Hi! I'm brand new here. It looks like most of the folks here are toasty warm. Here's what my garden looked like as of yesterday:



Gotta love gardening in Flagstaff.

Welcome Janet

Definitely does not look like Tucson!

Welcome Janet! I lived in Flagstaff from 1964 until 1969. At that time there wasn't much shopping and groceries were very high priced, so we drove to Phoenix almost every weekend to shop and get groceries. It's much better now!

Most of the Phx area gardeners are still on DG and/or the Facebook SW Garden Group. Neither the Cubits/ATP nor GW/Houzz sites ever really took off. I think we scattered into too many sites after the DG revolt.

Hi Rene!

You live in my state. Right on. I'm in C.G.

I've been looking for a S.W. forum that wants to talk about S.W. plants. The ones that make up 90% of the desert, are xeric in nature and primarily cacti, barrels, agaves, aloes, etc.. You know, the stuff that lives and survives winter at 40 degrees and occasional frost and can equally grow in 110+ heat.

Do you grow these kinds of plants? I do. They comprise 100% of my yard since I live here in the desert.

I do not vegetable garden. In the low Sonoran Desert I do not have a climate conducive to vegetable gardening. I found, from talking to others that vegetables do best in the mid to upper part of the state.

Succulents are another thing I do not grow. I call them 'chips and dip'. They are too tender, heat and light sensitive for here. I've tried them 3 times in various parts of my yard and had no success. They turn crispy and brittle in the sun and In my attempts to revive them with shade and water they turned took on the consistency of guacamole. See...chips and dip. I adore succulents but they are not viable in the desert.

We do have a tender succulent and cacti forum. It is very nice. Lots of great people that are knowledgeable. The only problem I have is that I can participate minimally since succulents comprise a large part of the forum.

Wonderful people that live all across the U.S. They are fun to meet and learn about their plants, but a vast majority of them do not live in our climate and corner of the world. Most do not cope with our unique environment and growing challenges.

What type of plants do you grow?
Are any of the ones I posted below of interest to you?

And in regards to DG, I do agree with your statement. I still have 2 months on my subscription and do poke around. It is hard to find the 'diehard' cacti growers there as well. It kind of sputters in regards to conversation. Saddens me.

As for the mutiny, well just me personally, I always read the terms and conditions BEFORE I 'agree' to them. I hate getting sucker punched in life. When it comes to both pleasure and business no matter what dotted line I'm supposed to sign on paper or 'agree to' on a computer I always read that fine print. You can't argue with the things you willingly 'agree' to.

I wasn't pleased with the lack of prior announcement before they changed the forum but I was not shocked either for the above reason. Since there is a membership fee for utilizing the website it still wasn't nice of DG to give us prior notice. I really believe they should have been more considerate.

Oh well....what is, is what it shall be.

So here's those plants I was talking about. Do you grow things like this?

Hi AgaveGirl1,
I live in Chandler. I love to grow perennials from seed that do well in dry, mesic, hot as heck then freezing cold for half a day, monsoony, ant crawly, clayey-sandy-dirtey and it still didn't die climates. I try a plant three times, then it's out (maybe) . I don't grow any cacti/barrels, but I do have an offset of an agave given to me by a friend. It's an indoor plant now. Your pictures are beautiful. We don't grow the same kinds of plants, but this climate is challenging and has much more color than I thought would be possible when we moved here. Here's part of my garden.
Bonnie

Hi Bonnie

That is a lovely garden, love all the color. We need color here! Bet you have some happy butterflies.

Hi guys,
Looks like I'm the only cactus head.

What pretty gardens and color! Wish I had some of that here. Every time I see something with flowers that I like I have to stop and go, "Does that live here or will I kill it?" Let's just say I went through lots of black trashbags

Thus the cacti. And we still keep those black trash bags on hand. You would think anything that lives in a desert belongs in the desert. Nope. Not true. A lot of the Aloes and Agaves are not natives here but of Africa, the Middle East, and the far more temperate almost Mediterranean type of climate by Mexico's shore lines.

As for dry, mesic, hot, freezing, monsoony, ant-crawly, clayey-sandy-dirty that's just a normal day. We also have an occasional Black Widow, Ewwwww and in the spring a large bout of snout weevil out and about. They just loooove certain types of Agaves. Most especially the Blue Agave.

Surprising though how many cacti have color. I wouldn't have believed until I saw some of them in action. Some bloom in summer, some only in 'winter' (if you can call it that here) and some off and on all year. Really cool.

I agree with Linda.......we need color out here. Brown and yellow don't count. And butterflies, and hummingbirds and dragon flies and all the other good stuff that is so enjoyable to see.

So what do you have going on in your yard Linda?

Have any of you given thought to trying a Barrel cacti, Aloe vera or a Prickly Pear? They grow anywhere, in anything, looooove the scorching hot sun. Twisted plants as the hotter the better they love it.

Aloe vera need also will grow in dirt. They need partial shade but they are a hummingbird's fantasy and it is almost impossible to kill. Actually as it grows you'll be finding yourself hard pressed to give away all the 'pups' (babies on the sides).

Here's some glorious color from the tiniest of plants. Quite the shockers. A lot of these guys are happy in pots and on patios and aren't particular about soil. Shade only during the absolute worse days of summer. Otherwise they're fine with it.

These are all the $2-$7 plants you get off the tables or bargain bins at the BB store's garden centers. That's what I looove about them. The price is as yummy as the flowers. They also make good windowsill, indoor and patio plants.

Chamaelobivia v. 'Rose Quartz'


Mammillaria can't remember the variety.


Trichocereus of some sort


Echinopsis Dominos
Crazy flower on that...right? Tripped me out the first time I ever saw it. Thought it was my husband playing a practical joke by sticking a fabric flower on the plant.



Got lots more and some wonderful surprise friends that like to visit my yard.

Do you guys know of any 'flowers' that would grow here in my area and not die? I'd love to have some.

Have a good day.
AG

Hi Agave!

I actually do have some cactus. Most were volunteers which I allowed to live. The prickly pear do have beautiful blossoms for sure. My problem with cactus is the fact that I tend to get impaled on a regular basis. I also have Aloe.

For color I love Lady in Red Salvia which the Hummers love as well. I also grow the usual annuals, stocks, violas, snaps. in the winter garden. I have also the last few years gotten into day lilies which do very well in our desert climate. I do keep them in filtered shade or morning sun. For great color the Red Leaf Hibiscus you do not see often here have gorgeous red leaves of various shades and also deep colored maroon flowers. Easily started from cuttings as well. A good summer plant that lasts all year long if the winter is not too cold. I grow most every thing in pots. Also do Hollyhock.

Your plants look good, Agave!

Well good for letting those little prickly guys survive! I'm sure they appreciate that second chance at life.

Not all cacti are mean. Some are rather nice and fun to play with! My neighbor has 3 overly curious young kids that are fascinated with my yard. When I got tired of hearing 'OUCH...moooom' (*tee-Hee*) I put in some things the kids could touch and pet---me supervising of course! See, every cacti needs love too.

There's several type of pole cacti like the Mammillaria plumosa. Tiny plant and literally looks like a fuzz covered golf ball and feels like a 'spongy' cotton ball. Too cute. I have one, I'll post a pic of it later.

There's totem pole cacti that are lumpy and bumpy in texture but smooth to the touch with no spines.

Octopus Agave with its big wavy arms that have no teeth or sharp tips. Really cool plant too because when it is mature enough it shoots up this great big asparagus looking stalk with little yellow flowers at the top.

Agave striata looks menacing but doesn't have a mean bone in its body.

Fire sticks are lovely. Only caution is don't break them. They contain a milky white sap that can cause rash and skin irritation.

As for Hibiscus I've seen mixed results on those out here. The plant does fine the flowers die in a minute or it doesn't flower at all. I have planted a beautiful bottle brush plant. Nice green shrub that gets these deep red 'bottle brush' looking flowers that are nice and soft.

I've seen one person plant Hollyhocks in my old neighborhood. They took off like a champ! I'll have to look into those. They might be a nice touch (unintended) for the yard.

I'm not familiar with Red Silvia. I'll check that one too. Hopefully it may live here. Anything for the humming birds!

So here's some sweet cacti friends.

Agave Striata. Grows about 2-3 feet high by 2-3 feet tall. Perfect for a large pot. Doesn't make babies either. And yes...that is my arm!


Octopus Agaves. I have two of these in my yard. The photo was one taken of a mature plant in public landscaping and was just starting to grow its stalk.



Pine cone cacti. Just a lumpy little thing. You can break pieces off, stick them right in the ground and watch them grow! Sucks up that summer sun and can do well in part shade also. Not to touch in the cold. Just cover them when there's going to be a frost.



Have a good day all.
AG

AG I was not familiar with the Pine Cone cactus. Sure does resemble one.

I am attaching a couple photos for you. I was wondering if this first photo is the Fire stick you spoke about. I have had it for years on the patio and it is bigger then this pic shows. I thought they were supposed to turn kind of red but this one has not.

The other photo is of one of my Crown of Thorns. The original plant was a gift from a friend. Last summer I tripped over the bigger plant and impaled myself. Now those are THORNS!!! I grabbed the broken off piece and stuck it in a pot. Pretty well let it sink or swim on its own. Today it has some blooms on it. As nasty as this plant is thorn wise it does have beautiful red flowers.

Your plant sure looks like firesticks. I have read that there is one lookalike species that doesn't turn red. Maybe that is what you have.

Love the crown of thorns. I've found them to be very hardy. I have 2 that I have been making cuttings from them. They root fast and easily. Is your plant outside all year, or taken in during frosts?

Thanks for the info on the firesticks, Karen. My larger one has been left out all winter, it sits in a pot snuggled between two other potted plants under a big Mesquite tree so, so far the cold has not bothered it. The little one I pictured I do bring up to the patio when it is real cold. They do seem fairly hardy.

I'm happy to hear that the crown of thorns are fairly hardy. I may try some of mine on the patio. I've always taken them inside. I do the same with my tropical hibiscus. Do you have any hibiscus outdoors all year?

The 'Firesticks' are actually the odd ball, whereas the one that stays mostly green (unless really really stressed) is the actual true form of the species. Euphorbia tirucalli. But as with the Totem Pole Cactus. which is a monstrose form of the Senita, because it is so popular for planting in gardens, it seems as if the oddball form is more abundant, than the regular form, but that is certainly not the case in the wild. I know for certain that the Totem Pole Cactus occurs in the wild, I am not sure if 'Firesticks' is a nursery product that has been selected for mass production, or also occurs in nature.

Given time and space E. tirucalli will actually become tree sized. Though most of the 'Firesticks' I see and the one I grow seem more bushy and sideways expanding, than the regular version, which in my front yard is really trying to become tree sized. The regular version is commonly called 'Pencil Tree' or 'Milk Tree'. Its sap is considered among the most caustic saps of all Euphorbias, so be careful around it.

Hi! New to gardening. I want to try some succulents next after I get my veggies and herbs started. What do you recommend for a small strip on the north side of the house?

Hi Liz,

Personally I have had a hard time keeping the hens and chicks and similar succulents alive through our summers, even if I keep them in the shade all summer, but there might be others here who have had more success who would be able to advise you on which ones work best here, I have simply stopped trying.

Our house has one north facing window (it is one of our side yards) and on its outside window sill I have a bunch of pots with a some Aloes, a Gasteraloe, a few Euphorbias and a small Pony Tail palm. They get early morning and late afternoon sun in the height of summer but other than that they get at most bright light. Those plants have seemed happy there, so my suggestion would be to try some Aloes - there are plenty of small growing ones that would not immediately take over a small strip. Alternatively, or in addition you could try some smaller cacti, though many of those might want a little more sun than a north facing position would get them.

mcvansoest said:The 'Firesticks' are actually the odd ball, whereas the one that stays mostly green (unless really really stressed) is the actual true form of the species. Euphorbia tirucalli. But as with the Totem Pole Cactus. which is a monstrose form of the Senita, because it is so popular for planting in gardens, it seems as if the oddball form is more abundant, than the regular form, but that is certainly not the case in the wild. I know for certain that the Totem Pole Cactus occurs in the wild, I am not sure if 'Firesticks' is a nursery product that has been selected for mass production, or also occurs in nature.

Given time and space E. tirucalli will actually become tree sized. Though most of the 'Firesticks' I see and the one I grow seem more bushy and sideways expanding, than the regular version, which in my front yard is really trying to become tree sized. The regular version is commonly called 'Pencil Tree' or 'Milk Tree'. Its sap is considered among the most caustic saps of all Euphorbias, so be careful around it.

for that additional info on the Firesticks. I I have been amazed how tall it is getting. It is in a rather small pot and I suspect it is pretty root bound, but am reluctant to re pot fearing it will break and it does seem happy as it is.

plantmanager said:I'm happy to hear that the crown of thorns are fairly hardy. I may try some of mine on the patio. I've always taken them inside. I do the same with my tropical hibiscus. Do you have any hibiscus outdoors all year?

Karen I mostly grow the Red Leaf Hibiscus. You can find photos in the data base here at Garden.org. They stay out all winter but I do cover if it gets real cold. Mine are in pots and this variety grow very large and are easily rooted from cuttings. Beautiful maroon colored leaves and flowers.

Thank you, Thijs!