Tag: deer grass

For goodness sakes, cover up that naked wall

Okay, you removed that thirsty grass in your front yard. You’ve also planted a tree or two or three around your home, shading at least part of your yard and the house, reducing the temperature. But off to the edge of your property–if your home is like most in the U.S. Southwest–is a dreaded gray concrete block wall.

That wall, if left bare, is a heat magnet. Nakedly exposed to direct sunlight the concrete absorbs heat during the day, even on cool days. Then after sundown, the wall releases the heat into the air creating a pool of warmth surrounding your home — just when you’re trying to cool things off at days end. And as the climate changes the wall-heater effect will only grow more intense. So what’s a smart gardener to do?

4 ways to help walls keep their cool
pomegranate fruit on bush

Plant shrubs in front of the wall. In one of my gardens I planted a row of the “Wonderful” variety of pomegranates (Punica granatum). These fast growers will reach a height of 6 to 10 feet. You may want to keep them trimmed to match the wall height because they can reach twice that height. Pomegranates need very little water. A special bonus with pomegranates is, of course, the fruit you can harvest in the late summer. In Fall the leaves turn a lovely shade of yellow before they drop. If you do not harvest the fruit you will have shrubs with bright red “ornaments” on them during the holidays. To see other shrubs for hot dry gardens, go here.

pampas grass hiding a wall
The lawn by this row of Pampas grass has since been removed. Behind it is a dull gray block wall.

Plant tall grasses in front of the wall

On another wall in the same garden, a previous owner had planted Pampas grass (Cortaderia selloana). After a summer’s growth Pampas grass will be 8-10 feet high plus another 5-6 feet of seed plumes. And it does all this with little need for irrigation or fertilizer. By mid-winter, this perennial should be cut back to 18 inches tall. Be sure to wear gloves and a long sleeve shirt when you cut it back because the leaf edges are rough and serrated. It will re-grow to the same height in the following summer. 

Avoid planting the variety of Pampas Grass called Cortaderia jubata which is a highly invasive weed. Given the right conditions — usually by a stream — it will self-seed and spread wildly forcing out native plants.

privet hedge deergrass skirt

If you want to avoid Pampas grass — and many people do–another choice would be Deer grass (Muhlenbergia rigens) which grows to about 2 feet tall during the summer. It too grows seed plumes in Fall, but they are more modest in size than the ones of Pampas grass. While Deer grass will not cover up the entire height of your wall, it can be a base plant used with other shrubs. Unlike Pampas Grass it does not need to be trimmed back in winter. Needs very little water. To see other ornamental grasses for hot dry gardens, go here.

Install trellises along the wall

Trumpet creeper campsis radicans

Plant climbers on the trellises–like a Trumpet Creeper (Campsis radicans) from the eastern U.S. It is a self-attaching vine with bright yellow and orange blossoms.

This vine can grow as much 40 feet in one year! Because it is such a vigorous grower and can become invasive, it is best planted in a large container beside the trellis or arbor. It is tolerant of a variety of soil conditions and of heat and cold. Needs moderate water in summer.

To see other fast-growing climbers and vines for hot dry gardens, go here.

For the unexpected — Kool Deck your wall

Paint your concrete block wall with “Kool Deck” or another heat-reducing finish normally used on pool decks. These finishes come in a variety of colors so you can give your garden walls a custom look.

Our 8 most popular newsletters

  1. Where to get free or cheap trees for your garden
  2. Six distinctively different landscapes to replace a lawn
  3. Cover up that naked wall
  4. Five fragrant plants for your garden
  5. Nine trees to combat climate change
  6. Four desert trees good for soil, 4 toxic ones
  7. Plants that bloom even in mid-summer scorching heat
  8. Follow 90F degree rule for planting

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All hail Queen Agave new ruler of the front lawn replacement

Front yards don’t look the way they used to.  For generations, the American standard  from coast to coast has been green grass as a carpet in the front of the house.  Mowed once a week. It was all very orderly and not many decisions were involved.  The homeowner’s “garden personality” was expressed in the choice of shrubs or flowers chosen to line the edges of that green carpet like a fringe.  Lawn replacement didn’t even enter people’s minds.

(NOTE: It is still too hot to plant in most of the Southwest, so I am writing about Lawn Replacement again!  Wait until the temperature drops below 90 degree F before beginning Fall planting.)

Now as homeowners in the West under the pressures of drought and climate change rush to remove these conventional front lawns no clear single standard for replacement exists.  What many homeowners know is that the grass in front of their house is “bad” and needs to go.  The Water Department said so.  And even offered to pay part of the replacement costs.

Homeowners are facing new lawn decisions
gold lantana
Gold Lantana is one tough ground cover that thrives with very little water and a lot of neglect. Too much fertilizer will make it bloom less. It comes in a variety of colors ranging from white to blue to pink to orange. The white and blue do NOT do well as lawn replacement.

“Agaves? Aloes? Aeoniums? Or maybe a single color field of gold Lantana?  Yeah. That sounds good.  Just one type of plant and one color. Oh–but will that be too much gold? Would pink Lantana be better?  Or maybe native plants?  Or maybe… [pause] Or maybe I’ll just hire someone to do it for me.”

While homeowners may be overwhelmed by these decisions, many of the landscapers installing these new front yards are not.  Agaves seem to be becoming the basic plant around which low water usage gardens are being created.

Now I have nothing against agaves.  Without them we wouldn’t have Margaritas.  And long-nosed bats would simply be another vanishing species if agaves disappeared.

Moreover, these plants are practically indestructible with a lifespan of several decades.  (Yes, I know they are called “century plants”, but they really do not live for a 100 years.) Professional landscapers love plants that they can stick in the ground and then count on to remain alive long after they have left the scene. They do not want to hear complaints about plants dying on previous jobsites.

So agaves it is.

But these plants need visual softening, some other plants to add visual variety.  Even the plant-and-go landscapers recognize that but rarely do ornamental grasses become their first choice as “other plants”.

The lawn by this row of Pampas grass has since been removed. Behind it is a dull gray block wall. In winter cut the Pampas grass back to 18 inches in height.

I wish they would.  From a 15 foot tall Pampas Grass (Cortaderia selloana) to line an unpainted block wall to 6 inch tall Mondo grass or Lilyturf (Liriope muscari) to cover a gentle slope in green, ornamental grasses are interesting and beautiful additions to a drought-tolerant garden.

Agave, deer grass, blue fescue, rocks Hot Gardens

A Large Agave surrounded by grass and rocks
This mix of Blue Fescue (Festuca), Deer Grass (Mulhenbergia rigens) and Agaves along a simulated creek bed filled with rocks is a classic image of lawn replacement using drought tolerant grasses.  It takes an artistic hand to site these plants in a way that looks good.  It also takes money.  Creating artificial streams can be very expensive.

Grasses to line a garden path
Pennisetum setaceum 'Rubrum' Hot Gardens

Far less expensive is Red Fountain grass (Pennisetum setaceum ‘Rubrum’) planted along a sidewalk.  It becomes a colorful addition to a drought-tolerant garden. It is especially attractive in  Autumn when it blooms and dances in the wind. The nearby Agave is good for structure, but not for gracefulness.

Next are a pair of photos showing before and after Mexican Feather grass (Nassella tenuissima) was added to a garden of Agaves and Aeoniums.  Sadly, the “Before” photo with chopped off Feather grass in a distant corner was actually taken in September of 2018.  The “After” was taken in 2016.  Why the homeowner decided to whack off the Feather Grass before he put the house up for sale is beyond me.

Before: A garden of Agave and Aeoniums
Agaves and aeonium garden Hot Gardens
With no Mexican Feather grass this front garden simply becomes a mass of plants with thick leaves in basically the same color.
After: Adding Mexican Feather Grass to the Agave gardenAgaves, Senecios, Mexican feather grass Hot Gardens

For a hilarious take on Agaves, read this very funny article by Frank Smith in The Awl.

Our 8 most popular newsletters

  1. Where to get free or cheap trees for your garden
  2. Six distinctively different landscapes to replace a lawn
  3. Cover up that naked wall
  4. Five fragrant plants for your garden
  5. Nine trees to combat climate change
  6. Four desert trees good for soil, 4 toxic ones
  7. Plants that bloom even in mid-summer scorching heat
  8. Follow 90F degree rule for planting

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