Ephedra

Green Mormon Tea / Ephedra viridis is a tough, evergreen shrub for the drylands of the American West:

It is native to the Colorado Plateau, and it performs mightily. This is one underused evergreen shrub in Albuquerque. I guess it isn't brown, gray, or dead-looking enough for 10 months... It prefers sandy or gravelly soil, and it is at least as hardy as arid and semi-arid USDA z 5-8.

It did struggle some in the insanely hot summers of 2001-2003, but not before or since. But some agaves struggled, too.

That might suggest a lower, hotter climate limit at about 3000' elevation, from the Las Vegas - Abq latitude and points south.

Nice appearance in the dead of winter, too:

Ma Huang or Bluestem Joint Fir / Ephedra equisetina:

This is a native of western China's arid interior basins. Talk about a desert, plus highs are well over 100F much of the summer, and their winters are as cold as portions of the Great Basin. It is at least as hardy as arid and semiarid USDA z 5-8. Cool, blue stems.

And back home to the Chihuahuan Desert of New Mexico.

Canutillo or Desert Joint Fir / Ephedra trifurca:

Green like E. viridis, Canutillo gets larger, to about a 7' height and spread, and slightly open. It is native and at least as hardy as arid USDA z 7-9, (including Albuquerque, where it was documented before the city grew). It is uncommon this far north or from growers. It prefers sandy or gravelly soil.

Other relatives I didn't post on, with similar cultural needs, include:

Boundary Ephedra/ Ephedra aspera

Nevada Joint Fir / Ephedra nevadensis

Torrey Joint Fir / Ephedra torreyana (Abq native)

Hopefully, none of these tough, heat and drought-loving Ephedra plants will be overlooked for gardens for much longer.

Yuccas Grandes

Yucca is New Mexico's state flower, but our state didn't specify which yucca, as I noted in a past New Mexico Magazine interview. Most towns in NM have at least one species of yucca nearby - good call!

The official New Mexico state act (p. 2 / A) - here.

As with oaks, Mexico also has the US beat on yucca species diversity. I'll concentrate on some taller yuccas found in Albuquerque & points south:

Such as that monster Soaptree, on the Chihuahuan desert grassland north of Carrizozo, one cold November morning.

Below are just a few examples that make bold, evergreen landscape statements in many towns in the Desert Southwest, from Las Vegas to Abq to El Paso to Carlsbad, and even beyond the desert. However, in places with less sophistication, their commonality often gets them far less respect than they deserve, certainly poor design use, and sometimes removal. Weird, since in Albuquerque or El Paso, they look green and happy on 6-10" of average yearly rainfall.

Yet with countless tree yuccas in our landscapes for a century, one even native, some folks still ask, "but are they hardy?' I bet they don't ask that about aspens, bluegrass or photinias. Time to turn off their water!

Tree yuccas are the palms of the high deserts. Some are even called "palmilla" in Spanish!


Palm or Faxon Yucca / Yucca faxoniana or Y. carnerosana - ever-common (Albuquerque's Four Hills area):

Old and happy. It's native to uplands and a few lower elevation areas in the Chihuahuan Desert, from desert scrub to desert grassland to pinon-juniper-oak areas.

An Albuquerque landscape designer I used to know, once told me how in the early 1970's, a plant digger who sold to the landscape company he co-owned, noted his interest in bringing up some palm yuccas to try out. So, he did - the rest is history.

At one of the countless car lots on Central Ave in Abq:

I bet there are more of those planted in Abq - and now Arizona cities - than are left in Trans Pecos Texas. A shame their native plant protection laws are as weak and unenforced as NM's. But there's hope.

Mountain States Wholesale Nursery in AZ is again disproving false myths about growing desert plants from seed, over collecting them from ranches or the wild. The Y. faxoniana near the sound wall were planted from 15 gallon sizes, forming trunks at the time of this photo, just 2 years later. April - I-40 and Louisiana in Abq:

Wild-collected plants (palm yucca, other tree yuccas, ocotillos, pinons, etc) have a 50% survival rate, and they usually take years to re-root and begin to grow. They often look rough from handling and transportation.

Seed-grown plants have over a 90% survival rate, and they start growing once planted from the container, growing 12-18" a year..sometimes faster. They look larger and usually exhibit little damage; also do not tend to come with the dreaded agave snout weevil, which wild-collected, broadleaf yuccas often come with. (fortunately, most narrowleaf yuccas do not seem to be affected by them)

Though in desert cities, with all the cheap, collected accent plants used, the weevils are still around. Nothing is perfect, but seed-grown nursery yuccas are win-win.

So there!

Outlaw bikers might also prefer seed-grown Yucca faxoniana, and you don't want to chap their hides:

I bet he's mad now. The City or their contractor recently killed most of them by skinning the protective skirts of dead, dried foliage insulation from the trunks, and then came the 2/11 freeze...that's a future post.

Ahh, late April in Burque. All in bloom! (Supper Rock, Albuquerque):

Torrey Yucca / Yucca torreyi - old, big and happy, this clump topping out at about 20' tall (Nob Hill in Abq):

It is a Chihuahuan Desert native, and it really makes a statement in the rocky uplands of Trans Pecos Texas up to Carlsbad, and above southern NM's valleys. In it's native range, tall, lean and mean (Las Cruces NM):

Mountain Yucca / Yucca schottii (Cochise Stronghold in the Dragoon Mountains, Cochise County AZ):




















Mountain Yucca is from the madrean oak savannas and woodlands of the Sierra Madre Occidental, which extend to the Catalina Mtns above Tucson. That yucca is known to be hardy to cooler, damper climes, as in USDA Z 6 in southern New England. So, Mountain Yucca may be the one to try if you are in wetter, but not too cold of a climate.


Mojave Yucca / Yucca schidigera (near Red Rock Canyon and Las Vegas NV):

Joshua Tree / Yucca brevifolia (Sandia Heights, Albuquerque foothills), but it is an endemic Mojave Desert species:

A young joshua (NE Albuquerque medians):

Nice, waxy blooms:

An oddly-formed joshua that blooms early, mid-March (NE Abq):

Another view of the same, irregular-formed Joshua Tree:

Soaptree / Yucca elata is another Chihuahuan Desert tree yucca, and it happens to be the only tree yucca native in the Albuquerque area and the middle Rio Grande valley of central New Mexico:

Mid-May at the I-10 rest area leaving Arizona, entering NM.

I recall Soaptree first occuring on the mesas west of Sanderson TX, then more where it nicely defines the Marfa Plateau and on to past Silver City, going all the way to Tucson, the Verde Valley of central AZ, and north to Santa Rosa and just north of Abq in NM. The largest ones are west of Deming NM, and Danger Garden posted on those - here. (but of course!) It is as common as roadrunners and chile in Abq and Las Cruces landscapes, but there are many nice ones in Las Vegas NV, too. I even saw an OK-looking one in Kerrville TX, plus some small ones in metro Denver and Boulder, and a really large Soaptree clump in summer-hot Pueblo, Colorado.

They grow fast, but rarely transplant from wild-dug plants. Seed grown, 5 gallon soaptrees grow trunks within 3 years in Abq, reaching 10' in 10 years, or less. Some nurseries sell 15 gallon ones, for a head-start.

A young one at a home (the sandy Abq west mesa):

There are a number of weird forms of Soaptree, such as with foliage lining the trunk (NE Abq):

And this is the weirdest Soaptree, with such small foliage heads (Abq near the State Fairgrounds):

A common, more compact form (UNM in Albuquerque):

And they get tall, this one probably over 40 years old (NE Abq):

Tough enough? (Central, SW Abq)

Soaptrees often grow along guardrails, escaping roadside mowing (a wild soaptree, Comanche in NE Abq):

And another Soaptree (near UNM in Abq):

Flower towers:

Nice flower petal litter, a surprise waking up to this at our motel, on the way back home (Carlsbad NM):

And back to Las Cruces, the Mecca of Soaptree, and the incredible Organ Mtns at sunset:

(I was listening to Cake's "Comfort Eagle" that magical May evening, the high, dry desert air blowing into my car windows)

Blue Yucca / Yucca rigida is native where the Ay-Chihuahuan Desert and Madrean ecoregions meet. Very uncommon in gardens, but I see it in Abq some, and this nice specimen in Las Vegas NV:

In a lush garden in Phoenix AZ:

And a 3-4 year-young Blue Yucca in Abq at the Rio Grande Botanic Garden (theirs' now have trunks, taller than me):

Yuccas are most spectacular with xeric grasses and wildflowers to soften their bases, like that Chocolate Flower.


Beaked Yucca / Yucca rostrata, the again-popular Chihuahuan Desert native. (near the NM State Fairgrounds in Abq):

An older one (50 years old?), growing along a parking area (E of UNM in Albuquerque):

A Beaked Yucca thriving at 6,000' elevation (Sandia Heights, far NE Abq):

Yet another one, happier than my class was on a 102F, humid afternoon at the beginning of the monsoon season (Abq):

A Beaked Yucca with the skirt trimmed to evoke a more tropical effect, especially with the Sago underneath (Nob Hill area, Abq):

Me, tagging some seed-grown specimens for my design at a Central New Mexico Community College landscape design project in Abq (Mountain States' high elevation Cochise AZ yard, 2/2003):

Soft and sharp at former boss' home (Sandia Heights, Abq):

Beaked yuccas are like many people, the good ones improving with age (Las Cruces):

New Mexico and other desert southwest locales grow some amazing tree yuccas. But...

Do you hear me speak of allowing ample room for plants to mature? This is the largest Beaked Yucca I know of in cultivation, in Fort Stockton TX. It was spotted by my Arizona friend Dan Goodspeed, standing under it for scale. Yes, some things are bigger in Texas...

This specimen is recognized as the National Champion, though it is named "Yucca thompsoniana" - here.

But while everyone from Texas to Southern California argues who has the best sunsets, the nicest climate, and probably even the largest tree yuccas, New Mexico has everyone beat on the largest roadrunner!

Paisano Pete in Fort Stockton TX - cute, refined:

Las Cruces NM on I-10 - this is a big roadrunner. Made of roadside trash, it pays homage to - yes - NM's state bird (p. 2 / B) - here:

So, where and how could you use tree yuccas in your garden or designs?

I'll post more in the future, including great ways to use them.

And perhaps I'll add a few more taller yuccas, over 6' tall, that also grow well in Abq and other Desert SW towns, including:

Spanish Bayonet / Yucca aloifolia

Arizona Yucca / Yucca baccata var. thornberi

Palma China / Yucca decipiens

Mound-Lily / Yucca gloriosa

Thompson Yucca / Yucca thompsoniana

Walk On the Mild Side - Front Yards

Well, it was mild until recently! But our present "wild" has probably happened for short periods before; may it soon pass.

A Tidewater Gardener called for posts on what we see walking, in "Winter Walk-Off 2012 - here; Danger Garden added her take - here. In true form, I combine both, though our winter seems over except a few blips!

Below is an inventory of native plants in my neighborhood's front yards, on a gloomy but mild 3/7/2012. I listed each plant in order of type, then by visually estimating how common each is. (my own property, rear or side yards, or less attractive yards, were not included)

trees + skyline accents
Palm or Faxon Yucca / Yucca faxoniana or Y. carnerosana:

Desert Willow / Chilopsis linearis:

Pinon / Pinus edulis:

Ocotillo / Fouquieria splendens:

This ocotillo is producing many new stems down low, a bit unusual:

A preview of what the same ocotillo looks like in the late spring, plus the Apache Plume the owners removed, but mentioned below:

Soaptree Yucca / Yucca elata:

Desert Olive / Forestiera neomexicana

Beaked Yucca / Yucca rostrata:

Arizona Ash / Fraxinus velutina

shrubs
Apache Plume (see above under Ocotillo) / Fallugia paradoxa
Chamisa / Ericameria nauseosa:

Ceniza or Texas Ranger / Leucophyllum spp.:

Turpentine Bush / Ericameria laricifolia
Mariola / Parthenium incanum

accents
Red Yucca / Hesperaloe parviflora:



























Blue Sotol or Desert Spoon:

Banana Yucca or Datil:

Thompson Yucca / Yucca thompsoniana:

Tree Cholla
Narrowleaf Yucca
Mescal Agave
Brownspine Prickly Pear
Desert or Engelmann Prickly Pear:

Beargrass / Nolina microcarpa (R, cut back due to overgrowing space):

Claret Cup Cactus / Echinocereus triglochidiatus
Spiny Hedgehog Cactus / Echinocereus coccineus
Rainbow Cactus / Echinocereus dasycanthus:

Texas Sotol / Dasylirion texanum
Bunny Ears Prickly Pear / Opuntia microdasys:

Comanche Prickly Pear / Opuntia camanchica
Golden-Flowered Agave / Agave chrysantha:

Artichoke Agave / Agave parryi var. truncata
Santa Rita Prickly Pear

groundcovers + herbaceous plants
Mexican Feathergrass or Threadgrass / Nasella tenuissima:

Chocolate Flower / Berlandiera lyrata
Wright's Verbena / Verbena wrightii
Black Dalea / Dalea frutescens

In addition, about half the homes do not have one native plant used in their landscapes, and one home is without even one plant in the ground - that one happens to be across the street from me. Yuck!





















Some may wonder about some details of the home landscapes, including "why???", or the budgets.

I can help - I live in the above neighborhood, and we had our house constructed in 1998 by the same builder who built many homes here from 1994 - 2003. We read the paperwork, including standard and upgraded features, and we wrote the checks. This is rather typical landscaping for other builders' and other front yards around Abq, for homes ranging from $150K - $250K, and up to at least $400K. Such plant densities are common since lawns became used less in the mid-90's.

$900 was alotted by the builder towards landscaping each small front yard; they hired a production landscape contractor to install that work, covering the bare minimums of:
+ gravel cover, rock accents (most really unattractive), and weed fabric
+ (1) specimen plant
+ (2-3) small plants
+ no grading or irrigation
Just doubling that money would have paid for subtle grade changes with passive water harvesting, and some more plantings - that would have made each more appealing than what you see. And not cut into the builder's profit except pennies. One could pay the same contractor for upgrades to that $900 out-of-pocket (larger trees, patio walls, more plants, irrigation, etc), though few did.

(as an LA with a concience, I think of such possibilities, even if that would require a totally different culture, sophistication and mindset in Al-blah-quirky, or that the Land of Entrapment has)

Also, very few people have added anything to their landscapes from the original owner, whether 2nd, 3rd, or 4th owners of said homes. Let alone have any hired or were willing to hire a professional designer to take the builder basics into something far better. Albuquerqueans spend their money on new cars, the insides of their houses (then buying a new house in a few years, doing it all over), vacations, eating out for dinner often, shopping at the mall, dogs they don't take care of, and other things like that - not outdoor living space, like people do in Tucson or some other SW region towns. No matter the income level.

To adapt Gov. Lew Wallace quote about NM and TX to horticulture. "Poor Albuquerque - so far from heaven, so close to Santa Fe."

But that's what I saw, walking each block. Did I mention desert willows, palm yuccas, ocotillos, sotols, red yuccas, and loads of rock? Just in case:

Bold = locally-native species straddling the Chihuahuan Desert and the Arizona-New Mexico Mountains, within 75 miles and 1000' in elevation

Italic = ecoregionally-native species to the above, but beyond my locale or elevation.