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New House, New Yard


ahosey01

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I was inspired by @DAVEinMB's thread about his landscaping progress, so I thought I would do something similar.  As time passes and progress is made and plants put on new growth, I will update this thread with photos.

I recently bought a new house in Wickenburg, AZ which was built on a lot that had been abandoned and empty for about 15 years.  At one point there had been a house here, but it was torn down by ADOT in 2006 and then they never did anything with the land.

I am down at the bottom of a valley near the river, so it will probably get to 19-20 at least once per year in the early morning - probably only for a few minutes until the sun crests the horizon.  We have close to no humidity where I am located.  Throughout the yard, I have planted six species of (mostly) cold-hardy palms to become the focal points of the garden as they get bigger:

  • Brahea armata (2)
  • Phoenix dactylifera
  • Phoenix roebellini
  • Phoenix canariensis
  • Chamaerops humilis (2)
  • Bismarckia nobilis

The two I know are pushing it are a Phoenix roebellini  and a Bismarckia nobilis.  The Phoenix I expect to have to cover in the winter, but it is also near the house on the south side of the building, a very large boulder that gets sun all day, and it is the first plant to get sun in the morning.  The Bismarckia will be a little more interesting.  It is near the house and about 10 feet from a concrete wall, also near a very large boulder.  The yard and garden will also both be dark gravel laid on the ground thick, which should help retain some heat.  It is also partially under a canopy from what I believe is an ash tree.

In the garden in the front, I have also planted many species of native cacti - mostly Cylindropuntia varieties - as well as a Joshua Tree (Yucca brevifolia) and an Argentine Saguaro (Echinopsis terscheckii).  The garden in the back has a Baja California theme.  Currently, it contains two Brahea armata, one Fouquieria splendens and one Pachycereus pringlei (will be fun to cover in the winter when it gets larger).  In the fall, I am adding a Fouquieria columnaris (with five caudices!!) and two large Ferocactus emoryi.  On the back patio - close to the house and under the roof - I have created a Madagascar-themed pot garden.  I have two Pachypodium lamerei, six Alluaudia procera (all crammed into one pot at the time of the photo, now in two), a pot full of Euphorbia leucodendron, a Kalanchoe beharensis and an Aloe vaombe that is the single fastest growing plant I have ever seen.  Since putting it in the pot it is in approximately four weeks ago, it has put on roughly 5 inches in vertical height.  This is not a joke.  On the south side of the house - as an experiment - I planted a Euphorbia royleana.  I love these plants and I know they will not survive the 19-20 degree lows we will see at least once a year.  However, I stuck it a.) close to the south side of the house b.) in a gravel bed c.) to the east side of the HVAC unit d.) where it gets first light in the morning.  It's an all-electric house, so this unit will also heat the place in the winter.  We'll see how it works!

Here are the photos, first of the front of the house and the main front garden (lighting is always challenging here):

front_of_house.jpg.9d2800358ebfd0947022ebe1ad4a7c95.jpg

front_garden.jpg.ccc47aadc729279110ee9beaac40cd42.jpg

Phoenix dactylifera - This one looked bad at the grower's, so I got it for a steal.  $200 and it had 5 feet of solid trunk already.  Since planting it has really taken off, and opens a new leaf about every two weeks in this summer heat (was 110+ for 5 days straight last week):

phoenix_dactylifera.jpg.0e87ec4dd1d8fd1cd809b96bc96cc830.jpg

Phoenix roebellini - This guy I know I am going to have to cover in the winter.  Surprisingly hasn't burned much in the spot it is in - it gets full blazing sun from probably 6:00 AM to about 6:00 PM:

phoenix_roebellini.jpg.0da5d07baae552bd647dba8045ed39e4.jpg

Phoenix canariensis - This one is the centerpiece of the garden, because I love these palms.  It seems to have put growth on hold since planting.  It has a half-opened spear and the other spears don't seem to have put on any height.  It otherwise looks good though, so I'm going to let it ride for now:

phoenix_canariensis.jpg.3e2523803cbc20bd6dcdd9ae168656cc.jpg

Bismarckia nobilis - This is the one that I think will be a question mark come wintertime.  Fingers crossed!

bismarckia_nobilis.jpg.94eb5fcb2195a48f052de92b552a1a3c.jpg

Chamaerops humilis - I planted these very close together intentionally.  As they get larger I will prune the suckers so the left plant is only suckering left of the trunk, and the right plant is only suckering right of the trunk.  I am hoping they will grow above the front window and provide a little privacy for that room:

chamaerops_humilis.jpg.d37d1eba2ca7bb3a52271a75e75a92e8.jpg

Brahea armata - these are the biggest plants I've planted.  The one on the right got a little shocked from transplant, but stopped turning brown about four weeks ago and has stabilized.  It looks like it will open a new spear soon.  In front of them you can see the ocotillo, and to the left is the small Pachycereus pringlei.  The empty half-dug mound is where the Boojum Tree (Fouquieria columnaris) will go.  Currently trying to eradicate a pocket gopher from the mound:

brahea_armata.jpg.5c20744d13ad17b33ea1631de204c2d5.jpg

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These are the non-palms in the garden.

First, in the front, we have all of the cacti.  This is a Cylindropuntia acanthocarpa, or Buckhorn Cholla:

Cylindropuntia_acanthocarpa.jpg.a802427613d94f0c2fb55a6a8ee08d0e.jpg

This is probably my single favorite cactus species - Cylindropuntia leptocaulis - or the Christmas Cholla.  These grow natively in the Chihuahuan Desert and are abundant in Big Bend National Park:

Cylindropuntia_leptocaulis.jpg.df4694e36ec833f6792f58416ccf8226.jpg

This is an Arizona Pencil Cholla, or Cylindropuntia arbuscula 

Cylindropuntia_arbuscula.jpg.5d6e77be2c055f74603c15cbb75c30c8.jpg

Here is my Argentine Saguaro (Echinopsis terscheckii) - I picked this for the particular cold hardiness and the fact that it grows faster than the native Saguaro:

Echinopsis_terscheckii.jpg.56e6152e6e7e0df895a3be69caa981ac.jpg

This is a baby Joshua Tree, grown from seed.  It is remarkably fast growing for a Joshua Tree specimen - it has put on four new leaves since planting 6 weeks ago:

Yucca_brevifolia.jpg.c4f032c6735111d09bf3af84a4e48d59.jpg

This is one of my favorite cacti - Echniocereus rigidissimus - the Rainbow Hedgehog.  Supposedly there are reports out there of these things surviving -20F temps.  This one is probably very old but is still very small - that is 1/2" gravel:

Echinocereus_rigidissimus.jpg.1c4cac17c9bbd575033ebd4f0c0406a1.jpg

Next to the garage (which is blue) I have four perfectly-matching Pilosocereus azureus in a pot.  To the right of them are two cuttings from a large Cylindropuntia imbricata.  These are especially important to me because they belonged to my uncle who passed about a month ago.  He grew the large imbricata from a tiny plant he picked up at a local tourist shop:

Pilosocereus_azureus.jpg.8107ae62a67f75254646cc5495b76a60.jpg

And then this is a photo of the specific Fouquieria columnaris that will be planted in the back yard come fall.  This specimen is 4 feet tall with five caudices!  If you know boojum trees, you know that is a big deal!!
boojum_tree.jpg.f234e14106cb76a9e30681f440d9199b.jpg

 

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There were also three large trees already on the property when I purchased it.  In the front is what I believe is an ash tree.  It has four trunks and is approximately 60-70 feet tall.  What is incredible is that since this lot was abandoned for so long, this tree received almost no supplemental water for 14 years.  You can tell a little towards the top of the canopy - there are some signs it has started to wear on the tree.  However, I've been giving it 50 or so gallons twice a week.  We'll see what happens over the coming season.  If anyone can confirm that this is an ash tree, please do.  I'm not great with deciduous trees:

ash_tree.jpg.e3047e036c156645b939a6ff176d343b.jpg

In the back corner of the property was a wildly overgrown area of grass, saltcedar, and mesquite suckers.  I knew there was at least one large tree behind all of it, but couldn't see much.  After cutting everything back, now this big old beautiful mesquite tree has been revealed:

mesquite.jpg.5ba31cbaeaea42b10e96ec3860d3afb7.jpg

Also - some help for identification if possible.  You can see the tall, straight tree growing in front of the mesquite.  It almost looks like sumac leaves, but sumac are usually shrubby and wouldn't like 110+ degree temps.  I thought maybe walnut, but it has seed pods that resemble the little helicopters that fall off maple trees.  Can't figure it out for  the life of me:

unidentified.jpg.70c621a3d3625d931fecc278cda6c0c7.jpg

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And then this is the Madagascar-themed pot garden on the back patio.

Here is my newly-branching Pachypodium lamerei:

pachypodium_lamereijpg.jpg.474363a60e7c2d98619e69330e433778.jpg

Here are my overcrowded Alluaudia procera.  Since this photo was taken, I have split these into two pots:

alluaudia_procera.jpg.97ee383c288eee7949c2681301318dcd.jpg

Here is the gang of Euphorbia leucodendron:

euphorbia_leucodendron.jpg.4b60d8c3e72206172e327f4664a206e2.jpg

My tiny but beautiful Kalanchoe beharensis:

kalanchoe_beharensis.jpg.07991ac41650509da26b012624c13390.jpg

And probably my favorite non-palm plant at the whole house, the Aloe vaombe that is growing like a monster:

aloe_vaombe.jpg.7ec93701b11cde2dd59ad81dc496e862.jpg

 

And finally, here is the lone Euphorbia royleana on the south side of the house that is my winter experiment:

euphorbia_royleana.jpg.f01899240aa1bad11166a9875c482a88.jpg

If anyone has any ideas or feedback, please share!

Edited by ahosey01
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Very nice work! I don't know how you desert people do it! No humidity would kill me. haha

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17 minutes ago, Dartolution said:

Very nice work! I don't know how you desert people do it! No humidity would kill me. haha

What is interesting is that I have never seen a neighborhood like this in Arizona.  No humidity is definitely dry and you drink more water than you even thought you could.  But visually in this neighborhood you'd never be able to tell!  We have a ton of old, deciduous trees here that look more like something you'd see back in the Midwest or in the South.  We have huge Walnuts, Pecans, Mulberries, Ashes, Oaks and Pines.  I might even see a weeping willow from my back porch behind some other trees down this wash at the neighbor's, but it's hard to tell from here.  I'll get down there and take a look sooner or later.

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Looks like you're 9A so all the palms you listed except the Roebellini should do well.  You may have some sun acclimation issues going on.   Looks great!

YouTube https://www.youtube.com/@tntropics - 60+ In-ground 7A palms - (Sabal) minor(7 large + 27 seedling size, 3 dwarf),  brazoria(1) , birmingham(4), etonia (1) louisiana(5), palmetto (1), riverside (1),  (Trachycarpus) fortunei(7), wagnerianus(1),  Rhapidophyllum hystrix(7),  15' Mule-Butia x Syagrus(1),  Blue Butia capitata(1) +Tons of tropical plants.  Recent Yearly Lows -1F, 12F, 11F, 18F, 16F, 3F, 3F, 6F, 3F, 1F, 16F, 17F, 6F, 8F

 

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@ahosey01 I'm looking forward to the before and after pics :shaka-2:

You may be surprised by how well some of the marginal plants do given proper placement. Microclimates are your friend :D

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Yeah, there's nothing I'm terribly worried about here except the Bismarckia.  We'll see.

It's hard to tell with the weather station that records our data.  This town is entirely built in hills and valleys - topographically, you could think of it kind of like the Fallbrook of Arizona.  The weather station is at the very bottom of the valley in the middle of a wide open riverbed.  My house is probably only 20-30ft higher in elevation, but there is a multi-lane highway in between my house and that station along with a ton of vegetation (mostly large saltcedars) and concrete flood control walls.  We are also in a neighborhood.  This is the weather station that indicates that we get down to 19-20 every year.  However, my neighbor right up the street (500 ft?) has multiple cacti species in his front yard that have no business surviving those temperatures (mexican fencepost and Cereus peruvianus) and he doesn't protect any of them.  There are also citrus and ficus trees (not benjamina) and what look like pure Washingtonia robusta in the neighborhood as well.  He says the coldest he knows of was over 30 years ago when it hit 17 once, and he remembers it because it was so much colder than it normally is.

I guess we will find out this winter!

 

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Hey ahosey01, thanks for sharing your plans! For documentation purposes, what is your soil like and what is your fertilization/irrigation regime (if any) for the palms?

As for the tall, straight tree, I can't really get a good look at it, but I think a Sumac would not be a bad guess. I have some 'naturally invading' prairie leaf Sumac on my property and they are extremely drought and heat tolerant. They are usually more shrubby but I reckon the growth you had removed in that area shaded the lower areas which could have caused it to push towards the light as well as lose lower leaves. Is that possible? Good luck, this will be an interesting thread to follow!

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Bismarkia should be fine and if that one dies you should try another. I’ve noticed they vary widely in hardiness. Some of my best luck has been buying seed and trying to germinate them in place. They seem to be hardier if they can sink their initial deep roots down. 

-Krishna

Kailua, Oahu HI. Near the beach but dry!

Still have a garden in Zone 9a Inland North Central Florida (Ocala)

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5 hours ago, ahosey01 said:

This is a baby Joshua Tree, grown from seed.  It is remarkably fast growing for a Joshua Tree specimen - it has put on four new leaves since planting 6 weeks ago:

Yucca_brevifolia.jpg.c4f032c6735111d09bf3af84a4e48d59.jpg

I'm also growing a Joshua tree from seed! I'm down to just 1 unfortunately from 10 seeds (5-6 of which germinated in a timely manner, though I killed almost all of them off in a variety of mistakes). How often do you irrigate yours? I'm worried overwatering is what's taking them out, though letting the soil dry out hurts too. I can't seem to find the "goldilocks" zone in terms of soil moisture.

Edited by CodyORB
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36 minutes ago, CodyORB said:

I'm also growing a Joshua tree from seed! I'm down to just 1 unfortunately from 10 seeds (5-6 of which germinated in a timely manner, though I killed almost all of them off in a variety of mistakes). How often do you irrigate yours? I'm worried overwatering is what's taking them out, though letting the soil dry out hurts too. I can't seem to find the "goldilocks" zone in terms of soil moisture.

Now that's actually a plant I never irrigate - I let the weather do it naturally.  Many of the places they are most common in the Mojave get less than 5 inches of rain or less, which is almost two and a half times less rain than I get here.  Depending on where you're at, your issue could be the fact that your soil sits too wet for too long if your climate is humid.

For me, soil composition seems to be key - for all my succulent plants.  I will typically mix 1 part garden soil (miracle gro or other generic), 1/4 part peat, 2 parts sand, 1 part rock (1/2" gravel is fine) and 1 to 1.5 parts native clay.  Some of my succulent plants seem indifferent, while others LOVE it.  Never had one that didn't like it, though.  I'd put this J Tree squarely in the love it camp.

Another thing I would say is go lower on the clay and garden soil or higher on the sand if your climate is humid.  The soil where these things grow naturally is pretty much rock and sand for the most part, with a bit of organic matter and some little clay spots thrown in.

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2 hours ago, Swolte said:

Hey ahosey01, thanks for sharing your plans! For documentation purposes, what is your soil like and what is your fertilization/irrigation regime (if any) for the palms?

As for the tall, straight tree, I can't really get a good look at it, but I think a Sumac would not be a bad guess. I have some 'naturally invading' prairie leaf Sumac on my property and they are extremely drought and heat tolerant. They are usually more shrubby but I reckon the growth you had removed in that area shaded the lower areas which could have caused it to push towards the light as well as lose lower leaves. Is that possible? Good luck, this will be an interesting thread to follow!

Your sumac explanation is interesting.  If that is really a sumac tree, that is the tallest sumac I have ever seen!  I will do some research.

The soil is clay in texture but somehow manages to drain well.  This used to be an old riverbed before a highway and flood control changed all that, so I'm guessing it's actually silty.

Around all of the non-palm plants, I have used the soil mixture I quote in the above post where I responded to @CodyORB.  I dig a giant hole - way bigger than the pot the plant is in, and fill it with that soil mixture.  Then, I plant the plant.

For the palms, I did not amend the native soil.  The drainage appears good enough and I have managed the dry cycle well enough that I'm just letting it ride.  For water, it's been hot (105-115) the last four weeks with 0 rain, so I have been using the following watering schedule:

  • Phoenix dactylifera - 15 gallons once per week.
  • Brahea armata - 15 gallons once per week.
  • Phoenix canariensis - 5 gallons twice per week.
  • Phoenix roebelinii - 3-5 gallons every other day.  Basically just keep the soil wet.
  • Bismarckia nobilis - 5 gallons every other day.
  • Chamaerops humilis - 2 gallons every other day.

For the cacti it is all once per month, except the Arizona Pencil Cholla (Cylindropuntia arbuscula) which seems to be a little thirstier than the other cacti, so gets it every 2-3 weeks depending on how it looks.  I never water the Joshua Tree and once I have the Boojum Tree, I will not water that either.  For all of the Madagascar patio plants, I water all of them whenever my smallest Pachypodium lamerei starts to get a soft trunk.  The Euphorbia royleana I am still figuring out.

As for fertilizer, I have not used any yet.  I typically use a highly diluted regular fertilizer once or twice per year for succulents.  For the palms, I still need to learn, because these are the first palms I have owned.  So far I have been giving them all super thrive or vitamin B1 once every two weeks.

Edited by ahosey01
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Euphorbia royleana might make it there. On the internet there’s all these great stories of it surviving below 20. They all come from Arizona. Even in California it dies at those temps. Here it doesn’t stand a chance at 20. I know from experience. /sob

The more water you give it this summer the faster it’ll grow. Yours doesn’t have leaves or the plumpness they get when they’re well watered. I would stop watering it altogether no later than October. I really think its survival at low temperatures comes down to how desiccated it is. That seems to be a general principle with most succulents, but especially these guys.

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2 hours ago, Swolte said:

Hey ahosey01, thanks for sharing your plans! For documentation purposes, what is your soil like and what is your fertilization/irrigation regime (if any) for the palms?

As for the tall, straight tree, I can't really get a good look at it, but I think a Sumac would not be a bad guess. I have some 'naturally invading' prairie leaf Sumac on my property and they are extremely drought and heat tolerant. They are usually more shrubby but I reckon the growth you had removed in that area shaded the lower areas which could have caused it to push towards the light as well as lose lower leaves. Is that possible? Good luck, this will be an interesting thread to follow!

Okay I found it.  It is a species of tree often called "Chinese Sumac" - although not actually a sumac.  The name is Ailanthus altissima, or "tree-of-heaven."  Apparently it is considered a terrible invasive plant.

That's fine with me, if it looks good and provides some nice shade!

 

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Just now, necturus said:

Euphorbia royleana might make it there. On the internet there’s all these great stories of it surviving below 20. They all come from Arizona. Even in California it dies at those temps. Here it doesn’t stand a chance at 20. I know from experience. /sob

The more water you give it this summer the faster it’ll grow. Yours doesn’t have leaves or the plumpness they get when they’re well watered. I would stop watering it altogether no later than October. I really think its survival at low temperatures comes down to how desiccated it is. That seems to be a general principle with most succulents, but especially these guys.

Got a recommended frequency?  Euphorbias are an enigma to me.  My instinct is to treat them like cacti, but I have had this persistent hunch that that's not the right approach.

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16 hours ago, ahosey01 said:

Okay I found it.  It is a species of tree often called "Chinese Sumac" - although not actually a sumac.  The name is Ailanthus altissima, or "tree-of-heaven."  Apparently it is considered a terrible invasive plant.

That's fine with me, if it looks good and provides some nice shade!

 

Also called Stinking Sumac.  They are all over here in Oregon.

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Looks great!  Very nice choices. All those local trees you mentioned are planted all over here.. those including the Siberian elm.. which make me want to vomit! Haha..  

Very nice choices.. and keep up the work.. it will be rewarding surely. I will be watching closely as you are a full zone warmer than I am with similar soils rainfall etc.. I think you are going to be surprised at how well everything will do. 

I like your cactus choices as well..  and your Argentine saguaro.  It looks identical in size and form to mine when I planted it 7-8 years ago.. at that time I didn't know which tricho (echinopsis) it was.. and its about 5 feet tall now..so pretty fast... and definitely bulletproof where you are. Its a bit iffy here..but ill protect it when we go below 10.

Do you have plans for rainwater harvesting?

20200724_201547.jpg

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1 hour ago, SailorBold said:

Looks great!  Very nice choices. All those local trees you mentioned are planted all over here.. those including the Siberian elm.. which make me want to vomit! Haha..  

Very nice choices.. and keep up the work.. it will be rewarding surely. I will be watching closely as you are a full zone warmer than I am with similar soils rainfall etc.. I think you are going to be surprised at how well everything will do. 

I like your cactus choices as well..  and your Argentine saguaro.  It looks identical in size and form to mine when I planted it 7-8 years ago.. at that time I didn't know which tricho (echinopsis) it was.. and its about 5 feet tall now..so pretty fast... and definitely bulletproof where you are. Its a bit iffy here..but ill protect it when we go below 10.

Do you have plans for rainwater harvesting?

20200724_201547.jpg

That Argentine is looking nice:greenthumb:  They sell Siberian Elm here also. Most look like -Insert your own word(s)- lol. 

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  • 1 year later...
On 7/24/2020 at 1:41 PM, Chester B said:

Also called Stinking Sumac.  They are all over here in Oregon.

Oddly enough, just read an article on the spotted lantern fly (Washington Post, The Region, Friday, 9/17/2021) if that’s what the tree is, chop it down and get rid of it...the fly loves it and causes a lot of problems to the general flora in the area...Maybe not so much to flora in a a desert climate? but definitely is causing a lot of damage to fruit trees and grape vines in the eastern USA.

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Just now, GregVirginia7 said:

Oddly enough, just read an article on the spotted lantern fly (Washington Post, The Region, Friday, 9/17/2021) if that’s what the tree is, chop it down and get rid of it...the fly loves it and causes a lot of problems to the general flora in the area...Maybe not so much to flora in a a desert climate? but definitely is causing a lot of damage to fruit trees and grape vines in the eastern USA.

I've been reading about the fly.  I think the mountains help us keep things out, there are so many species of birds, amphibians and insects that we don't have here.

For example - No Blue Jays, no cardinals, forget about frogs we really only have two species, no American toads and almost non existent biting insects.

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13 minutes ago, GregVirginia7 said:

Oddly enough, just read an article on the spotted lantern fly (Washington Post, The Region, Friday, 9/17/2021) if that’s what the tree is, chop it down and get rid of it...the fly loves it and causes a lot of problems to the general flora in the area...Maybe not so much to flora in a a desert climate? but definitely is causing a lot of damage to fruit trees and grape vines in the eastern USA.

Possible the overall heat / dryness of the Desert Southwest, lower elevation areas at least acts as some sort of barrier for the Spotted Lantern  Fly. 

Higher elevations / rest of the West Coast?.. if it reaches the region, it will establish itself, like other pest insects / House Sparrows / Starlings /  Eurasian Collared Doves that eventually worked their way east to west across the U.S. 

Big concern for the epicenter of wine country in California, other areas further north where stone fruits are widely cultivated are also highly susceptible esp if these insects can survive harsh winter conditions, as they seem to do well..

Btw, That horrible tree grows everywhere in the high country here, all over California.

11 minutes ago, Chester B said:

I've been reading about the fly.  I think the mountains help us keep things out, there are so many species of birds, amphibians and insects that we don't have here.

For example - No Blue Jays, no cardinals, forget about frogs we really only have two species, no American toads and almost non existent biting insects.

Mountains may not act as a barrier, esp. if their eggs can withstand freezing temperatures.  Probably will become less of a barrier as winters warm / grow shorter more often in the years ahead. 

As for birds,  Cardinals are a head scratcher.. Have them here / parts of S. Cal. ( were introduced there ) but oddly absent in most of the interior / Pacific N. West..  Blue Jays are a different story.. Numerous records from various parts of Oregon / Washington / further inland / north into Canada. https://www.inaturalist.org/taxa/8229-Cyanocitta-cristata  Been a few sightings as far south as Napa / Sonoma County, north of San Francisco as well..  Stellar's Jay is our " traditional ' Blue Jay..

Paradoxically, the Great Tailed Grackle, a recent pioneer moving north out of Mexico / Central America, is quickly moving further north along the west coast after establishing itself in CA. over the last couple decades.https://www.inaturalist.org/taxa/9607-Quiscalus-mexicanus   Is completely absent east of the Mississippi / Florida, but present in parts of Idaho / N. Utah.. Same exact bird one could hear in the background if you were sharing a video taken while on vacation in Costa Rica..

What might keep some things like many of the frogs / toads ..some insects out of the Pac. N.W. is likely related to how cool the region is compared to most places in the east, esp. in summer ( sans recent warmer summers there in Ore. / Washington, which could change that dynamic ). 

Common / Spotted Jewelweed ( Touch-Me-Not ) has apparently become a nightmare up there recently, after somehow finding it's way west from the eastern U.S. https://www.inaturalist.org/taxa/47888-Impatiens-capensis  Other eastern critters would likely find the northwest a great place to establish themselves if they found their way there.

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From the pic of the Bismarck it appears more green than silver/blue. I have 3 and the one with more green, not as much as yours appears in the pic, took really heavy damage last winter. I think it may die this winter. The other 2 silver/blue did fine, minor burning on old fronds.  Several nights in the low 20’s with heavy frost to put it into perspective. Like others said if it does kick the bucket, go for a more silver/blue. Could be the lighting that makes it appear green though.

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  • 11 months later...
8 hours ago, mellissas said:

Everything is beautifully done!

Guess maybe I should post some updates..

The Bermuda grass in the front of the house hasn't been pulled in a little under two weeks.  That's how bad that gets during monsoon.

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Edited by ahosey01
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51 minutes ago, SailorBold said:

Is that weeping acacia I see?

That's a really cool tree!!

Yep!  Acacia pendula.  Scale is hard to tell in the photos, but it's about 9ft tall.  Was planted as a small 25G at about 3ft tall like 2 years ago.

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