As you are reworking parts of your garden consider lovely landscape additions that are a bit less thirsty. In addition to our own California natives there are many “Mediterranean” plants that hail from far away places that too are particularly suited to our mild wet winters and mostly rainless summer dry climate. Native plants from around the Mediterranean Sea, South Africa and parts of Australia are all part of this wonderfully diverse plant palate for us to build our unthirsty landscapes with.
All newly planted plants will require a extra TLC (they come home as babies!) to get established but when their roots are deep enough they become very water-wise. Remember to water your plants in their container thoroughly when you take them home. Dipping them in a 5 gallon pail of water works too.
Here are some lovely Water-Wise options:
Low growing plants including many colorful succulents
- Aoneium succulent
- Apentia
- Iceplant
- Gazania
- Rosemary varieties
- Baccharis
- Cacti varieties
- Ceanothus varieties
- Cotoneaster varieties
- Sedum varieties (pictured)
- Sempervivum
- Thyme varieties
Colorful Perennials/Succulents
- Aloes
- Lavender (pictured)
- Limonium perezii (Sea Lavender Statice)
- Lantana
- Achillea (Yarrows)
- Kniphofia (Red Hot Pokers)
- Salvia varieties (Sage)
Medium Height Shrubs
- Callistemon (Bottle Brush)
- Ceanothus
- Grevillea (pictured)
- Plumbago
- Rhus ovata (Sugar Bush)
- Teucrium (Bush Germander)
Large Shrubs/Perennials
- Ceanothus varieties (pictured)
- Dodonaea
- Fremontodendron
- Romneya coulteri (Matilja Poppy)
- Rhamnus varieties (Buckthorn)
- Xylosma Trees
- Arbutus varieties (Strawberry Tree)
- Eriobotrya (Loquats)
- Olea (Olives)
- Heteromeles (Toyon)
- Palm varieties
- Pine varieties
- Pistachia chinensis (Chinese Pistache)
- Quercus varieties (Oaks)
- Rhus lancea (African Sumac)
- Robinia (Loqusts)
- Schinus molle (California Pepper)
Vines
- Bougainvillea (pictured)
- Campsis
- Wisteria
