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High Desert Gardening

Flowers Shrubs & Trees Gardening High Desert

High Desert Drought Resistant Plants

JM Perez By JM Perez2 min read747 views

When my husband and I were looking to buy a house, we both agreed on a small backyard (less maintenance). However, we instantly fell in love with a smaller house our realtor showed us. Five years later, living in the High Desert of CA, we have never loved having a huge backyard more and enjoy a quieter lifestyle.

Of course, we have a lot of Weeds growing and we also have to deal with Gophers and Ground Squirrels, which can be quite overwhelming. Thankfully with patience, available tools, techniques and a willing mind – we turned it into a fun, relaxing, beautiful and inviting space.I have a few criteria before I purchase plants. They have to be evergreen or semi-evergreen; adaptable landscape plants  and definitely have to withstand heat/dryness and cold-hardiness. Last but not least, appealing to the eyes.

Daylilies: Mid-season bloomer.

1. Pretty Woman Daylily – Soft pink flower.
2. Stella D’Oro Daylily.
3. Siloam David Kirchhoff Daylily – Purple, lavender flower.


Sword Lilies: Produces beautiful tall spikes with large flowers.

1. Gladiolus ‘Super Star’                             2. Gladiolus ‘Yellow’
3. Gladiolus ‘Fiorentina’                              4. Gladiolus ‘Peter Pears’


Rosebushes with beautiful blooms, colors and sweet scent.


Succulent & Cactus: 1. Hen and Chicks  2.  Pink Crown Cactus

Herbaceous Perennial & Shrub:

1. Red Autumn Sage – Drought resistant with long period of bloom.
2. Common Broom – Erect shrub with bright yellow flowers in spring and summer.
3. Lindheimer’s Beeblossom – Perennial with white flowers, light pink/pink.


Ornamental Grasses: Add charm to landscapes.

1. Purple Fountain Grass – Reddish leaves and colorful flowers.
2. Elijah Blue Fescue Grass – Remains blue throughout the year.

Asparagus Plumosus
Asparagus Fern Beautiful vine with wiry climbing stems (contain sharp thorns).
Pendula Yucca
Yucca Recurvifolia Beautiful evergreen specimen (clusters of white flowers).
Lily of the Nile
Agapanthus ‘Storm Cloud’Produces purple trumpet-shape flowers in summer.
Crimson Glory Tea
Leptospermum Scoparium Evergreen shrub with deep-red flowers on needlelike foliage.
Lilium ‘Birgi’
Longiflorum-Asiatic Lily Produces beautiful deep pink flowers in Summer.
Asparagus Fern
Asparagus densiflorus Needlelike foliage with tiny thorns (can develop small red poisonous berries).
Noel’s Grevillea
Grevillea ‘Noellii’ Evergreen Shrub with long blooming pink & white flowers
Pink Agapanthus
Tulbaghia Violacea ‘Silver Lace’Grass-like foliage with strong garlic odor & lavender flowers.
Rosemary
Rosmarinus Officinalis Wonderful herb that makes a beautiful ornamental plant.
Daffodil
Narcissus Hardy and easy perennials to grow with attractive flowers.
Bird of Paradise Bush
Caesalpinia Gilliesii Evergreen shrub with large  yellow birdlike flowers.
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JM Perez By JM Perez
Yahoo! 360° {Archive} Home Improvement Family Gratitude High Desert

Our Front Yard Landscaping

JM Perez By JM Perez2 min read706 views

Today has been such a wonderful day. We were able to accomplish so much, all thanks to Mom’s babysitting services. She is and has always been a tremendous help when it comes to lending a hand.

We now have some Before and After pictures of the front yard landscaping to share with you (the pictures speak for themselves). Those of you who visited with us have seen some of the progress we’ve made around our Home and while there’s still much work to be done, we will take a break for now.

I purchased a couple of Phoenix Roebelenii (Pygmy Date Palm Tree) a few days ago and planted them. I know they will look lovely in a few years and add so much charm to the yard if they survive the Winter.
We are still debating about whether to grow grass (perhaps installing synthetic grass), using stepping-stones or just let the middle section as it is (plain dirt). After all, isn’t the yard colorful enough?

Front Yard, Left.
Front Yard, Left.

Do you see the dried plants below? Those are weeds. It saddens me to know that a family with children once lived here and never thought about getting rid of those dried and ugly plants. This is a front yard for goodness’ sake! Forget for one minute about what the neighbors think of you and how much you will have to pay in fines for being careless. How do you feel going home? Those things right there are a fire hazard.

Front Yard, Right.
Front Yard, Right.

We are changing the exterior appearance of our Home one day at a time. We purchased the gravel from The Rock Yard, the garden edging from Big Lots! My husband surprised me with the Cherub Fountain and we did the work ourselves. The next outdoor project will be the backyard landscape and continued clean-up.

Happy Gardening!

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JM Perez By JM Perez