Common name:Century Plant, Maguey
Botanical name:Agave americana

Fast growing to about 6-10' tall x 8-13' wide. Wide, grey leaves have stiff terminal spines and recurved teeth on margins. Prefers full sun and well-drained situations. Prone to agave snout weevil which will eat the roots and heart out. After blooming, which could take several years. it will die but will send up new pups from around the base. Some people are allergic to the sap. Removal is difficult if unwanted.

Common name:Golden Barrel Cactus
Botanical name:Echinocactus grusonii

Globe shaped trunk, vertical ribs lined with thick rows of golden spines, Slow to 3', Containers, Full sun but prefers some shade in low desert, well drained soil, rots with poor drainage,,

Common name:Mountain Yucca
Botanical name:Yucca schottii

Yucca grows to 6' x 4'. Has a dense rosette of steel-blue leaves. Spikes of creamy white flowers appear in early summer. One of few yuccas that will tolerate shade. In low desert, it appreciates some shade. When they are young, they tend to have a single unbranched trunk; when they are older they may have more branches from the base. Native to southern Arizona, northern Mexico, and Chihuahua.

Common name:Cardone Grande
Botanical name:Echinopsis terscheckii

Evergreen tree-like cactus grows at a moderate rate to 15' x 8'. Stems are light green and have medium tan spines. Flowers are showy white and appear in spring. Similar to the saguaro but grows faster and is smaller at maturity. Accepts full sun. Native to Argentina.

Common name:Narrow Leaf Hardy Century Plant
Botanical name:Agave striata

Agave striata is an easy-to-grow century plant that looks quite different from the wider leaf types with its narrow, rounded, grey-green, knitting needle-like leaves that are stiff and delightfully painful. The initial rosettes are 18" tall x 3' wide, but after the 8' tall flower stalks of hummingbird-favorite flowers finish in midsummer, the rosette branches and continues to grow, eventually creating a stack of porcupine-like balls. Hailing from the Sierra Madre Orientale mountain range in northeast Mexico, Agave striata has good winter hardiness and has been fine at 0 degrees F in our garden. It does best in full sun with well draining, sandy or loamy soil. Established plants are drought tolerant. Blooms appear in spring and summer.

Common name:Great Desert Spoon, Spoon Yucca, Gr
Botanical name:Dasylirion acrotrichum

Dasylirion acrotrichum or the Great Desert Spoon is a spectacular Yucca type of shrub with narrow, spear-like foliage that can reach up to 3' in length and has a serrated edge. They emerge in a perfect globular rosette from a central core or short trunk giving the plant a total height of up to 6'. In summer, it produces flower spikes around 13' tall that carry small white flowers. These are perfect for medium to larger Xeriscape or other arid garden styles, making a powerful graphic statement with their wonderful symmetry. They also work well in tropical themes too and can be grown in large pots or tubs. Coming as they do from the most arid parts of Mexico and central Americas, they can handle intense heat and extended periods of drought. Extremely well drained soils are vital in a sunny location - full sun is best though they will tolerate some shade throughout the day. Keep well watered in summer, though do not water over the crown as they are prone to rot. Cease watering over winter entirely. They can take a light frost but are best in minimum temperature above 50 degrees F.

Common name:Desert tea, CA ephedra
Botanical name:Ephedra californica

This unusual looking shrub appears to be leafless. Leaf stems are gray green when new, changing to yellow gray with maturity. Tiny leaves grow at the nodes. This plant may reach 3' tall and 4-'5' wide. This plant is found in desert areas of AZ, So. CA and Baja CA. Many folks put the twigs in boiling water to make a medicinal tea. This plant prefers full sun, well draining and sandy soil. It is drought tolerant once it's established.

Common name:Thompson's Yucca
Botanical name:Yucca thompsoniana

Yucca thompsoniana has a trunk up to 3 feet tall, branching above the ground. It flowers before there is any trunk at all, but continues to flower after the stem begins to grow. The leaves are narrow and dagger-like, a bit glaucous, up to 14 inches long and very narrow. Inflorescence is about 3 feet high. The flowers are white, up to 1.5 inches long. The plant blooms before there is any trunk but continues to flower after the stem begins to grow. The fruit is a dry, egg-shaped capsule.