I guess I have mainly seen photos of them when much larger and didn't recognize them at that size. Awesome. I have some seeds of those I just started.
That must have been the plot next door that Paul bought quite recently, and where he used the rubble from the old house to improve the drainage. Two different setups but both are absolutely stunning.
Yeah, that's what I was thinking of. I'm probably especially partial to it because I love poppies.
Very beautiful. That magenta definitely pops. If I saw that first photo as a stand alone post, I would not assume England.
Ain’t that the truth. Finding xeric plants around here (a literal desert) is amazingly difficult. Mormons grew up using copious amounts of irrigation and the influx of an extra million or so people hasn’t broken the habit yet.
You can usually find Red Yucca and probably ‘Color Guard’ but that is often the extent of it. I have seen Yucca rostrata stocked (once) and never Yucca elata, much less other hardy Yucca. I’ve seen more than a few Agave parryi var. truncata, which are all Huntington Clones which will not survive our winters.Meangreen94z wrote: ↑Tue Mar 05, 2024 10:32 am The local Austin nurseries seem to already push natives or hardy xeric plants. The last 3 winters and 2 summers have helped clarify what will survive here longterm, I’ve noticed less and less attempts at tropical species. I’m always up for trying new species that are close to proven ones. The common columnar cactus are Neobuxbaumia polylopha, Saguaro, and Trichocereus terscheckii. I’ve found a number of similar Trichocereus that so far have done well the past 2 winters in low to mid teens F (with a tarp thrown over).
In the past I’ve had to order a lot off the internet. I found a local nursery that buys heavily from wholesale growers in Arizona, and will order pretty much anything I show them.Gafoto wrote: ↑Tue Mar 05, 2024 2:13 pmYou can usually find Red Yucca and probably ‘Color Guard’ but that is often the extent of it. I have seen Yucca rostrata stocked (once) and never Yucca elata, much less other hardy Yucca. I’ve seen more than a few Agave parryi var. truncata, which are all Huntington Clones which will not survive our winters.Meangreen94z wrote: ↑Tue Mar 05, 2024 10:32 am The local Austin nurseries seem to already push natives or hardy xeric plants. The last 3 winters and 2 summers have helped clarify what will survive here longterm, I’ve noticed less and less attempts at tropical species. I’m always up for trying new species that are close to proven ones. The common columnar cactus are Neobuxbaumia polylopha, Saguaro, and Trichocereus terscheckii. I’ve found a number of similar Trichocereus that so far have done well the past 2 winters in low to mid teens F (with a tarp thrown over).
There are lots of xeric plants I’m trying to grow that are clearly marginal but quite a few that are happy as clams here. Joshua Trees like SLC better than most spots in Nevada as far as I can tell. I never see them for sale here, sadly.
A lot of the Mojave plants just won’t tolerate humidity and mist for any period it seems. It can’t be a wet feet issue, my Joshua Tree tolerates frozen wet roots all winter long. Then again it’s almost never warm and wet here. I’ve learned the hard way that another Mojave native, Agave utahensis, will accept frozen saturated soil in winter but it will rot to mush in a hurry if it’s warm and wet indoors. Overwatering kills them very very fast.Meangreen94z wrote: ↑Tue Mar 05, 2024 4:37 pmIn the past I’ve had to order a lot off the internet. I found a local nursery that buys heavily from wholesale growers in Arizona, and will order pretty much anything I show them.Gafoto wrote: ↑Tue Mar 05, 2024 2:13 pmYou can usually find Red Yucca and probably ‘Color Guard’ but that is often the extent of it. I have seen Yucca rostrata stocked (once) and never Yucca elata, much less other hardy Yucca. I’ve seen more than a few Agave parryi var. truncata, which are all Huntington Clones which will not survive our winters.Meangreen94z wrote: ↑Tue Mar 05, 2024 10:32 am The local Austin nurseries seem to already push natives or hardy xeric plants. The last 3 winters and 2 summers have helped clarify what will survive here longterm, I’ve noticed less and less attempts at tropical species. I’m always up for trying new species that are close to proven ones. The common columnar cactus are Neobuxbaumia polylopha, Saguaro, and Trichocereus terscheckii. I’ve found a number of similar Trichocereus that so far have done well the past 2 winters in low to mid teens F (with a tarp thrown over).
There are lots of xeric plants I’m trying to grow that are clearly marginal but quite a few that are happy as clams here. Joshua Trees like SLC better than most spots in Nevada as far as I can tell. I never see them for sale here, sadly.
Yucca brevifolia seem incompatible or atleast tricky in Central Texas. I have not seen or heard of any longterm success stories. Seedlings or small Yucca rotted within a year. I’m now trying trunking in large mounds of fast draining soil. They made it through the winter fine. Whether it’s this year or another we will inevitably hit a heavy period of rain, which local reservoirs desperately need, and that will be a test.
Creosote grows to the south of San Antonio as you head towards Laredo and of course in West Texas. I’m actually trying 2 of them just for the smell after a fresh rain.Gafoto wrote: ↑Tue Mar 05, 2024 10:47 pmA lot of the Mojave plants just won’t tolerate humidity and mist for any period it seems. It can’t be a wet feet issue, my Joshua Tree tolerates frozen wet roots all winter long. Then again it’s almost never warm and wet here. I’ve learned the hard way that another Mojave native, Agave utahensis, will accept frozen saturated soil in winter but it will rot to mush in a hurry if it’s warm and wet indoors. Overwatering kills them very very fast.Meangreen94z wrote: ↑Tue Mar 05, 2024 4:37 pmIn the past I’ve had to order a lot off the internet. I found a local nursery that buys heavily from wholesale growers in Arizona, and will order pretty much anything I show them.Gafoto wrote: ↑Tue Mar 05, 2024 2:13 pm
You can usually find Red Yucca and probably ‘Color Guard’ but that is often the extent of it. I have seen Yucca rostrata stocked (once) and never Yucca elata, much less other hardy Yucca. I’ve seen more than a few Agave parryi var. truncata, which are all Huntington Clones which will not survive our winters.
There are lots of xeric plants I’m trying to grow that are clearly marginal but quite a few that are happy as clams here. Joshua Trees like SLC better than most spots in Nevada as far as I can tell. I never see them for sale here, sadly.
Yucca brevifolia seem incompatible or atleast tricky in Central Texas. I have not seen or heard of any longterm success stories. Seedlings or small Yucca rotted within a year. I’m now trying trunking in large mounds of fast draining soil. They made it through the winter fine. Whether it’s this year or another we will inevitably hit a heavy period of rain, which local reservoirs desperately need, and that will be a test.
Can you grow creosote or bigtooth sage there or are they also too humidity sensitive?
I have a good source of larger plants when I visit St. George and I don’t mind buying all the special snowflakes off the internet. Lots of the Agave hybrids are so rare and new I can’t expect any of them to be landscape size. It’a quite satisfying to have a vast pipeline of small plants that I can count on growing up and planting in the ground over the next few years.
The cactus is Echinocereus coccineus var. paucispinus. It’s a work in progress. I will have plenty of empty containers you can have.
Actually my wife wanted control of the inside, so it worked out.
The next 2 months are the time to get stuff in the ground locally, to get them established for the potential harsh summer and winter. Tall yuccas and palms that go in - do they not need to be staked up? Seems like I always see them with a relatively small root ball/pot size.Meangreen94z wrote: ↑Sun Mar 10, 2024 6:42 pm A shot of my Chihuahuan Desert garden. The palm is Brahea dulcis
IMG_9858.jpeg
Weather they need it or not, for me the effort of staking them in is the insurance premium I pay so I don't have replant something I already planted. I always found a replant to be 10x harder than the initial plant.nsp88 wrote: ↑Mon Mar 11, 2024 12:06 pmTall yuccas and palms that go in - do they not need to be staked up? Seems like I always see them with a relatively small root ball/pot size.Meangreen94z wrote: ↑Sun Mar 10, 2024 6:42 pm A shot of my Chihuahuan Desert garden. The palm is Brahea dulcis
IMG_9858.jpeg
Is that myrtle spurge new to you or have you grown it here a while? Curious how it does here.
