Regional Picks: Tough Plants—Southwest

See regional picks for tough pretty plants , and take the article by Julie Lane Gray for even more estimation .

It ’s of import to specify first what I mean by a “ tough ” plant . To my mind , it ’s a flora that will fly high on its own as long as it is planted in a place that provides its basic motive and is give suitable water system . It wo n’t retreat if it has aggressive neighbors , sound off if it does n’t get prune for a year or two , and necessitate particular treatment so as to look good . A pretty , tough industrial plant is one that count more delicate than it in reality is .

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1. Wild Four O’Clock

Name:Mirabilis multiflora

Zones:4–8

Size:15 column inch tall and 36 to 48 inch wide

Conditions : Full Dominicus to partial shade ; tolerates most soil type , include clay

aboriginal compass : Southwestern United States

This summer - blooming Southwestern wildflower is an all-important perennial for xeriscapes . It turn happily withminimum caution and watering while blooming continuouslyfor several months in summer . An herbaceous works that sheds all its bow in wintertime , wild four o’clock has a massive tuberous root that makes it very drouth tolerant once shew . steady irrigation is not necessitate ( or wanted ) and will create a vast , leafy , nonblooming flora . pollinate by hawk moths , the numerous , large magenta - pink bloom open in the afternoon and close up the next first light . Wild four o’clock will develop in low- , mid- , and eminent - top areas .

2. Mexican Blue Sage

Name:Salvia chamaedryoides

Zones:7–10

Size:12 to 18 inches tall and 24 to 36 inch wide

weather : Full Lord’s Day ; sandy , rocky , or loamy , well - drained soil

Native range : Mexico

This shrubby salvia is an outstanding alternative for xeriscapes , where its showy , corrugate grizzly - light-green foliage and brusque spikes of medium - disconsolate flower are a delight . This plant jazz summertime heating plant ( when grown in humble and mid - elevations ) and blooms continuously from spring into nightfall when establish occasional subsidiary irrigation . aboriginal to the high Chihuahuan desert in the Sierra Madre Oriental mountain range of Mexico , it ’s pollinate by hummingbirds . Here in Zone 6 in high - height Santa Fe , I use it as an ever - blooming container plant in full Lord’s Day .

3. ‘Marion Sampson’ Scarlet Monardella

Name:Monardella macrantha‘Marion Sampson’

Zones:6–9

Size:3 in grandiloquent and 12 to 15 inches spacious

Conditions : Full Dominicus to fond ghost ; flaxen or loamy , well - drained soil

aboriginal range : California

In spring the fiery scarlet , skywards - facing flowers of this plant are stunningly strange and always reap a second look . pollenate by hummingbirds , this low - spreading beauty is very cold hardy . ‘ Marion Sampson ’ grow in low- , mid- , and gamey - tiptop areas ; however , in lower lift it will call for some shade with subsidiary irrigation . Infrequent summertime watering is needed in mid- to high - elevation sphere . I ’ve found that it seems to do best in my garden with dawn sun and good afternoon shade , enjoying the protection of a nearby pine tree tree . With glossy , semi - evergreen leaf , it ’s fabulous in rock gardens or when used as a little - scale ground cover planted in radical of five or more . Deadheading encourages reblooming .

4. ‘Dark Violet’ Skullcap

Name:Scutellaria‘Dark Violet’

Zones:5 - 9

Size:6 inches magniloquent and 12 to 18 column inch wide

Conditions : Full Lord’s Day to partial shade ; sandy , gravely , or loamy , well - drained soil

Native range : loan-blend

‘ Dark Violet ’ is a tough , xeric , ever - flower perennialwith richly colored disconsolate violet prime . It loves hot , harsh , full - sun term and is a good choice for plantingen masse shot . It get well in low- , mid- , and high - elevation area , but afternoon nuance and regular irrigation are needed at grim ALT . A tidy mound agriculturalist , this is a hybrid I created between two native skullcaps , Scutellaria suffrutescens and S. resinosa‘Smoky Hills ’ . The lead plant is an outstanding performer . Cut back to just above primer level in midspring to ready the flora for the come up growing time of year .

— David Salman is the founder of High Country Gardens in Santa Fe , New Mexico .

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Regional Picks: Tough Plants—Southeast

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