Common name:Jerusalem Sage
Botanical name:Phlomis fruticosa
This hardy perennial is a useful, old-time garden plant with coarse, woolly gray green, wrinkled leaves and yellow, 1" flowers in ball-shaped whorls. It handles drought and poor soils but needs full sun.
Common name:Dwarf Bottlebrush Little John
Botanical name:Callistemon X viminalis 'Little John'
The 'Little John' exhibits very dense, compact growth to 3' x 3'. It produces clusters of blood red flowers and grey green foliage. A very regular, almost symmetrical, spiral patten of dense oval leaves is shown along the stems.
Common name:Radiation Bush Lantana
Botanical name:Lantana 'Radiation'
This shrub will grow 3'-6' tall and has small, dark green leaves with orange and red flowers that are in constant bloom all year.
Common name:Dwarf Bottlebrush Little John
Botanical name:Callistemon X viminalis 'Little John'
The 'Little John' exhibits very dense, compact growth to 3' x 3'. It produces clusters of blood red flowers and grey green foliage. A very regular, almost symmetrical, spiral patten of dense oval leaves is shown along the stems.
Common name:Blue Fescue, Blue Fescue Grass
Botanical name:Festuca glauca
This ground cover/grass will grow less than 1' tall and has small, blue-green, evergreen leaves that are very thin and hair-like. Flowers appear in the summer but are insignificant. This dependable ground cover prefers full sun in coastal areas and afternoon shade in warm inland areas. It needs well draining soil and is drought tolerant once it's established. Leaves may burn during the summer but trim in winter to keep it looking refreshed.
Common name:Pincushion Flower
Botanical name:Scabiosa caucasica
A perennial, this plant is a cushion-form groundcover or bedding plant. It grows to 1' to 2' tall, 2'-3' wide. White, bluish and lavender colored pompom-like flowers rise above the foliage.
Common name:Dwarf Eared Coreopsis
Botanical name:Coreopsis auriculata 'Nana'
A low, mat-forming perennial to 2' wide, the 'Nana' bears deep orange yellow flowers on short stalks from spring through fall (if deadheaded faithfully), and occasionally into winter. It requires sun and average watering. -Monterey Bay Nursery
Common name:Crape Myrtle
Botanical name:Lagerstroemia indica
The new leaves of this species are 2" long, bright green, and tinged with bronze. Some cultivars have spectacular fall color. When it has a bare outline, its rounded seed capsules add interest. Its delicate flowers bloom in 6"-12" long clusters. The flower colors could be shades of red, rose, pink, purple, and white, blooming in summer. It thrives on heat, and new cultivars have been created that resist mildew. This tree prefers full sun and has low watering needs once it's established.
Common name:Shrub Rose selections
Botanical name:Rosa Shrub varieties
The dark green, heavily veined leaves of this bushy shrub are strong support for the pure white or pink, nearly double flowers it produces. This is a very tolerant, heavily scented plant with an impressive fall color. Also, large hips appear intermittently with this plant.
Designer: Susan and Pat Price
Photographer: GardenSoft
Practice grass-cycling by leaving short grass clippings on lawns after mowing, so that nutrients and organic matter are returned to the soil.
Adjust sprinklers to avoid watering sidewalks and driveways.
Attract, or buy beneficial insects such as ladybugs and lacewings to control pest outbreaks in your garden.