As New Year resolutions go, money, mental health, and weight loss rank at the top — ideas to improve your life and health.
In the desert, it’s also an opportune time to improve the health of your landscape.
The key: Go native and save water.
Redesign your water-heavy garden and lawn and install native plants. They significantly impact water usage when used in place of lawns and other high-water use plants and take less maintenance.
Native plants create a more natural-looking garden and are more drought-tolerant. They can support populations of pollinators and birds and build resilience to a changing desert climate.
So, what’s a native plant? A California native plant evolved in a California area before humans or animals arrived.
In the desert, a native plant might classify as drought tolerant, meaning it can survive a few weeks to a month without water. Or, it might classify as drought-resistant and survive a few weeks to a month without water.
Cahuilla Indian lore identifies these top ten most common Coachella Valley native plants:
- Blue palo verde
- Brittlebush
- California barrel cactus
- California fan palm
- Chuparosa
- Creosote
- Desert Willow
- Jojoba
- Ocotillo
- Rush milkweed
You can find them at these area nurseries that specialize in plants native to the Coachella Valley:
- Cactus Mart, Morongo Valley
- GDNC Cactus & Desert Plant Nursery, Desert Hot Springs
- Mariscal Cactus & Succulents, Desert Hot Springs
- Mojave Desert Land Trust, Joshua Tree
- Moller’s Garden Center, Palm Desert
- Moon Valley Nurseries, Coachella
- Randy G. Meyers & Nurseries, Desert Hot Springs
By the way, February is an excellent month to plant native plants, although hold off until late spring or early summer to add palms to your landscape.
For more ideas: CVWD.org/Conservation
