Common name:Lion's Tail
Botanical name:Leonotis leonorus

This is an upright shrub to about 6' tall and wide. Lion's Tail provides both lush greenery and a durable, drought-tolerant shrub. Tubular, bright orange flowers are produced from summer through fall. Plants thrive in desert heat, and can be grown in containers, so plants can be moved to sheltered locations for frost protection.

Maintenance Tips

Leonotis leonorus is a great woody shrub for attracting birds, especially hummingbirds, and even contains medicinal properties. It is a woody shrub that typically grows 4-6’ tall and wide, with the showy orange flower stalks reaching another 6-12” beyond the foliage. It tends to become dense with cross branching, so thinning out the branches and allowing sunlight to the interior benefits the plant greatly. The winter is the best time to thin as it tends to go slightly deciduous with colder weather. Thinning once a year will greatly assist with maintaining a contained and natural shape. To keep the plant looking fresh, it is recommended to remove the flowers from the base of the stalk at the end of the flowering season.

Common name:Provence Lavender
Botanical name:Lavandula X intermedia 'Provence'

With tall 24"-30" stems, 'Provence' has true, lavender colored flowers that are fragrant and excellent for cutting. It flowers in early June and has large, gray green leaves.

Common name:Santa Barbara Daisy, Mexican Daisy
Botanical name:Erigeron karvinskianus

This low mounding perennial, with fine leaves and white to pinkish, daisy-like flowers, is an excellent asset to rock gardens.

Maintenance Tips

Erigeron karvinskianus is a very vigorous, spreading perennial that can get 12-18" tall and spread out to 5'. It is a very fast grower and is covered with pinkish-white flowers nearly year-round. It is fairly drought tolerant and can thrive in just about any soil conditions. This plant can often become invasive in small gardens because it spreads and can over-seed and easily overtake other plants. Maintenance on this plant is only considered low if it is planted in mass and not competing with other plants. If this is used in a small garden, it will require regular pruning to manage its size. It may also be necessary to apply pre-emergent throughout the garden to keep the seeds from germinating and overtaking the garden.

Common name:Dwarf Compact Heavenly Bamboo
Botanical name:Nandina domestica 'Nana'

The ' Nana' is a small, rounded shrub that grows from 12"-15" high. Its growth habit is dense, and the leaves become bright red in color in cold winter areas. It can receive sun to part shade, and is used well as an accent plant.

Common name:Krauter Vasuvius Flowering Plum
Botanical name:Prunus cerasifera 'Krauter Vesuvius'

The 'Krauter Vesuvius' is a smaller growing, flowering plum that grows to 18' high by 12' wide. Its leaves are purplish black throughout the growing season, and the flowers have a light pink color.

Common name:Nandina, Heavenly Bamboo
Botanical name:Nandina domestica

Nandina domestica is a graceful upright shrub that grows from 3'-6' in height. It gets its name from its bamboo-like growth habit. When thinned from the center it bears a remarkable resemblance to bamboo. It is best used in groups. It can be used in a shaded patio or out in a shrub border with full sun. An interesting feature of Heavenly Bamboo is the bronze color in the new growth when planted in full sun. It also bears clusters of white flowers in the spring.

Common name:Gingerbread Man Hybrid Daylily
Botanical name:Hemerocallis 'Gingerbread Man'

This Daylily has attention-getting, mahogany and orange blooms over dark green foliage. It is very heat tolerant.