Desert Crest Press

Not all plants will thrive in the intense Arizona sun and heat over the summer. Truly fabulous, exotic looking Phoenix landscaping plants like the Canna offer you a huge selection of flower colors and some have striking colored foliage as well. These tall hardy perennials in our growing zone can add a great deal of excitement and drama to many areas of the yard and are really showstopping planted in clumps when in full bloom. Those with wildly streaked leaves can be an arresting focal point plant from spring through to first frost even in the months they aren’t in flower.

There are hundreds of different Canna lily variations to choose from ranging from dwarf varieties at only 3 feet tall to statuesque selections towering at over 6 feet in height. Their large flowers come in colors from cream and peach to yellows, oranges, reds and hues in between, not to mention the combination of two ormore of these on one bloom. Breeders of Cannas have come up with some breathtaking new colors. Foliage choices like chocolate or black flushed leaves, burgundies, white variegated, a range of greens and the wild looking color streaked leaves of the one known as Tropicanna can really put a lot of zip into any landscape design in Phoenix, Scottsdale and other locales around this region.

These aren’t a true lily, but are grown from tubers that love good drainage and lots of intense sunshine and warmth. They’re an excellent addition to outdoor living spaces where you can enjoy their beauty closely and also make it easiest to water them. While they do thrive in our climate and bloom for long periods, they require good moisture availability to remain looking their very best. Cannas will deal with drought, but their folage can become tattered looking. Its best to amend the soil with good humus content to keep moisture about the roots in between watering. You should plan on giving your Cannas a deep drink once a week. As far as beyond average plants for Phoenix landscaping go, this is rather low maintenance.

You will find Cannas available at retail garden centers and nurseries around the area, but if you really want to grasp just how vast and exciting these perennials can be looking for them at online canna dealers is a great idea. One of the hugest selections of cannas in the United States is found at Karchesky Canna on the internet. Their selection is astounding and covers about every color of leaf and bloom you can imagine… and then some. It is suggested that you purchase the bulb as opposed to seed, as you’ll have lovely plants for your yard or garden much faster and with less work involved. These will be dormant bulbs though, and not a started plant in a pot as is available from local Phoenix landscapers and garden centers. Its well worth the added step of starting them on your own. You’ll see what we mean after investigating a few pages in their catalog. No doubt you’ll want far more than one or two of what they have to offer.

The deep colored blooming varieties that are red or close to it are attractive to hummingbirds, adding more fascinating features to your sunny courtyard, pool landscaping or the planting areas around your patio. Whether light and airily delicate like a butterfly, or flamboyant and bold, adding these handsome perennials to your Phoenix landscape design can give you enormous impact and gorgeous color with a highly tropical feeling.

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<em>Images courtesy of Newtown graffiti (yellow), rjones0856 (red), and meknits (tropicanna) CC2.0 Share-Alike. </em>

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When attempting to produce a bold and lush tropical landscape design, use of brilliantly colored crape myrtles can add a touch sure to make you the envy in the neighborhood. When used as a specimen plant – placed as the focal point in your New River landscape design such as the Tuscarora Crape Myrtle shown here in the foreground accenting the circular drive of a New River home, the contrast produced by the bold color is striking against the accompanying green-colored foliage.

The many varieties of Crape Myrtles are incredibly beautiful and although noted for extensive use throughout the south in tropical settings, they do grow particularly well in the Southwest because these gorgeous bloomers are quite drought tolerant plants handling clay soils very well. They are great choices for adding to a lush tropical landscape design and are well suited to an Arizona climate. These plants are definite sun lovers requiring just an occasional deep watering to flourish making then an easy choice for New River landscapers.

There are varieties from which to choose that bloom up to 120 days every summer including the Dynamite Crape Myrtle, Red Rocket Crape Myrtle and Raspberry Crape Myrtle bush as well as the popular Tuscarora. This is incredible color for lush landscaping New River homes can be boldly framed by. You can remove any spent flower heads during summer months (this is a process called “deadheading”) that “tricks” the plant making it continue to bloom even more profusely. They also produce an exquisitely beautiful fall color as well before going dormant during the winter months.

A wonderful feature concerning the use of Crape Myrtles is they come in a variety of sizes to suit different needs for producing lush landscaping around your New River home. Use these in open spaces as well in tight areas. You can mix and match your selection of Crape Myrtles that produce varying colored blooms. Tropical landscape design is just one of the advantages of living in New River, Arizona.

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Glorious tropical beauty almost year around for Phoenix landscape design.

Enjoying the brilliant color of flowering plants in your yard is possible most of the year in this area of Arizona. The massive blooms of Hibiscus rosa-sinensis are a treat that continues to produce fresh blooms constantly during warm and hot weather.

More commonly known as Tropical Hibiscus, including this into shrub or tree in the design for your Phoenix yard or garden will add a lot of interest. Don’t worry about our occasional frost in winter harming Hibiscus, they are perfectly hardy in Phoenix landscaping.

The dark green foliage of Tropical Hibiscus is usually large, but always dark green and glossy. As a texture in your Phoenix landscape design, that stands out well against many of our ornamental plants.

Available in a wide range of bloom colors, you will be able to add the lushness of huge Hibiscus flowers to your Phoenix landscaping. The plant is offered in both a tree form and a bush form. The best choice is the tree form for conserving space in small yards. This allows you to enjoy lower growing plants around the beauty of this small landscape tree while keeping a more open feeling to your Phoenix landscape design. Placing this marvelous long flowering plant where you can enjoy it daily from the patio and out the window is highly recommended.

Hibscus for Phoenix landscaping will mature to about 15 feet tall. You can shear the shrub form of the large plants into a hedge shape, but the blooms are formed at the tips of the branches. Shearing at the wrong time of year will mean a loss of flowering. It is best to select a place in your yard that it can grow unhampered into its natural glory.

The soil will need to be amended with moisture holding materials for best results growing Hibisus in your yard or outdoor living room. You need good drainage and ample compost for best vigor. Summer heat will be no issue at all, even in afternoon sun with good moisture practices. In dry conditions, Phoenix landscaping use of Hibiscus is best in the shade. This will result in very few blooms, so an after soon placement will give the most color and beauty when using the Tropical Hibiscus in Phoenix landscape design.

Watering in summer is needed more often than in the winter when the Hibiscus will be almost dormant. Too much water applied in winter can cause problems for this plant in your Phoenix landscaping. To get the irrigation adjust right you can consult with your landscaper or water it with the grass in summer and your citrus plants in winter. The blooms may only last a day, but you will have stunning color from lush tropical beauty in Phoenix as new ones constantly appear. A spring through fall source of fabulous color for your Phoenix landscape design.

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Plants in robust health are a large part of the beauty of any Arizona landscaping.

There are some very simple things that many Arizona homeowners don’t realize will reduce the amount of money needed to keep their Phoenix landscaping lush and beautiful, if done properly. It is a proven fact that plants installed in your yard can increase your annual yard maintenance costs; they can also decrease that expense. The key is to understand three basic things about plants available to homeowners in the greater Phoenix area.

One really important thing to know is that just because a plant is for sale at a garden center in your area, does not necessarily mean it will thrive in your yard. Big box store garden centers, like Home Depot and Wal-Mart, are interested in only one thing … moving merchandise in mass quantities. A strategy that is fine if you are buying flower pots, trellises and hoses. When it comes to living things, you are far better off purchasing plants for your Arizona landscaping from a small area nursery center or a licensed landscape contractor. These people are invested in the community in ways no big box store ever will be, they care about what happens after you pay for that plant.

Big box stores loose nothing if it dies, the nursery that put the plant on their shelves does. You loose your gas to and from the Wal-Mart or Home Depot for two round trips, the time and energy you invested in planting the wrong plant in your yard, the water you used trying to keep it from croaking on you and the labor expended digging it back up and lugging it back to the big box store with your receipt to demand your money back. You saved nothing buying at big discount stores, it probably cost you more in gas, vehicle wear and labor than it was all worth.

You will have far less frustration and way more beauty growing in your yard if you purchase your plants from locally owned greenhouses, garden center nurseries or have them professionally installed by licensed Phoenix landscapers. The longer you play around trying to get things growing well in your xeriscape or tropical landscaping, the longer it will take for your home to be surrounded by beautiful plants that increase your real estate’s value and curb appeal.

The next step in saving money on landscape maintenance in Phoenix area has to do with your property itself. In the next post here at Desert Crest Press, you’ll learn all about Step #2 in reducing your landscape expenses, the easy way.

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