Common name:Ferned-Leaved Tickseed
Botanical name:Bidens ferulifolia 'Goldmarie'

Tickseed grows 14'-18" tall. It is a heat tolerant variety that is perfect for cascading, bright color in baskets, containers, and window boxes. Finely divided foliage is covered with gold, single flowers. It blooms until first frost. Plant in full sun. It needs well-drained soi.

Common name:Blue Fescue
Botanical name:Festuca glauca

This ground cover/grass will grow less than 1' tall and has small, blue green leaves.

Common name:Sage
Botanical name:Salvia uliginosa

This clumping plant with straight stems of 6'-7' and narrow, bright green leaves is a favorite of hummingbirds. These highly aromatic leaves are accented by pale blue and white flowers. The flowers are arranged in 7" long, branched clusters. This plant blooms throughout the entire summer.

Common name:Western Redbud
Botanical name:Cercis occidentalis

This deciduous shrub ranges from 6'-20' tall and 10'-15' wide. It is desirable for its magenta spring flowers, yellow to red fall color, and dangling winter seed pods. It is tolerant of many soil types, drought and oak root fungus. It attracts hummingbirds and butterflies. The Western Redbud can be found statewide in CA in the foothills below 4500' elevations in chaparral and woodland communities.

Common name:Rock Purslane
Botanical name:Cistanthe grandiflora 'Jazz Time'

This perennial will grow 12"-36" and produces large blue-green rosettes that last for a long season. It produces large, silky, lavender pink flowers that have lime-green, purple spotted calyces.

Common name:Spoon-Yucca
Botanical name:Dasylirion wheeleri

Spoon-Yucca requires little maintenance, as it tolerates drought, reflected heat and poor soils. It develops a short, thick trunk while reaching 6' tall and wide. Leaves are linear gray-green to 3' long and armed. During late spring and summer, erect stems of white creamy flowers are visible. It is a long lived shrub and slow-growing. It needs a well-drained site; it is cold and drought hardy.

Common name:California Fescue
Botanical name:Festuca californica

The California Fescue is a cool season bunchgrass with blue green blades that reach 2'-5' high and 3' wide. Foliage arches gracefully upwards and outwards. Flower spikes reach 3' above the leaves. Plant in full sun or partial shade. It makes a great companion plant to oak trees and is handsome as a backdrop behind lower growing grasses for a meadow look. The California fescue is native to California and is a beneficial insect plant.

Sustainable Fertilization

If you mulch heavily as recommended in the compost and mulch fact sheets you should not need traditional fertilization. Sustainable landscapes fertilize themselves as soil organisms break down and recycle the dropped leaves into nutrients.

Click in the green box for more information