This document provides information about using climate-wise native shrubs in the landscaping of mid-century modern homes in California. It discusses the context and design principles of mid-century modern homes and gardens. Specifically, it focuses on the bladderpod shrub as an option for the front yard of a mid-century modern home, describing its characteristics, growth, care requirements, and suitability for drought-tolerant landscaping.

1. 4/7/2016
© Project SOUND
Out of the Wilds and Into Your Garden
Gardening with California Native Plants in Western L.A. County
Project SOUND – 2016 (our 12th year)
© Project SOUND
Shrubs in a Changing World:
CA native shrubs for a mid-century
modern house (with an emphasis on
our changing climate)
C.M. Vadheim and T. Drake
CSUDH & Madrona Marsh Preserve
Madrona Marsh Preserve
April 7 & 9, 2016
2016 Season ‐ Rediscovering Eden:
S. California Gardens for the 21st Century
© Project SOUND
In February, we discussed climate change and the
need to rethink our plant palettes
© Project SOUND
http://www.zillow.com/homedetails/23192-Maple-Ave-Torrance-CA-90505/2106438376_zpid/
http://www.clker.com/clipart-tree-silhouette-4.html

2. 4/7/2016
© Project SOUND
This month we consider climate-wise shrubs and
how to use them in a ‘Mid-century Modern’ front yard First, let’s consider the context of
‘California Mid-century Modern’ homes
© Project SOUND
Lots of things changed after WW II
 Social & economic change after the
Great Depression, WWII
 Population movements:
 Rural to towns/cities
 North & West (especially
California)
 Population explosion – ‘Baby Boom’
 Increasing influence of the
automobile – ability to work at a
distance from home
 Need to build lots of new
housing, FAST – housing tracts
and planned communities
© Project SOUNDhttp://www.grayflannelsuit.net/blog/time-capsule-los-angeles-
development-boom-of-the-1950s
https://www.pinterest.com/pin/362399101238144786/
Up to WWII, most people lived in homes
built in the 1920’s or before
© Project SOUND
https://www.airbnb.com/s/Long-Beach--CA?s_tag=mF0IqGpA
People knew how to
decorate such homes,
inside & out

3. 4/7/2016
But mid-century modern homes were
quite different from the houses of the past
© Project SOUND
http://marvistatract.org/
California mid-century modern homes
represent a rebellion against the past…
© Project SOUND
… and a pragmatic approach to dealing with scarce
resources (building materials, lot sizes, views, $$$)
The houses were different from those of the past
 Flat planes, geometric lines. Flat
roofs are common, though modern
ranch-style houses had gable roofs.
 Large windows, sliding-glass doors
and other expansive panes of
glass allow light to enter rooms
from multiple angles.
 Changes in elevation. Partial walls,
or cabinets of varying heights to
create different depths in the
space.
 Integration with nature. Rooms
have multiple outdoor views, or
multiple access points
© Project SOUND
Some tract houses were quite innovative
© Project SOUND

4. 4/7/2016
Trickle-down effect in
design: the Eames Chair
© Project SOUND
http://abduzeedo.com/eames-lounge-chair-icon-modern-design-book
The original Eames Chair
https://mcmclassics.com/products/charles-leather-lounge-chair-and-
ottoman-terracotta-or-black-in-walnut-veneer-eames-
style?utm_medium=cpc&utm_source=googlepla&variant=142534334
79
https://www.1stdibs.com/furniture/seating/lounge-chairs/eames-
style-plycraft-chair-ottoman/id-
f_790966/?utm_content=test&product=f790966&gclid=CjwKEAjwr
OO3BRCX55-L9_WojHoSJAAPxcSP6IwCxVGg4w3h-
PBHMdTp_05v226c2ObOrUdjFdgwiRoCU0Tw_wcB
https://www.chairish.com/product/203746/eames-mid-
century-style-chair-and-
ottoman?utm_campaign=Purchasing_Site_PLA_PLA_Shopp
ing&utm_content=Chair+%26+Ottoman+Sets&utm_medium=
cpc&utm_source=google&utm_term=Eames+Mid-
Century+Style+Chair+And+Ottoman&gclid=CjwKEAjwrOO3B
RCX55-L9_WojHoSJAAPxcSPiEk_S6fHXGbpiMc7d-
Y7k0EM76bPiETgGRu_SFFwoRoCWXzw_wcB
The same is true with home architecture
© Project SOUND
https://www.millmanteam.com/torrance-real-estate/central-torrance/
But the best place to learn about gardens for mid-century
modern homes is the visionaries and their designs.
© Project SOUND
How did the architects and landscape designers of the
period view the landscapes around suburban homes?
Mid-century Ranch House tracts
 While the majority of tract housing
was built by developers without
architects, several notable
architecture firms (Palmer and
Krisel, Smith and Williams, Jones
and Emmons, and Edward H. Fickett)
brought their respected Modernist
ideas to the design and construction
of tens of thousands of tract
homes.
 Many different varieties, including
the prefabricated versions designed
by Cliff May and architect Chris
Choate, seen at Rancho Estates
(1954) in Long Beach.
© Project SOUND
http://www.cbcoastalalliance.com/posts/cliff-may-ranchos-long-
beach-a-pictorial

5. 4/7/2016
Cliff May Homes
 Considered by many to be the inventor of
the modern ranch house, Cliff May is a
legendary figure in Southern California
architecture.
 Of the many tract housing developments
he designed in the 1950s, the largest
(and one of the highest-praised) was
Lakewood Rancho Estates in Long Beach.
© Project SOUND
http://esotericsurvey.blogspot.com/2013_11_01_archive.html
 Born in 1909, May spent summers as a
youth on an original Mexican ranch
owned by an aunt on his father’s side.
 He never attended architecture
school, but he began designing and
building houses in San Diego in his
early 20s . He moved to Los Angeles in
1935.
 He fused elements of the Spanish
Revival style with Modernism to
produce low-slung, horizontally
oriented, pitched-roof ranch
houses. Their open, relaxed layout
emphasized outdoor living, perfect
for the casual lifestyle and temperate
climate of Southern California.
© Project SOUND
Cliff May Rancho Estates – Long Beach
http://www.ranchostyle.com/
https://www.laconservancy.org/architects/cliff-may
Cliff May Ranch Estates
 The homes were designed using a five-foot module
and were very cheap and easy to build - the major
elements were pre-cut and assembled, ‘four men
could put the basic structure up in a day’.
 May defined the ranch house through its function.
A May house has an open plan, with rooms arrayed
in 'V'- or 'L'-shape around a courtyard. In the
apex of the 'V' or 'L,' you'll generally find the
living room, with bedrooms to one side, and kitchen,
dining, and service areas to the other.
 May emphasized indoor-outdoor living, so the
houses featured large windows and glass doors
that opened onto patios and courtyards paved with
grids of aggregate concrete.
© Project SOUND
http://retrorenovation.com/2013/01/23/8-cliff-may-inspired-ranch-house-plans-from-
houseplans-com/
The ‘Mid-century Modern Homes’ – so commonplace
to us – were truly ‘something new’ to the
1950’s home buyer
© Project SOUND
http://www.cbcoastalalliance.com/categories/Buyers/posts.mobile?page=1
http://www.calbungalow.com/?dsidx-force-full=true

6. 4/7/2016
Gardens also changed after WWII
 Shortage of some materials
 Lot size much smaller than garden
designers were used to working
with previously
 The influence of modern trends in
art and architecture.
 The beginning of schools of
landscape architecture – and of
the profession as we know it today
 In short, the time was ripe for
something new in home &
landscape architecture
© Project SOUND
The attitudes of architects & landscape
architects changed as well
 The fundamental factors in
designing Modernist architecture
also apply to designing the garden:
 meeting the clients specific needs
 making the garden design
complimentary to buildings
 relating to land forms
 considering the microclimates and
general weather conditions
encountered at the site.
© Project SOUND
Unfortunately, most new homeowners
were pretty much left to their own devices
…but not entirely on their own
© Project SOUND
The Post-war Modernist garden design
style began in California
 Developed by a small group of landscape
designers with ties to UC Berkeley &
Harvard Schools of Landscape Design
 Thomas Church was the "first founder."
 Subsequent founders and practitioners
include Garrett Eckbo, Robert Royston,
James C. Rose, and Dan Kiley
 Designed large gardens – but also
gardens for smaller home gardens
 Some also were inspired to educate
novice home gardeners about the basics
of good design
© Project SOUND
https://s-media-cache-
ak0.pinimg.com/236x/30/f2/ed/30f2ed8231125
95e097297faa48df53c.jpg
Thomas Church

7. 4/7/2016
The influence of Thomas Church – still can
be seen today
 1902-1978 – raised in CA
 Began his study of garden design at the
UC Berkeley (BA)
 Masters in landscape architecture from
the Harvard Graduate School of Design
 Created nearly 2,000 gardens, in
addition to several major large- scale
public commissions
 Also wrote for all the major gardening
magazines of the time
 His voice was unique, distinct, and
influential.
© Project SOUND
https://www.studyblue.com/notes/note/n/unit-3-
contemporary-landscape-history/deck/2680311
https://www.pinterest.com/pin/354236326912984856/
For Church, house and garden were part
of the same design
“All the gardens we now create in
California are based on the concepts and
philosophies of Thomas Church; we just
don’t know it,” says Richard McPherson,
a landscape architect who teaches a
class on Church at UC-Berkeley
Extension. “Before Church, gardens were
mainly just a collection of plants. Church
changed how the house related to the
garden, combining what he learned in
Europe with the possibilities of the
almost perfect Californian climate.”
https://alumni.stanford.edu/get/page/mag
azine/article/?article_id=37793
© Project SOUND
Church outlined four principles for his design
process in Gardens Are For People.
 Unity — the consideration of the
design as a whole, integrating the
house and its gardens with a free
flow between them.
 Function — the relation of the
outdoor recreational and social
areas to their interior counterparts,
and of the outdoor service areas to
the household's needs, to please and
serve the people who live in them.
© Project SOUND
Church outlined four principles for his design
process in Gardens Are For People.
 Simplicity — upon which rests the
aesthetic and economic success of
the design.
 Scale — relating the different
design parts, features, and areas
to one another, to create a whole
an integrated landscape design
© Project SOUND

8. 4/7/2016
Learn more about Thomas Church
 See more of his projects at The Cultural Landscape
Foundation.
 https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=y8NRUUD5sSc
 Thomas D. Church Oral History Project –
 https://archive.org/stream/landscapearchite01thomrich/landsc
apearchite01thomrich_djvu.txt
 To learn more about Church, check out Gardens Are for
People and Thomas Church, Landscape Architect: Designing a
Modern California Landscape, by Marc Treib.
© Project SOUND
Front yard: mid-
century ranch
 Full sun to quite sunny
 Soil: well-drained (either sandy
or well-drained clay loam
 Plants appropriate for climate
change
 Challenges:
 Limited area – size
 Small house/lot – scale must
be appropriate
 Horizontal lines of house
 House front relatively plain –
can use plants as accents
© Project SOUNDhttp://www.kriselconnection.com/2015_07_01_archive.html
"The psychology of arrival is more important than you think. If
it is not obvious where to park, if there is no room to park when
you get there, if you stumble into the back door looking for the
front entrance, or if the entrance is badly lighted, you have
subjected your guests to a series of annoyances which will linger
long in their subconscious. No matter how warm your hearth or
how beautiful your view, the overall effect will be dimmed by
these first irritations.“
Thomas Church
© Project SOUND
Choose your largest plant first
© Project SOUND

9. 4/7/2016
There are a few possibilities
 Local native shrubs (pruned up)
 Toyon (Heteromeles arbutifolia)
 Laurel sumac (Malosma laurina)
 Lemonadeberry (Rhus
integrifolia)
 Some of the smaller desert
wash species
 Desert ceanothus (Ceanothus
greggii)
 Bladderpod (Peritoma arborea)
© Project SOUND © Project SOUND
Bladderpod – Peritoma arborea/Cleome isomeris/
Isomeris arborea
© Project SOUND
Bladderpod – Peritoma arborea
http://ucjeps.berkeley.edu/cgi-bin/get_JM_treatment.pl?Isomeris+arborea
 CA, AZ and Baja
 Literally from the shore to the eastern
deserts in S. California
 Wide habit distribution
 Hills, bluffs, stabilized dunes - sea coast
 Hills and desert washes at the desert edges.
 CA’s only member Caper family (Capparaceae)
http://nativeplants.csuci.edu/peritoma-arborea.htm © Project SOUND
 Size:
 2-10 ft tall (usually 3-6 ft)
 3-6+ ft wide
 Growth form:
 Woody shrub; spreading shape
 Develops interesting gnarled
branches with age – very
decorative (like bonsai tree)
 Moderate growth rate;
moderately long-lived (30+ years
in Zone 1-2 or 2)
 Foliage:
 Medium-textured
 Light gray-green; nice color
 Unusual odor when crushed
 Drought deciduous
 Roots: long taproot – don’t move once
established
Characteristics of
Bladderpod

10. 4/7/2016
© Project SOUND
Bladderpod’s flowers and pods are fantastic
 Blooms:
 A little bit year-round
 Feb-May is main bloom season in
coastal lowlands
 Flowers:
 Unusual and showy – many
flowers at one time
 Bright yellow, bell-shaped;
exserted anthers (male parts)
 very attractive to bees (it’s
main pollinators) and
hummingbirds
 Seeds:
 Inflated, bladder-like pod
 Large seeds; may reseed if
happy
© Project SOUND
Bladderpod is well suited for the water-wise
garden
 Soils:
 Texture: must be well-drained;
likes a sandy or rocky soil
 pH: any local, including very
alkali
 Light: full sun
 Water:
 Winter: resents too much
water; may need to plant on
berm if drainage is poor
 Summer: Zone 1-2 to 2 (will
retain leaves); very drought
tolerant – don’t over-water!!
 Fertilizer: none
tolerates seaside conditions
(salt-spray; wind) but will be
smaller, shorter
Rejuvenate an old plant by coppicing
© Project SOUND
Bladderpod in gardens
 As an accent plant in full sun to
part-shade
 As a background shrub
 As a small ‘tree’ – very interesting,
architectural shape
http://canativegarden.blogspot.com/2015/02/wild-uci.html
Both flowers and pods/seeds are edible
 Flowers:
 Cooked in hot water for hours to
leach bitterness; then fried with
onions and used as topping
 Eaten raw as a garnish.
 Seed pods:
 Pods: used as capers – dried,
then pickled in vinegar, brine,
wine or salt.
 Pods can also be eat raw as
garnish (spicy)
 Seeds: can be boiled (15 minutes
is recommended) and eaten as
peas.
© Project SOUND
http://mykitcheninspain.blogspot.com/2014/04/the-great-culinary-caper.html

11. 4/7/2016
© Project SOUND
*Desert ceanothus – Ceanothus greggii
©2010 James M. Andre
 From Trans-Pecos, TX, through s. NM, AZ and
southern California, north to the Great Basin region
of UT and NV and south to Oaxoaxa, Mexico
 var. vestitus: desert margin of the s. Sierra Nevada
& Transverse ranges, as well as parts of UT, NV, AZ,
TX, NM and Mexico
 Note: some taxonomic debate on CA species
© Project SOUND
*Desert ceanothus – Ceanothus greggii
©2012 Gary A. Monroe
©2010 James M. Andre
http://www.swsbm.com/Maps/Ceanothus_greggii.gif
© Project SOUND
Desert ceanothus: shrub to small tree
 Size:
 4-7+ ft tall
 4-8 ft wide
 Growth form:
 Woody shrub/small tree
 Mounded, ceanothus shape
 Red-gray bark
 Foliage:
 Sclerophyllus leaves – small,
thick, waxy coat; unique
 Evergreen; growth in spring
 Roots:
 Shallow to about 10 ft
 Nitrogen-fixing nodules
© Project SOUND
Sweet ceanothus flowers
 Blooms: in early spring – Jan-Mar.
in our area in usual year
 Flowers:
 Typical flowers for Ceanothus:
small, 5 spade-shaped petals
 Usually white; may be light
blue
 Sweet scent – really nice
fragrance; attract pollinators
 Flowers make a nice, mild,
fragrant soap/shampoo
 Fruits: rounded, sticky – birds eat
seeds
 Vegetative reproduction: none

12. 4/7/2016
© Project SOUND
Perfect for dry garden
 Soils:
 Texture: well-drained best;
berm if not sure
 pH: any but very alkali
 Light:
 Full sun is best; light shade
probably OK
 Water:
 Winter: needs adequate
 Summer: once or twice a month
(Water Zone 1-2 or 2)
 Fertilizer: none; likes poor soils
 Other:
 mulch: none, gravel or thin
organic
 Can prune up for tree – has nice
shrub shape otherwise
http://www.delange.org/CeanothusGregg/CeanothusGregg.htm
© Project SOUND
A good ceanothus for
local gardens
 Foundation shrub; background
 Informal hedge or tree
 Good habitat plant
 Low maintenance; tough –
tolerates heat & wind
http://prairiebreak.blogspot.com/2014/07/midsummer-garden-random-shots-from-
two.html
Now we need some background shrubs
© Project SOUND
Should be in scale with – and complement –
the architecture
Climate-wise foundation (backdrop) shrubs
 The boxthorns (Lycium species)
 Sagebrushes (Artemisia spp.)
 Goldenbushes (Ericameria; Hazardia
& others)
 The Fairydusters (Calliandra spp.)
 Apache plume (Fallugia paradoxa)
 Larger native grasses
© Project SOUND

13. 4/7/2016
© Project SOUND
Wolfberry – Lycium andersonii
© 2005 James M. Andre
© Project SOUND
Wolfberry – Lycium andersonii
 Plant of Southwestern deserts
and desert foothills
 Locally in Mojave Desert – tho’ a
report from PV
 Dry, stony hills, mesas in desert
and creosote bush scrub – usually
along washes
© Br. Alfred Brousseau, Saint Mary's College
http://ucjeps.berkeley.edu/cgi-bin/get_JM_treatment.pl?7625,7636,7637
http://www.graniteseed.com/seeds/seed.php?id=Lycium_andersonii
© Project SOUND
Wolfberry is a typical Boxthorn – all quite similar looking
 Size:
 usually 4-6 ft tall; to 10-12 ft
 to 10 ft wide; slow – probably long-
lived, even in water-wise gardens
 Growth form:
 Mounded woody shrub
 Very densely branched – good cover;
thorns
 Foliage:
 Small, fleshy leaves – larger with some
water
 Very different look from other foliage
– nice accent plant
 Roots: deep; surface roots also – typical
desert shrub; re-sprouts after fire or
major damage/pruning
Gerald and Buff Corsi © California Academy of Sciences
© Project SOUND
Flowers make the
desert bloom
 Blooms: in spring (Mar-May);
depends on timing of winter rains
 Flowers:
 Purple to white
 Small – but very nice shape &
lots of them - showy
 Good hummingbird plant

14. 4/7/2016
© Project SOUND
Easy to grow with
benign neglect
 Soils:
 Texture: must be well-drained –
sandy or gravelly is best
 pH: any local is fine
 Fine with salty soils, water,
maritime exposures
 Light:
 Full sun is best
 Will take light shade (or some
afternoon shade) in hot gardens
 Water:
 Winter: rains usually suffice;
don’t over-water in clay soils
 Summer: quite drought
tolerant; looks best in Zone1-2
to 2 in garden setting
 Fertilizer: none; likes poor soils –
remember, it’s a desert plant
http://commons.wikimedia.org/wiki/Category:Lycium_andersonii
© Project SOUND
Garden uses for
Boxthorns
 Water-wise hedges
 As an accent plant; flowers &
foliage, red fruits
 As a container plant
 As all-round good habitat
plants: food, cover, nest sites.
© 1998 Larry Blakely
Limit our palette: size, density, other
© Project SOUND © Project SOUND
*Big sagebrush – Artemisia tridentata
©2013 Jean Pawek

15. 4/7/2016
© Project SOUND
*Big sagebrush – Artemisia tridentata
Charles Webber © California Academy of Sciences
©2012 Jean Pawek
http://ucjeps.berkeley.edu/cgi-
bin/get_cpn.pl?ARTR2
 High Cascade, Inner South Coast, and
Transverse Ranges, Sierra Nevada
Foothills, Southern San Joaquin Valley,
South Coast, Great Basin, Mojave
Desert
 Los Angeles Co.: San Gabriels; Antelope
Valley; Lancaster/ Palmdale; Newhall
 Dry soils, valleys, slopes below 9,000'
https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Artemisia
_tridentata
© Project SOUND
Big sagebrush: nice foliage shrub
 Size:
 3-6+ (to 8 in garden) ft tall
 4-6 ft wide
 Growth form:
 Irregularly mounded shrub
 Thick, woody trunk: gray bark
 Moderate growth rate; lives 50+
years; good cover for creatures
 Foliage:
 Evergreen; can be dense
 Color: nice gray-green
 Leaves small, lobed, aromatic (the
smell of the Wild West)
 Roots: deep taproot + shallow laterals
– very drought adapted
©2013 Lynn Watson
© Project SOUND
Flowers are understated
 Blooms: in summer – July to
Sept.
 Flowers:
 Small, simple heads (like CA
Sagebrush)
 Insect pollinated – attracts
a range of insects
 Seeds:
 Small and not particularly
showy – edible and good
food for birds
©2013 Jean Pawek
© Project SOUND
Plant Requirements
 Soils:
 Texture: well-drained best
 pH: any local except alkali
 Light: full sun
 Water:
 Winter: adequate winter rain –
supplement if needed (needs 10-
18 inches per year)
 Summer: best with occasional
(Water Zone 1-2 to 2)
 Fertilizer: none; likes poor soils
 Other:
 Looks best with a little winter
pruning (tips – not into old-wood)
 Prune out old branches
periodically, if desired, to
rejuvenate

16. 4/7/2016
© Project SOUND
Big sagebrush
 As a larger alternative to CA
Sagebrush
 As a foundation or background plant
 In silvery, scented or habitat gardens
 Hot, dry slopes
http://nativeplantwildlifegarden.com/sagebrush-in-a-garden/https://www.pinterest.com/pin/71776187783339879/
Limit our palette: but add seasonal interest
© Project SOUND
© Project SOUND
* Pink Fairy Duster – Calliandra eriophylla
http://www.wildflower.org/plants/result.php?id_plant=CAER
© Project SOUND
* Pink Fairy Duster – Calliandra eriophylla
http://www.wildflower.org/plants/result.php?id_plant=CAER
http://www.graniteseed.com/seeds/seed.php?id=Calliandra_eriophylla
http://www.saguaro-juniper.com/i_and_i/flowers/fairy_duster/fairy_duster.html
 Sonoran Desert from CA & Baja to
W. Texas
 Dry, gravelly slopes & mesas ; often
in beds of intermittent streams,
bajadas, washes, etc. - rocky, sandy
 In Spanish, Cabeza de angel refers
to an angel's head or angel's hair

17. 4/7/2016
© Project SOUND
Pink Fairyduster is a nice sized accent shrub
 Size:
 3-5+ ft tall (depends on water)
 4-6+ ft wide
 Growth form:
 Woody shrub
 Mounded/upright to sprawling;
can grow around existing
shrubs
 Light-colored bark
 Foliage:
 Bright to medium green
 Binnately pinnate – small pinna
(like Acacia)
 Roots: nitrogen-fixing bacteria;
rhizomatous – will slowly spread
http://www.public.asu.edu/~camartin/plants/Plant%20html%20files/calliandraeriophylla.html
http://www.fourdir.com/p_fairy_duster.htm
© 2005 Dr. Amadej Trnkoczy
© Project SOUND
Flowers: ooh-la-la!!
 Blooms:
 Just after the rains - usually
Jan-Apr in Western L.A. Co.
 Will bloom off and on
depending on watering
schedule
 Flowers:
 Pink: bright to very pale
 The long, pink filaments of
the stamens that make the
showy display
 Plant has a fluffy pink
appearance in full bloom
 Big attraction for large
butterflies & hummingbirds!
http://www.sagebud.com/fairyduster-calliandra-eriophylla/
http://www.calflora.net/losangelesarboretum/whatsbloomingmay07C.html
© Project SOUND
A plant of desert washes  Soils:
 Texture: loves sandy/rocky soils
but fine in any well-drained
 pH: any local
 Light:
 Full sun for best flowering
 Will take light shade
 Water:
 Winter: needs adequate
 Summer:
 Best looking with occasional
water (Zone 1-2 or 2) but
very drought tolerant
 Some water in Aug.
 Fertilizer: none; likes poor soils;
inorganic mulch
Glenn and Martha Vargas © California Academy of Sciences © Project SOUND
Showy accent plant
 As a foundation plant
 A water-wise accent shrub
 As an informal hedge – or for
erosion control on slopes
 Even in large containers
 Consider for Asian or Desert-
themed gardens
http://ag.arizona.edu/pima/gardening/aridplants/Calliandra_eriophylla.html
http://www.flickr.com/photos/36517976@N06/4307505066/

18. 4/7/2016
Shaping Fairydusters
 Have a good natural shape – can
leave as is
 Tip-prune during growing season
to produce fuller shrub
 Lightly prune to shape in late
spring
© Project SOUND
http://www.flickr.com/photos/36517976@N06/4307505066/
http://www.avondale.watersavingplants.com/eplant.php?plantnum=1346&return=b_aC
http://www.elnativogrowers.com/Photographs_page/caleri.htm
California buckwheat (Eriogonum
fasciculatum) – very drought tolerant
© Project SOUND
© Project SOUND
* Apache Plume – Fallugia paradoxa
 Desert uplands from 3,500 to
7,500 feet
 Throughout all four south-
western deserts -- Mojave,
Chihuahuan, Great Basin, and
Sonoran
 In CA, Joshua Tree Woodland,
Pinyon-Juniper Woodland
 Fallugia is a monotypic genus of
shrub containing the single
species Fallugia paradoxa
 Introduced into cultivation in
California by Theodore Payne;
Avail even through Monrovia
Nursery
© Project SOUND
* Apache Plume – Fallugia paradoxa
© 2009 Lee Dittmann
http://ucjeps.berkeley.edu/cgi-bin/get_JM_treatment.pl?6677,6721,6722

19. 4/7/2016
© Project SOUND
Apache Plume: medium-large desert shrub
 Size:
 4-8+ ft tall
 5-10+ ft wide
 Growth form:
 Semi-evergreen to evergreen
– depends on water
 Mounded form; many shrubby
slender branches – good
cover for birds, etc.
 Shreddy gray-brown bark
 Foliage:
 Small, deeply-lobed leaves
 ‘fine textured’ appearance –
looks good with other shrubs
 Roots: spreads by root suckering
with abundant water
© 2007 Jason E. Willand
G.A. Cooper @ USDA-NRCS PLANTS Database
Patrick J. Alexander @ USDA-NRCS PLANTS Database
© Project SOUND
Flowers and seeds are
very showy
 Blooms: in spring – April-June in
our area
 Flowers:
 Give a good clue that this plant
is in the Rose family
 2 inch pure white flowers like a
wild rose – ooh la la
 Like a rose, attracts many
insects (butterflies, bees, etc.)
 Seeds:
 Have fluffy tails – very showy
on the plant
 Fade from pink to gold as they
mature
© 2010 James M. Andre
© Project SOUND
Another desert wash plant
 Soils:
 Texture: likes a well-drained
soil, but pretty adaptable
 pH: any local
 Light: full sun to part-shade –
perfect for hedgerow
 Water:
 Winter: supplement if needed
 Summer: likes occasional
summer water, but very
drought tolerant when
established – Water Zone 1-2
to 2 (about once a month)
 Fertilizer: none; likes poor soils
 Other: inorganic mulch or very
thin organic
© 2009 Lee Dittmann
© 2006 Heath McAllister
© Project SOUND
Gardeners are discovering
Apache Plume
© 2002 Gary A. Monroe
© 2003 Charles E. Jones
http://www.laspilitas.com/nature-of-california/plants/fallugia-paradoxa
http://www.nazflora.org/Fallugia_paradoxa.htm
 As an accent plant in desert-
themed gardens for beauty &
habitat value
 As a foundation shrub
 In informal hedges/hedgerows
 In very hot, dry situations (parking
lots; roadways)

20. 4/7/2016
Many desert shrubs are routinely ‘pruned’
© Project SOUND
http://slatermuseum.blogspot.com/2013/01/pacific-northwest-deer.html
Managing Apache
Plume
 Prune in late fall/winter
 Prune to shape & promote
blooms (blooms on new growth)
 Selective deep pruning of old
branches (3 years or older)
 Shortening of younger ones
(up to ½ of length)
 Hedge pruning/tip pruning in
summer – makes it neater, too
 Prune to rejuvenate
 Cut oldest woody stems to the
ground to rejuvenate
© Project SOUND
http://desertedge.blogspot.com/2011/06/plant-trinity-abq-to-el-paso.html
Limit our palette: perhaps a little fall gold?
© Project SOUND
Limit our palette: summer/fall color
© Project SOUND
“Don’t fret if your garden is never quite perfect. Absolute
perfection, like complete consistency, can be dull.”

21. 4/7/2016
© Project SOUND
* Rubber Rabbitbush – Ericameria nauseosa ssp. nauseosa
(Chrysothamnus nauseosus)
© 2003 Michael Charters
© Project SOUND
Two Coastal Goldenbushes
 Similar growth habit and flowers; fall blooming (Aug-Oct)
 Coast Goldenbush: foliage lighter; leaves rounder, softer,
 Sawtooth Goldenbush: foliage stiffer, prickly
Coastal Goldenbush – Isocoma menziesii Sawtooth Goldenbush – Hazardia squarrosa
© Project SOUND
Mock Heather – Ericameria ericoides Large grasses can also be used as
background plants
© Project SOUND

22. 4/7/2016
© Project SOUND
*Giant sacaton – Sporobolus wrightii
 Southwestern California, Sonoran Desert to
TX, n. and central Mexico
 Dry prairies and rocky slopes to 7,000 feet
 Also found in wetland communities such as
desert marshes, playa lakes and on floodplains
 Occurs mainly in semi-desert grassland and
shrubland communities.
© Project SOUND
*Giant sacaton – Sporobolus wrightii
http://ucjeps.berkeley.edu/cgi-bin/get_cpn.pl?SPWR2
http://swbiodiversity.org/seinet/taxa/index.php?taxon=436
© Project SOUND
Giant sacaton: large but graceful
 Size:
 3-6+ (to 7-8 ft flowering) ft tall
 4-6 ft wide
 Growth form:
 Mounded bunchgrass
 Dies back in cool season (warm
season grass)
 Big, dramatic – but fine-textured
 Foliage:
 Gray-green to medium green
 Dense – good cover for little
critters & birds
 Really attractive, esp. if cut back
yearly
http://www.plantdelights.com/Sporobolus-wrightii-for-sale/Buy-Big-Sacaton-Dropseed/ © Project SOUND
Dramatic flowering stalks
 Blooms: in summer (seeds remain
on plant through fall) - usually
July-Aug.
 Flowers:
 Typical small grass flowers,
but on great plume-like stalks
 Color starts green (with pink-
purple hint); ends yellow-gold
in fall
 Good looking for a long time
 Seeds:
 Edible (but so small that birds
are most likely to benefit)
http://www.answers.com/topic/dudleya

23. 4/7/2016
© Project SOUND
Very adaptable grass  Soils:
 Texture: very adaptable
 pH: any local – very adaptable
 Light: full sun to some shade
 Water:
 Winter: needs adequate
 Summer: occasional to near-
regular water (Zones 1-2 to
2-3)
 Fertilizer: none; likes poor soils
 Other:
 For best appearance, prune
back to 6-8” each year in
winter; use as straw mulch
 No real pests or problems
© Project SOUND
Use instead of Pampas Grass
 As an attractive (large) pot plant
 For foundation or backdrop
plantings
 On slopes & other hard-to-water
places
 As a really big accent plant
http://www.colostate.edu/Dept/CoopExt/4DMG/Lawns/orna2.htm
http://navigate.botanicgardens.org/weboi/oecgi2.exe/INET_ECM_Di
spPl?NAMENUM=23686
http://kentonjseth.blogspot.com/2013_04_01_archive.html
Grasses and grass-like plants can also be
used as dramatic accents
 Yucca species
 Agave species
 Nolina species
 Larger grasses
© Project SOUND © Project SOUND
*Mojave yucca – Yucca schidigera

24. 4/7/2016
 s Mojave Desert & nw Sonoran Deserts of
AZ, CA, NV; Mexico (Baja California)
 Common on dry rocky slopes, mesas and
flats to about 5000‘
 Primarily in Desert Chaparral and Creosote
Bush Scrub plant communities
© Project SOUND
*Mojave yucca – Yucca schidigera
Charles Webber © California Academy of Sciences © Br. Alfred Brousseau, Saint Mary's College
http://www.efloras.org/florataxon.aspx?flora_id=1&taxon_id=242102075
© Project SOUND
Mojave yucca: fairly typical native yucca
 Size:
 2-6 ft tall (sometimes even taller in
gardens; tree-like)
 2-3 ft wide, spreads by offsets (pups)
 Growth form:
 Typical of yucca; semi-woody,
evergreen perennial ‘shrub’ (base/root
become woody); 1-several stems
 Slow; long-lived (100’s of years in wild
 Foliage:
 Bayonet-shaped leaves with sharp tips
and stringy fibers
 Foliage at tips of stems
 Roots: fairly shallow
© Br. Alfred Brousseau, Saint Mary's College
© Project SOUND
Fantastic flowers
 Blooms: early spring – usually
March/April; May in colder
areas
 Flowers:
 Typical bell-shaped pendant
yucca flowers – but very large
(to 1 ½ inches)
 Pollinated by yucca moth
(Tegeticula yuccasella)
 Flowers edible
 Seed pods:
 Large and fleshy (2-4 inches)
 Seeds large, flat, dark – easy to
grow from seed
 Vegetative reproduction: yes
http://www.wildflower.org/plants/result.php?id_plant=YUSC2
http://swbiodiversity.org/seinet/imagelib/imgdetails.php?imgid=245774
https://commons.wikimedia.org/wiki/
File:Yucca_schidigera_27.jpg
Like the Banana yucca, flowers & fruits are edible
 Flowers:
 Eaten raw or cooked
 Dried flowers can be ground and
used as a flavoring agent for
baked products, beverages, jelly
 Fruits
 Eaten either fresh, roasted/
baked or prepared and dried for
later use
 Fruits can also be cooked to
make tasty jelly or syrup
 Young flowering stems
 Chopped and cooked like
asparagus or baked like a sweet
potato
© Project SOUND
http://www.desertusa.com/cactus/mohave-yucca.html

25. 4/7/2016
© Project SOUND
Typical Mojave/Sonoran
Desert conditions
 Soils:
 Texture: most local soils ok –
sandy or rocky best
 pH: any local; fine with alkali
 Light: full sun (best); can tolerate
some afternoon shade
 Water:
 Winter: needs at least 6-8
inches per winter
 Summer: very drought tolerant
once established; none to
occasional (Water Zone 1 or 1-2)
 Fertilizer: none; likes poor soils
 Other: best with no mulch or
inorganic (gravel/rock)
Sherry Ballard © California Academy of Sciences © Project SOUND
Yucca: dramatic accent
 As an attractive container plant in
modern landscapes
 With other CA desert species –
even as tall groundcover
 In a medicinal or edible garden
 Important habitat plant in its
native range
http://www.alternativeeden.com/2014/02/botanical-garden-of-barcelona.html
Limit our palette: but add seasonal interest
© Project SOUND © Project SOUND
* Banana Yucca – Yucca baccata

26. 4/7/2016
© Project SOUND
Dramatic accent
 Desert-themed or rock gardens
 As a spiny deterrent plant
 Large containers
 Habitat or edibles garden
 Where ever you would plant a
Yucca or Agave
http://unkowndestination.blogspot.com/2012/08/yucca-review-yucca-baccata-banana-yucca.html
http://coldhardycactus.com/Pages/YU003.htm http://www.sm.watersavingplants.com/eplant.php?plantnum=24551&return=l1 © Project SOUND
* Bigelow’s Beargrass/Nolina – Nolina bigelovii
http://commons.wikimedia.org/wiki/Category:Nolina_bigelovii
 Hillsides and canyons of Southeastern
California, western Arizona, S. NV, Baja
California and Sonora, Mexico.
 Desert hillsides, Creosote Bush scrub –
often in very dry areas of Mojave & Sonoran
Deserts
 Especially prevalent along the Lower
Colorado River Valley
© Project SOUND
* Bigelow’s Beargrass/Nolina – Nolina bigelovii
©2006 Aaron Schusteff
http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Nolina_bigelovii
http://www.desertmuseumdigitallibrary.org/public/detail.php?id=ASDM01221&sp=Nolina bigelovi © Project SOUND
Nolina: nice accent
 Nice accent plant in any dry
garden
 Right at home in desert gardens,
rock gardens, hot places
 Leaves used green or bleached in
basketry; young flowers stalks
can be baked and eaten
http://www.delange.org/BeargrassBig/BeargrassBig.htm
http://gallery.cvetq.info/displayimage.php?album=267&pos=4

27. 4/7/2016
Limit palette: but add foreground interest
© Project SOUND
“A garden should have no beginning and no end,
and should be pleasing when seen from any
angle, not only from the house.”
Smaller desert flowering shrubs also
make great accent plants
© Project SOUND
Desert mallow - Sphaeralcea
Mirabilis multiflora
© Project SOUND
* Indian Mallow – Abutilon palmeri
© Project SOUND
* Indian Mallow – Abutilon palmeri
http://ucjeps.berkeley.edu/cgi-bin/get_JM_treatment.pl?Abutilon+palmeri
 Native to the low desert of S.
California, on the eastern slopes
of the peninsular range
 Riverside, Orange & San Diego
Co.
 Sonoran Desert
 Colorado Desert
 San Jacinto Mtns
 Dry east-facing mountain slopes,
creosote bush scrub, elevation:
1800-2400'

28. 4/7/2016
© Project SOUND
Indian Mallow is grown for it’s foliage
 Size:
 4-8 ft tall
 3-5 ft wide
 Growth form: sub-shrub
 Woody base; portion of
branches are herbaceous
 Rounded shrub
 Foliage:
 Light green/silvery white
 Velvety-soft to the touch
 Leaves have attractive,
rounded shape
 Will die back with very low
temperatures, but will
recover
© Project SOUND
Flowers are a lovely
contrast to the foliage
 Blooms:
 Mainly spring/summer – may also
bloom in fall
 usually Apr-June in S. Bay
 Long flowering period (at least 8
weeks)
 Flowers:
 Bright golden yellow; almost
iridescent
 Shape: typical for family, but
a bit more ‘poppy-like’
 Attract many visitors:
 Butterflies, hummingbirds, others
 Rabbits like the foliage
© Project SOUND
The seed pods are
unusual & showy
 Unusual wheel shape
 Remain on the plant a long
time – very unique & showy
 Birds love the seeds
 Note: will hybridize with
other native mallows
 Will self-sow abundantly;
repot and give to friends
http://www.hazmac.biz/040216/040216AbulilonPalmeri.html
© Project SOUND
is well suited to the water-wise garden
 Soils:
 Texture: any well-drained, but
partial to coarser textures
 pH: any local
 Light:
 Full sun best: keeps nice,
rounded shape
 Tolerates some shade/
afternoon shape
 Tolerates reflected heat
 Water:
 Winter: needs winter rains;
plant next to a rock to hold
moisture
 Summer: Zone 2 (best);
tolerates 1-2 to 2-3
 Fertilizer: none

29. 4/7/2016
© Project SOUND
Indian Mallow adds interest
to many gardens
 As a specimen shrub – be sure
to plant where kids can
appreciate the texture
 In a habitat garden
 Along a hot wall
 Anywhere you need a nice
shrub – very shapeable
 Great with other water-wise
native like Salvias,
Penstemons, Eriorgonums,
Ceanothus
http://www.delange.org/MallowSuperstition/MallowSuperstition.htm
Photo © Copyright Mountain States Wholesale Nursery
Like many desert shrubs, the look can range from
informal to formal
 The key to the look is
pruning
© Project SOUND
In summary: we’ve had a quick introduction
to Mid-century Modern gardens
© Project SOUND
We’ve seen how contemporary garden
design is influence by 1950’s designers
 Unity
 Function
 Simplicity
 Scale
© Project SOUND
http://www.midcenturymodernremodel.com/2012/06/landscaping-
disaster-post-mid-century.html

30. 4/7/2016
And we’ve seen that climate-appropriate
plants can be easily incorporated into
Mid-century Modern gardens
© Project SOUND
https://www.pinterest.com/pin/193303008982523204/
Next month: Katherine Brandegee
© Project SOUND
http://ucjeps.berkeley.edu/archon/?p=digitallibrary/digitalcontent&id=1