Re: REPLACEMENT FOR RUBUS PENTALOBUS

Hi Sylvia,
You could try Salvia "Mrs. Beard", or for prettier flowers S. Bee's Bliss, also Salvia clevelandii (delicious scent) Winifred Gilman or other clevelandii hybrids. How about Rhus ovata? 

Cathy
On Jun 21, 2008, at 3:49 PM, Sylvia Sykora wrote:
I've watched all week as a two-year old planting of this Rubus - which looks wonderful all winter and in early spring - has turned up its toes in the face of heat and brutal Western sun. Several of the now 4' x 4' plants are completely brown, and while they may survive at the roots, clearly this 
shade lover was not the right plant for the site.
Can anyone suggest a similarly low, green spreading groundcover (erosion control) for a west-facing slope - brutally hot and dry in summer - which ultimately will have to survive on winter rains alone? It will need to 
suit the rest of the slope plantings of  rhamnus, toyon, manzanita,
carpenteria, and arbutus, all of which look good in this, their first summer 
without supplemental watering.

I'd like to keep the look and feel of the planting one of a naturally
"un-gardened" and slightly wild area.
I'll be grateful for whatever suggestions any one may have. I'm stumped. 

Sylvia Sykora
Oakland, CA
USDA Zone 9
Sunset Zone 16
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