Re: Carissa Macrocarpa & Regionally Appropriate Gardens

At 05:29 PM 3/2/99 EST, Kurt (K1MIZE@aol.com) wrote:
>They also grow very well and are widely planted in the Imperial Valley, with
>annual rainfall under 2".  

This news about Natal Plum's tolerance of aridity and heat is exciting!
I've read descriptions of this plant and thought about trying them out here
in Tucson, Arizona, but was under the impression that they would not like
our hot summers and low rainfall (BTW, this winter so far is disastrous,
not a drop of rain since December 7 or so, whereas we "normally" expect
about half of our yearly rainfall--or roughly 15 cm--between about October
and March. but I digress...).

So now I can put Carissa Macrocarpa back on my wish list, something to
dream about trying next September which is the best time of year for
planting here.

I also wanted to respond to the various recent comments on gardening in
ways appropriate for our various regions. I've long felt fortunate to live
in Tucson, in that for some reason, people around here generally seem to
have much more regionally appropriate gardens than, say, in Southern
California or even just to the north of us, in Phoenix. (I don't know why
that is.) So, there are many local nurseries that specialize in local or
well-adapted plants, and every spring on the local Gardens Tour there are
terrific examples of how beautiful such a garden can be. 

In the last 10 years, there's also been quite a spate of good books
published on plants appropriate to the US southwest, and if other
listmembers are interested, I can post some of my favorite titles to the
list, along with some possible sources for seeds/plants (some online). I
realize that the Sonoran Desert isn't a true Mediterranean climate, but
there's a fair amount of overlap nonetheless.

Also, it does seem to me that there's a difference between people planting
totally inappropriate *gardens* (eg the "English Cottage Garden") simply
because they are beginners and don't know what "locally or regionally
appropriate plants" means in their area, and people who ARE well aware of
what's appropriate and are tenderly nurturing more-or-less inappropriate
*plants* simply for love of that particular plant. At least in the latter
case, those doing so know darn well what they are doing, and I would guess
in most cases try to ensure that their "babies" are still sited as
appropriately as possible while the rest of the garden is "regionally
appropriate." I also applaud those who try planting whatever they feel like
but then don't baby the plants along but just wait to see what can adapt
and what can't. Nerves of steel, some folks have! But it's a good approach,
and one I tend to take myself especially since I also tend to be a bit on
the slothful side ;-)

Again, we are lucky in Tucson to have an excellent local Botanical Garden
(small but packing amazing amount into the available space) to help point
the way. The Desert Botanical Garden in Phoenix and the Boyce-Thompson
Arboretum about an hour east of Phoenix are also excellent resources, so if
any listmembers are travelling to this part of the world, you should put
all three on your list of places to visit!

I've been mostly a lurker lately because work and family concerns are
leaving me with very little gardening time, but I'd also like to say how
much I value this list. So many wonderful plants! So little time to mess
around in the garden!!! Thanks to all of you for letting me enjoy your
gardens vicariously.

saludos del Desierto Sonorense,

Katherine Waser
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