Tolerant Beauty

Two years after planting the formerly blah front yard has quickly grown into a dramatic tapestry of saturated color and inviting plant vignettes anchored by Agonis flexuosa ‘Jervis Bay Afterdark’’ surrounded by Abelia ×grandiflora ‘Kaleidoscope’. Photo: Linda Bresler

I met James and Mary Collard when I gave a talk on colorful water-wise landscapes at the San Diego Botanic Garden. The Collards lived in a typical tract home with a green lawn, three palm trees, and another tree that was too large for their property. They were eager to completely change their landscape into something more exciting and drought tolerant. I assured them that they could have a resilient, water-wise landscape that would provide color and interest throughout the year. Their water bill—and maintenance—would drop drastically.

Before: a fairly typical suburban landscape complete with a thirsty lawn and uninspired, poorly sited plantings. Photo: Linda Bresler

To begin, the lawn was removed using a sod cutter. The two queen palms (Syagrus romanzoffianum) growing ...