Succulents and more in the front yard, late September 2016

This post picks up where I left off here. Let’s take a look at the succulents and other goodies growing outside the fenced-in front yard proper.

This the entrance to the fenced-in front yard:

Facing the view you see in the photo above, you would have the driveway in your back. Turn around, and this is what you see:

There are still a few flowers on the palo verde! This tree has been an impressive performer at all levels.

The strip between our house and our neighbor’s house is a another small succulent area. Two trees anchor it: the Bearss lime tree at the sidewalk end, and the ‘Desert Museum’ palo verde at the garage end.

The succulents between the two trees (plus the three Dione edule ‘Palma Sola’) are starting to come into their own.

LEFT: Agave parrasana  RIGHT: Agave ‘Mad Cow’ (Agave colorata × bovicornuta)

LEFT: Agave parrasana  RIGHT: Agave ‘Mad Cow’ (Agave colorata × bovicornuta)

Dioon edule ‘Palma Sola’, Agave ‘Felipe Otero’ (often misidentified as Agave titanota), Agave ‘Snow Glow’

 Agave ‘Snow Glow’, a variegated sport of ‘Blue Glow’

Agave ovatifolia ‘Frosty Blue’, Cotyledon orbiculata, Aloe cryptopoda. It’s getting tight in here!

Agave ‘Joe Hoak’ (check out this post from January 2014 for comparison!)

This Agave parryi var. truncata in the driveway has thrived in this metal pot.

However, a few weeks ago I noticed this:

Mealybugs! The bane of my existence! I sprayed them repeatedly with isopropyl alcohol and sprinkled system insecticide granules on top of the soil (as much as I could reach). Keeping my fingers crossed I’ve nipped the problem in the bud!

Now let’s walk around the outside of the front yard.

You know fall isn’t far away when the California fuchsias (Epilobium canum) are in bloom

×Mangave ‘Macho Mocha’ flowered and promptly turned into a mess of pups. Time to separate them! I much prefer one individual rosette as a time.

Agave weberi ‘Arizona Star’ has been slower than I thought but it’s finally coming into its own

Ever reliable: Russelia equisetiformis

New this summer: Agave ‘Grey Ghost’, a gift from a friend. ‘Grey Ghost’ is thought to be a hybrid between Agave salmiana var. ferox  and Agave asperrima. It was available for a short period of time through Plant Delights Nursery.

Aloe excelsa in front of Grevillea plurijuga ssp. superba

Grevillea plurijuga ssp. superba. Don’t be fooled by the feathery-looking foliage. It’s bristly, not soft. It hasn’t flowered yet, but the flowers look stunning.

Aloe marlothii, one of two in the front yard (I have a third in the backyard). Not a fast grower by any means! The foliage behind it is from Salvia discolor.

Aloe arborescens (variegated on the left, green on the right) under the city-owned-and-hence-untouchable Bradford pear (aka the nastiest tree in existence). Salvia discolor on the lower left.

I love the contrast: Manihot grahamii on the top and Sambucus nigra ‘Black Lace’ on the bottom

Agave gentryi ‘Jaws’ being swallowed again by Mexican bush sage (Salvia leucantha)

Yucca linearifolia, Calliandra californica, Aloe ferox (continued below)

This Agave zebra will soon be squished by Aloe ferox. Time to replant it!

I had been hoping Aloe ferox would grow enough of a trunk to lift itself off the ground before it got too close to Agave zebra, but that doesn’t look like it’s happening.

Agave parrasana × colorata, Agave parrasana, Aloe broomii. The shrub is Leucophyllum frutescens ‘Compactum’.

Agave mitis, Aloe petricola, Agave macroacantha, Aloidendron ‘Hercules’

Aloe petricola, Agave mitis, Agave macroacantha, Aloidendron ‘Hercules’

Agave macroacantha

Aloe ‘Moonglow’, Yucca rostrata, Agave americana ‘Medio-picta Alba’, Agave ovatifolia. Aloe hereroensis

This Leucophyta brownii has turned into the tumbleweed-shape I had been hoping for. I’m so fond of it, I will plant a few more for repetition.

Agave deserti var. nelsonii, Aloe capitata var. quartziticola, Leucophyta brownii. Agave deserti var. nelsonii and an Agave palmeri (dwarf form) hiding behind the Leucophyta brownii will have to be moved this fall.

Wider view towards the front of the house. The tree is ‘Sonoran Emerald’ palo verde.

Agave schidigera ‘Durango Delight’

Aloe ‘Erik the Red

Considering that so much of the front yard looks reasonably good after a long, hot summer, I have high hopes for the fall. I can’t wait for the first real rain to wash everything clean.