It’s been six months since I last talked about the desert bed in the front yard (technically outside the backyard fence on the street side). As a quick reminder, this is what this area was like until February 2014:
February 16. 2014 before the Pittosporum tobira hedge came down
After planting it initially looked sparse:
March 16, 2014 right after planting
But not for long. Just six months later many of the plants (especially the perennials) had exploded. A year later I had already removed some of them because they were crowding out the succulents. Now, a year and a half after we created this bed, the succulents have put on enough size to become more noticeable; give it another year and they’ll be standouts.
October 16, 2015
Let’s take a closer look at the plants.
LEFT: Compact Texas ranger ( Leucophyllum frutescens ‘Compactum’) MIDDLE: Aloe ‘Moon Glow’ and Agave macroacantha RIGHT: Mexican bush sage ( Salvia leucantha ‘Variegata’)
Mexican bush sage ( Salvia leucantha ‘Variegata’). Yes, this started out as a variegated plant, However, the variegation was never strong and completely disappeared over time.
Aloe cameronii, starting to turn red. Colder temperatures will bring out the red even more.
LEFT: Agave gentryi ‘Jaws’ RIGHT: Yucca linearifolia
Agave gentryi ‘Jaws’
Agave zebra
Looking east
LEFT: Baja fairy duster ( Calliandra californica) RIGHT: Aloe ferox
LEFT TO RIGHT: Agave parrasana × colorata, Agave parrasana, Aloe deltoideodonta, Aloe broomii, Aloe hereroensis, Aloe petricola, Agave macroacantha, Aloidendron ‘Hercules’
Agave parrasana
Agave parrasana × colorata
Aloe deltoideodonta, Aloe broomii, Aloe hereroensis
Aloe broomii
Aloe deltoideodonta
Aloe hereroensis
Agave applanata ‘Cream Spike’
Looking west
Aloidendron ‘Hercules’, Aloe ‘Moon Glow’, Yucca rostrata, Agave americana ‘Mediopicta Alba’
Aloe ‘Moon Glow’, Yucca rostrata, Agave americana ‘Mediopicta Alba’, Agave ovatifolia, plus another Aloe hereroensis and Aloe ‘Moon Glow’
Whale’s tongue agave ( Agave ovatifolia)
BOTTOM LEFT: Veltheimia capensis (a bulb from South Africa) TOP LEFT: Agave deserti var. nelsonii MIDDLE: Aloe capitata var. quartziticola RIGHT: Agave palmeri (dwarf form)
Pedilanthus bracteatus (aka Euphorbia bracteata) behind the ‘Sonoran Emerald’ palo verde. Luisa, this is the cutting you got from me from Rancho Reubidoux. As you can see, it’s thrived!
Agave mckelveyana
Agave ocahui (not specifically labeled ‘Wavy Gravy’ but looks pretty wavy to me)
Agave schidigera ‘Durango Delight’
Aloe ‘Erik the Red’, complex hybrid that will grow to 6-8 ft. tall by 2-3 ft. wide. In the winter it produces blood-red inflorescences.
Yucca baccata var. vespertina ‘Hualampai Blue’ (from Cistus Nursery)
Agave colorata
Agave colorata
Agave ‘Sharkskin’
View towards the west
View towards the west. Look at how big the ‘Sonoran Emerald’ palo verde has grown!
Yesterday afternoon a complete stranger rang the doorbell. He had just driven by our house and simply had to stop to take a closer look at the plants. He said he’d never come across anything like it in Davis. It was very gratifying to see somebody else so excited about what we’ve created. It made my day!
(Carl, if you read this, thanks again for saying hi and for checking out my blog! I’ll be happy to share some succulent offsets with you!)
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Front yard desert garden index