Going Dry with Color!

This time of year is always a dismal time for me. Indian summer, my favorite season, has just passed and winter is around the corner. I hate to say goodbye to the flowers and plants that have given me so much pleasure during the summer.

But this year is a little different. Last summer was a particularly inspiring gardening season for me because I've taken on the xeriscape challenge.


Fighting the water grab has made me a lot more conscious about my personal use of water. Water used to seem so plentiful here, but after seeing the results of our depleting aquifer, I have realized that water conservation is a personal responsibility, as well as community responsibility. And it's true for Snake Valley users as well as for Las Vegas users.

Although I've been intrigued with the concept of xeriscape which is growing plant species that are soil-and-water-friendly in dry environments, I haven't liked much of what I have seen. Landscaping with rocks and straggly plants just didn't inspire my green thumb. But after combing the Internet for ideas, I finally took the plunge, ripped out some lawn, and ordered dozens of plants from a nursery in New Mexico.

I absolutely love the result! These plants have bloomed all summer and fall, only stopping after a really hard frost. They have wonderful fragrance - light and spicy, and attract hummingbirds and bees. As promised, they take very little water, tolerate the alkaline soil, and as an added bonus, tasty really nasty to rabbits and chipmunks!

This is one of my favorite plants although it's not a particularly fragrant plant. It's called wild 4 o'clock. The flowers open up in the morning and evening, closing during the hottest part of the day. I only have 3 plants, but in the first season, they've covered an area of about 15 square feet, and are loaded with bright pink flowers.

These gaillardia have been beautiful all summer, nicely mounded and covered with flowers. I don't know if I should have been picking the spent flowers. I still have a lot to learn about handling some of these plants and may be doing a lot of weeding next summer if they've produced as many seeds as I think they have.

I even incorporated the mandatory dry stream bed that so many xeriscape gardens seem to have.

For a woodland look, I planted several varieties of penstemon. These were a little slower to take off, but by the end of the season, this part of the garden looked and smelled like the undergrowth in a pine forest. The nursery instructions said it would take up to three seasons for these plants to reach full maturity, but they were beautiful during the first season.

So... for my first season of xeriscape gardening, I've avoided landscaping with rocks. The beauty and fragrance of these desert plants is simply amazing. I am more enthusiastic than ever. The cold winter months will be filled with dreams of new landscapes to conquer.

Whether or not my small part in reducing the "water footprint" makes any difference in the larger scheme of things, I get a personal satisfaction knowing that I have a beautiful garden that is truly part of the desert I love.