Thanks for having me out, Robert. Below is everything we went over, in the order we walked the yard, with plant options for each spot so you have it all in one place.
As a consult client, you're already in the Garden Nerd Club, so you have direct access to me there. If questions come up while you work through any of this, ask me there anytime.
Sun loving plants for the west side
This side faces west and takes the full afternoon sun. Barbados cherry is a great fit here, along with other sun loving plants that can handle the heat.
Barbados Cherry
Shrub, 6 to 10 feet, with glossy green leaves, small pink flowers, and bright red, tangy cherries several times a year. Loves full sun and heat. Protect it on frosty nights while it's young.
Pomegranate
Loves full sun and heat and takes less water than plants that aren't desert adapted. Grows as a large shrub or small tree with fruit in fall.
Orange Jubilee
Fast and lush, with big clusters of orange trumpet flowers spring through fall that hummingbirds love. Grows 10 to 12 feet tall. A hard freeze can nip it back, but it grows right back in spring. Plant 4 to 5 feet apart.
Yellow Bells
Bright yellow trumpet flowers spring through fall on lush green foliage, 8 to 12 feet tall. Takes full sun and heat and handles some shade. A hard freeze can nip it back. Plant 5 to 6 feet apart.
Oldhamii Bamboo (Clumping)
A clumping bamboo, so it widens slowly instead of running through the yard. Makes a tall, dense green screen fast, up to 25 to 30 feet over time. It wants more water than the desert options on this wall.
Guava
Tropical shrub or small tree, 10 to 15 feet, with fragrant fruit in late summer and fall. Frost tender, so it needs cover on cold nights.
Jujube
Tough fruit tree, 15 to 25 feet, that thrives in full sun and heat. Fruit tastes like an apple when crisp and a date when dried. Loses its leaves in winter and takes less water than plants that aren't desert adapted.
Moringa
Very fast growing, 15 to 25 feet, with light, airy leaves that are edible and packed with nutrients. Gives filtered afternoon shade without getting huge. Can die back in a hard freeze but regrows quickly in spring.
Plumeria
Fragrant tropical flowers all summer. Wants good drainage and stays on the dry side in winter. Cover it on frost nights.
Sugar Cane
Tall, leafy canes that give a lush, tropical look and are fun to harvest and chew. Loves heat, regular water, and compost.
Verawood
Small evergreen tree, 15 to 25 feet, covered in bright yellow flowers spring through summer. Thrives in full west sun and heat.
Here's a short video on orange jubilee.
You can't fit all of these. Pick a few favorites and repeat them so it looks intentional.
A peach tree, or other options
On the west side, you're thinking about a peach tree, and it can work here. Here are some other options too, including a red push pistache if you'd rather have shade than fruit.
Peach (low chill)
Low chill varieties like Florida Prince and Earligrande are bred for our warm winters and ripen in late spring before the heat. Prune each winter to keep it a manageable size, and thin the young fruit for bigger peaches. Loses its leaves in winter.
Red Push Pistache
Medium shade tree, 25 to 40 feet, with red new growth in spring and great fall color. Handles full west sun and heat, does well in a lawn, and is low litter.
Royal Poinciana
Wide, umbrella shaped canopy covered in brilliant red orange flowers in early summer. Gives great shade and loves heat. Cover it on hard frost nights while it's young.
Pomegranate
Loves full sun and heat and takes less water than plants that aren't desert adapted. Grows as a large shrub or small tree with fruit in fall.
Desert Willow
Native, 15 to 25 feet, with orchid like flowers all summer. Light canopy, takes full west sun, and loses its leaves in winter.
Whatever tree you choose, plant it with the root flare, where the trunk widens into the roots, slightly above the ground. Trees planted too deep slowly decline. This video shows why it matters.
Can't see the video? Watch it on YouTube.
- Size: start with 15 gallon trees. Smaller trees establish faster and always end up being better trees long term than big boxed ones.
- Above grade: find the root flare, where the trunk widens into the roots, before you dig, and set the tree so the flare sits slightly above the surrounding ground. Dig the hole two to three times as wide as the root ball but no deeper.
- Backfill: native soil plus a tiny bit of compost in the hole, compost on top of the soil, then mulch over the compost, held a foot back from the trunk.
A mulberry, or other shade trees
Here you're thinking a mulberry, which grows fast and gives big shade and fruit. Here are some other options as well.
Mulberry (fruiting)
Fast growing shade tree, 30 to 40 feet, with a big, dense canopy and sweet berries in spring. The berries stain, so keep it away from patios and walkways.
Chinese Elm
Fast growing, semi evergreen shade tree with a wide, graceful canopy, 40 to 50 feet. Handles full west sun and does well in a lawn. The bark gets a pretty mottled look as it matures.
Tipu
Fast growing shade tree with a wide umbrella canopy and yellow flowers in late spring, 30 to 50 feet. Gives serious shade fast. It drops some leaves and pods, which is fine out in the lawn.
Moringa
Very fast growing, 15 to 25 feet, with light, airy leaves that are edible and packed with nutrients. Gives filtered afternoon shade without getting huge. Can die back in a hard freeze but regrows quickly in spring.
- Size: start with 15 gallon trees. Smaller trees establish faster and always end up being better trees long term than big boxed ones.
- Above grade: find the root flare, where the trunk widens into the roots, before you dig, and set the tree so the flare sits slightly above the surrounding ground. Dig the hole two to three times as wide as the root ball but no deeper.
- Backfill: native soil plus a tiny bit of compost in the hole, compost on top of the soil, then mulch over the compost, held a foot back from the trunk.
Tropicals behind the hot tub
Back behind the hot tub, you're thinking bananas and canna lilies, and both will give it a great tropical feel. Here are some others that fit the same look.
Banana
Big tropical leaves and fruit once it's established. Frost burns the leaves back, so cover it on cold nights. It regrows from the base if it does get hit.
Canna Lily
Big tropical leaves and tall flower spikes in red, orange, or yellow. Adds height and a lush look. Likes consistent water.
Sugar Cane
Tall, leafy canes that give a lush, tropical look and are fun to harvest and chew. Loves heat, regular water, and compost.
Red Hibiscus
Big tropical flowers most of the warm season. Happiest with morning sun and protection from the afternoon heat, which this east side gives it. Cover it on frost nights.
Pink Hibiscus
Same care as the red. Mix the two colors for a fuller tropical look.
Plumeria
Fragrant tropical flowers all summer. Wants good drainage and stays on the dry side in winter. Cover it on frost nights.
Foxtail Fern
Upright plumes of bright green, about 2 feet tall. One of the best permanent plants for a shady spot.
- Tropicals like regular water and lots of compost, so give this bed its own drip zone if you can.
- Banana, hibiscus, and plumeria are frost tender. Cover them on cold nights.
You can't fit all of these. Pick a few favorites and repeat them so it looks intentional.
Tall fescue and ryegrass
For this lawn, you can do a mixture of tall fescue and ryegrass. With all the shade back here, that blend should be able to keep the lawn green most of the year.
Tall Fescue and Ryegrass Blend
Two cool season grasses that stay green through the winter and handle shade well. In a shady yard like yours, the blend can stay green most of the year.
- Why the blend: both are cool season grasses that stay green through the winter, and the shade helps them hold up through the summer heat that would burn them out in full sun.
- Planting: seed in fall, October into November, so it has the whole cool season to establish before summer.
- Mowing: keep it tall, 3 to 4 inches. Taller blades shade the soil and help it get through the heat.
- Water: water deeply in the early morning, and expect to give it more in summer.
- Overseeding: overseed thin spots each fall to keep it thick.
- Feeding: the Catalyst fertilizers in the Fertilizing section below work great on grass and really green it up.
Native plants for pollinators and color
Here are native and desert adapted plants like San Marcos hibiscus that will attract pollinators and bring in a lot of color.
San Marcos Hibiscus
Native mounding shrub, 3 to 5 feet, with deep green leaves and lavender flowers most of the year. A lush look that takes full afternoon sun and heat.
Chuparosa
Native with green stems and red tubular flowers through winter and spring. A hummingbird favorite that stays green and takes the heat.
Globe Mallow
Native with silvery leaves and cup shaped orange flowers in spring. Native bees love it.
Gregg's Mistflower
Soft, mounding native covered in fuzzy purple flowers spring through fall. Butterflies swarm it.
Penstemon
Tall flower spikes in red, pink, or purple in spring. Hummingbirds and native bees love it. Plant in fall for spring blooms.
Desert Milkweed
Native, upright gray green stems with cream flowers, 3 to 4 feet. Adds vertical dimension and feeds monarch and queen butterflies.
Pink Fairy Duster
Native, low and airy, 2 to 3 feet, with soft pink puffball flowers in late winter and spring.
Red Yucca
Grassy clumps with tall coral red flower spikes spring through fall. Adds height and color without getting big, and hummingbirds love it.
Autumn Sage
Compact, 2 to 3 feet, with red, pink, or coral flowers fall through spring. Takes full sun and can be sheared into a tidy low border.
Desert Marigold
Low mound of gray leaves with bright yellow daisies most of the year. Reseeds itself and keeps color going.
My approach with a desert landscape is to add a lot of different plants for diversity. They don't need to be strategically placed. A little sporadic looks good and fuller. Keep lower growing plants near walkways and under trees. Other than that, just do your thing and don't stress about placement.
Fertilizing
Everything in this write-up comes back to the soil. Feeding is really about feeding the soil life. Fungi, bacteria, and worms break down organic matter and hand nutrients to the roots, which is what gets new trees established, keeps the tropicals lush, and greens up the lawn, all without synthetic fertilizers. Here's the exact approach I use, so you can do it yourself.
- Compost, and be generous. On trees, spread it in a wide ring around the drip line, the outer edge of the canopy where most of the feeder roots are, from about halfway in to a couple feet past the edge. On shrubs, hedges, and vines, put it closer in, from a few inches off the stems out about a foot past the edge of the plant. Go 1 to 2 inches deep, and if you're unsure, go thicker rather than thinner. You really can't overdo quality compost. Do this three times a year: late winter (February), early summer (May), and fall (October).
- Worm castings every quarter. Every three months, scatter worm castings over the same areas: a few cups around each shrub and a couple pounds around the drip line of each tree. Castings are loaded with beneficial microbes that bring the soil to life. When it lines up with a compost round, put the castings down first and the compost right over them.
- A good organic fertilizer. These are the three products we use and recommend, all from Catalyst. Apply them at the label rate on the schedule each one gives.
Jenner 8
Liquid organic feed for the whole landscape.
Organic Nitro Jen
Organic nitrogen to push healthy green growth.
Kelp Fertilizer
Kelp based feed that supports roots and overall plant health.
You can find all three on the Catalyst website. Click Products, then Home and Garden.
- Water it all in. Give everything a deep watering right after you put it down so it soaks into the root zone.
- Mulch over the top. Mulch goes over the compost to keep it moist and cool so the soil life can do its work. Hold it a foot back from trunks and stems. No need to work any of it into the soil.
Compost, worm castings, and mulch are all at Arizona Worm Farm.
If you'd rather we handle it
Our monthly landscape fertilizing program feeds the whole yard for you.
- Covers the trees, tropicals, shrubs, and the lawn
- Monthly compost based liquid feeding across the full landscape
- Compost applications three times a year
- A recap video sent to you after each visit
Quick reference
Organic fertilizers
Catalyst (Products, then Home and Garden)Compost, mulch, worm castings
Arizona Worm FarmTropical plants
Greenlife NurseryOrange jubilee video
Watch on YouTubeRoot flare video
Why the root flare mattersIrrigation
Garrett: 480-678-9121Questions
Ask me anytime in the Garden Nerd ClubNext steps
You can take this list and do it yourself, and I'm right there in the Garden Nerd Club if you want a second set of eyes along the way. If you'd rather have us handle the planting, I can put together a planting proposal for you.
For anything irrigation related, call Garrett at 480-678-9121.
You can see more of what we do on our planting services page.