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Russelia equisetiformis | Also called: Coral Fountain, Coral Bush, Fountainbush, Firecracker Bush The first time most people see a well-established Firecracker Plant in full bloom, they stop and look twice. The form is unlike anything else in a typical Phoenix

Callistemon viminalis ‘Little John’ | Also called: Dwarf Bottlebrush, Little John Bottlebrush Little John is the kind of plant that earns its place quietly. It doesn’t grow fast, it doesn’t demand attention, and it doesn’t make a scene when conditions

Ruellia simplex | Also called: Mexican Petunia, Mexican Bluebell, Purple Ruellia, Wild Petunia Ruellia is one of the most color-productive shrubs available for Phoenix landscapes. From spring through fall — and in warm microclimates pushing well into winter — it

Cenchrus setaceum ‘Rubrum’ (formerly Pennisetum setaceum ‘Rubrum’) | Also called: Purple Fountain Grass, Red Fountain Grass Few ornamental grasses do what Fountain Grass does in a Phoenix landscape — a dense, arching mound of deep burgundy-purple foliage topped with feathery

Eremophila glabra ‘Mingenew Gold’ | Also called: Outback Sunrise Emu, Emu Bush, Mingenew Gold Most ground covers in Phoenix are compromises. They either look good and need too much water, or they’re truly drought-tolerant but spend half the year looking

Bougainvillea ‘Torch Glow’ | Also called: Torchglow Bougainvillea, Paper Flower Most people in Phoenix have a complicated relationship with bougainvillea. They’re everywhere, they’re undeniably colorful, and they’re brutal to deal with — thorny vines that take over, dump bracts all

Tecoma stans | Also called: Yellow Trumpet Flower, Yellow Elder, Esperanza If you want one shrub that delivers consistent color in a Phoenix commercial or residential landscape from spring through fall with minimal fuss, Yellow Bells is the answer most

Acacia aneura | Also called: Mulga, Mulga Acacia, Dream Seed Tree The Mulga Acacia is the tree that commercial and HOA landscapes in Phoenix keep discovering and then wondering why they didn’t plant sooner. It’s evergreen, thornless, drought-adapted, modest in

Why Fertilizing 4 Times a Year Is Holding Your Landscape Back The case for feeding your soil every month, and what that actually means Ask most landscapers when to fertilize and you will get some version of the same answer:

Soil First Thinking The Problem With Synthetic Fertilizers Why feeding the plant can starve the soil. Walk into almost any garden center and you’ll see the same promise everywhere. Bigger blooms. Greener grass. Faster growth. Instant results. To be fair,

Lysiloma watsonii | Also called: Feather Bush, Feather Tree, Littleleaf False Tamarind Synonyms: Lysiloma thornberi, Lysiloma microphylla var. thornberi If you’ve driven through Phoenix neighborhoods and noticed a tree with the softest, most delicate-looking foliage you’ve ever seen on something

Vachellia farnesiana | Also called: Huisache, Sweet Vachellia, Perfume Acacia, Texas Huisache In late winter, if you spend any time outside in the Phoenix area, you’ll catch the smell before you see the tree. Sweet Acacia flowers have a fragrance