Right Plant, Right Place… We can’t say it enough. Who is making the decision to plant the wrong plant for the site, or shall we say the ‘right plant,’ just in the wrong place? When plant material is allowed to grow, bloom, and thrive in its space it has lower maintenance and water requirements.

Color in the landscape often means any color other than green, though green is a color too. The color of a plant results from light acting on its leaves, flowers, fruit, bark, and seeds. Colors are warm (reds, yellows, oranges, etc.) or cool (blues, greens, purples, etc.), depending on their hue. Hue is the name of a color such as red, blue, orange, and so forth. Cool colors are receding, not as conspicuous as warm colors are bright, inviting, and lively.

Aloes make beautiful additions to gardens due to their bold architectural forms, vibrantly colored flowers, and ability to attract hummingbirds. They offer some of the best colors for Arizona gardens with their impressive and long-lasting flowers shown during late winter and spring.

When the climate changes, so do the presence of plants in different areas worldwide. The fossil record has proven invaluable in tracking plants from one location to another in response to drought and heat stress, showing that plants are indeed mobile organisms. For plant species, migrating in response to environmental changes is a matter of survival.

October has arrived, and the welcome relief from the heat may turn attention away from drought. While Arizona had a decent monsoon season, it was nowhere near enough to pull the region out of drought status. Now is the time for landscape professionals, property managers, homeowners and community residents to double down efforts and work together to reduce landscape water usage, all while maintaining attractive outdoor spaces. ALCA has created this Irrigation Efficiency Checklist to guide this cooperative effort.