranged in AZ
@Joelle: I never saw scorpions either until we started digging in the yard so be aware that the process of planting and installing a water system will disturb habitat, motivating them to come into the house. Also someone else warned of valley fever…note that if you have pets you want to protect yourself and them from that and there is another one that is common here too but forget the name. My younger dog caught it and her immune system went nuts–was really dangerous but she is finally recovering. So while you’re digging, keep the fur babies inside.
piratedan
@Joelle: ahhhh ok, so an established suburban neighborhood, that’ll mean you’re clear of most of the desert dwellers then.
I would still look at maybe setting up a gutter/cistern system to ease watering concerns, Tempe may even have a program for that to give you a discount.
as for plants… depending on what you want to attract…. bees, butterflies, hummingbirds… in our back yard, we’ve incorporated fairy dusters, desert belles (there’s yellow, red and orange) and also some sage and plumbagos… As for trees, I would stay away from mesquites and palo verdes, you might see about some ironwoods or even some arizona pistachios.
If you need pics, just reach out and I will send you some shots
StringOnAStick
@Kelly: What you are describing is what we just turned our front yard into:: 100% native plants, mostly bunch grasses with some blooming things scattered in the widely spaced crowd of Idaho rescue and bluebunch wheatgrass. All with a subsurface drip irrigation system, so not wasting water with spray irrigation and watering weeds. The idea was to create a semi civilized version of the local Ponderosa woodlands, to go with our 80+ year old Ponderosa. Added 3 serviceberry trees for the birds.
I just don’t understand why people move to desert areas and want an English garden and lawns; nowhere in the dry West can sustain that, and the monoculture of turf grass and it’s pesticides are killing off the insects and wildlife.
Geminid
This sounds like it could be a fun project, so long as you don’t have to do too much at once.
A good opportunity to hydrate also. I recommend a mix of cool water, lime juice and sea salt as a hydration drink. Goes down easy.
For planning, I’ve found that 1/4″ graph paper is very useful for landscape design. It sounds like this yard is big enough to require a 2′ to 1/4″ scale for one sheet, or two sheets at 1′ to 1/4″.
One of those four-color pens comes in handy (I can still find them at Krogers). For instance, plantings can be green, hardscape features black, horizontal dimensions in blue numerals, vertical elevations in red.
If there is much fall and elevation is a factor, picking a point for a good benchmark and using a lightweight 4 foot level and ruler to survey relative elevation does not take long. The level can be “walked” one end over the other to step off four feet at a time.
If precise elevations are needed, a water level is a handy system. With a bucket, water, and 25 feet or more of clear 3/8″ plastic tubing, one person can take elevations accurate to 1/8 of an inch. Might be useful if you build step systems, aqueducts, pyramids etc.
Jeffg166
Go with xeriscape. Dig depressions to capture any rain of significance.
I have friends who live in Tucson. They have a drip irrigation that they are always having to fix. I would avoid that.
Nancy
@Trivia Man:
I also take my favorite rocks with me when I move. I tend towards a size I can easily carry, no head-sized rocks. Currently I’m imagining how I might drop that rock and where it might land–my foot–perhaps.
I like embedded fossils in my rocks and I like the glitter of quartz. You can have the big ones.
Chief Oshkosh
@Baud: What’s this “Sunday morning” people keep nattering on about?
SteveinPHX
Got here late, but like the above comments, it depends on what part of the state. “Flag” is way different than Phoenix metro area. Joelle could visit her local library. I found lots of books on this very subject.
TerryC
@middlelee: Also, County Conservation Districts often have annual sales of shrubs and trees at low prices.
Citizen_X
Does ocotillo grow there? It’s my favorite (Chihuahuan) desert plant. Has lovely flowers and leaflets all up and down its stem in the spring, and makes a great fence/security shield at all times.
Citizen_X
@Mai Naem mobile: Doesn’t mesquite suck up too much of the water? (Also: invasive.)
Ella in New Mexico
I lived in southeastern Arizona for a few years while my dad did a stint at Ft. Huachuca. I loved it but we never had more than a dirt/stone yard for a very good reason: thats pretty much your only option unless you’re a millionaire.
Arizona (like NM but even more so) is a completely different world from any eastern state, no matter what part of if you live in. The soils are different, the minimum and maximun daytime temps and direct sunlight is different, the altitudes go from sea level to above 7500 feet and up, and of course, water availability and precipitation levels are very, very different even in the most verdant parts of the state. And these factors vary greatly in any place you live and interact to create an incredibly difficult place to plant and grow anything not living in a hot house.
So, no matter how well meaning you are, John, unless you’re going to create an indoor potted plant garden for her, do not even attempt to do it outside her home.
Hire a professional landscaper to do it or everything will fucking die (including you if you are foolish enough to try to do anything besides walk from your vehicle to an airconditioned shelter between March and October in more than half the state. We wore shorts to soccer tournaments in Tucson and Phoenix in January FYI).
Quinerly
@Ella in New Mexico:
💚
neldob
Maybe someone already noted this, maybe not: Tucson has a WOndErful Botanic Garden. You might want to see that before you do anything, for inspiration. They probably have good books too, and you can eat there in the garden. It’s lovely.
Geminid
A few toad houses might be good, if toads live in the area.
StringOnAStick
@Jeffg166: Drip has improved significantly, but you can’t use the cheap big box store crap. The standard now is to get 1/2″ diameter tubing, either with emitters already pre-installed at 12″ or 18″, with either 1/2 GPH or 1 GPH emitters, or punch emitters directly into 1/2″ tubing that has no emitters. Using that 1/4″ stuff with emitters on the end to send to each plant is a recipe for disaster because they come off or you are always raking that stuff up when you clean, causing more breaks in the system. The current licensed irrigation contractor standard is 1/4″ tubing is ONLY for systems set up to water pots. Lots of unlicensed or just plain crappy contractors out there, so ask about what they use to avoid disappointment later.
Joelle
I’ve always wanted flagstone and a pergola out there. Some citrus trees and Java blue ice Cream banana plants around a lil tiki oasis shack. Shaded raised beds for strawberries and produce/herbs. Cacti 🌵 and desert shade trees and grasses in the front. Some Lantana, hibiscus and honeysuckle for color and hummingbirds. Desert sage, lemongrass and lavender in pots to keep the bugs away. And rock, rocks and more rocks. No bougainvillea. Bougainvillea is evil.
ninja3000
No matter what design you go with, collect a bunch of rocks and build a couple small cairns. Always delightful in any landscape!
Gvg
well ASU Tempe has a tree arboretum Tree tout
Joelle
@Citizen_X: Yes Ocotillo is an easy low maintenance option. I’d like one in the front yard. Will need to have that put in by professionals. It’s like planting a chainsaw while it’s running.
Joelle
@piratedan: excellent summary of the multitude of climate options in AZ! I love taking jaunts up north in the summer. Drive an hour or two and it’s a whole other world. It’s something I’ve always appreciated about the Southwest since my first trip out here. Plus the proximity to CA coast! I’ll always love the east. But I’ve definitely found my home out here. I think Cole is going to love it (as long as he steers clear of summer). Adios seasonal depression!
Glenn
Gateway Community College (just west of Tempe north of the airport) has a native seeds selection on a table at the entrance to their library with packets of seeds for shrubs, groundcover, flowers, and trees. They have pictures, growing requirements, etc. It’s available to anybody in Maricopa County and is well worth taking a look at as they have dozens of different plants.
SWMBO
Many years ago I saw a plywood planter DIY. I can’t find it again. So I shall attempt to describe it.
Take 2 sheets of plywood. Cut them in half (you have 4 sheets that are 4 x 4)
Take one sheet and mark it every 6 inches. Cut them into 6 inch planks.
Take another sheet and mark 6 inch steps through the middle. Cut into 2 pieces with a step pattern. These are the sides of the planter. Take the sides and attach them to the other 2 half sheets. This is the bottom and back of the planter. Take the 6 inch planks that you cut and attach them to the front of the steps. Sand it, seal it, put soil and drainage in. Put heavy duty wheels underneath it so you can move it around on flagstones or other hard surfaces. You can put small pipes at the back, add eye screws every few inches and string twine to make a trellis for plants to grow upon.