Subtle Nuances

May 9, 2022

"Can't see the forest for the trees".... - this is the opposite of that. Plants that call attention to detail, that grab your interest and pull you from the macro into the micro. Those subtle nuances that go unnoticed but complete the picture. Moss and lichen clinging to logs, Licorice ferns growing on trees, a tuft of creeping jenny trickling down a rock pile. It could be as simple as a clump of Trillium basking in the shade of your favorite palm.

What are your favorite small-scale plants?

How do you like to employ them to create effect in your garden?

May 9, 2022

I only have a few examples. I would like more inspiration.

May 10, 2022

2 hours ago, Jesse PNW said:

I only have a few examples. I would like more inspiration.

Living where it doesn't rain much, you quickly appreciate things like encountering a shaded area full of Ferns and Spike Mosses ( Several native sp here believe it or not )

At the same time, more so the further south you go, there are parts of the state that resemble the Plains ..rolling hills carpeted in various sub tropical Grasses / annual / perennial flowering stuff, esp. during the summer ..especially if it is wet.

Head roughly 2 hours south of Nogales, and you'll start seeing at least 2 native Cycads, several Orchids and Bromeliads both growing near and from the branches of trees ..and Plumeria, Ficus, and a couple other " rain forest " - type trees.. sometimes cloaked in woody vines that hang from the canopies in the summer. ..All are perfectly adapted to a non - jungle climate, but provide the " feel " of being dropped in a jungle -at the right time of year.

Most people think " Desert = cacti / annoying spiny trees = boring ".. or try to waste valuable resources creating the false " idea " of a Desert Oasis ( IE: Lawns, trying to grow thirsty, ill adapted trees that often struggle / w the heat )

Even if someone is somewhat limited to a smaller property, one could create quite the " lush " looking landscape using plants from here, ( inc. the Ferns / Spike Mosses ), and just to our south.. Adding in those things - from other places - that add to the " look ", but are as tough as what grows here.

Aside from the Ferns/ mosses, perhaps one of the weird, " Have to get up close to appreciate " plants that grows here is our native Pipevine.. Aristiolochia watsonii While tropical in origin, they can grow perfectly fine in full sun.

Isn't until you bring yourself down to their level you can see how exotic they look. Flowers employ a technique used by carnivorous plants ..but for pollination, instead of consumtion ..trapping flies attracted to the " mouse ear looking " flowers that stink overnight, then releasing them with pollen to transfer to the next flower they explore ( which repeats the process ). Plant also attracts the only " tropical " swallowtail species that is common north of Mexico, the Pipevine Swallowtail.

Another weird group of plants, that can attract Monarchs, Queens, ..and some other Tropical butterflies further south are Matelea.. Sometimes called Milkweed Vines ( ..A common, over used name also applied to Funastrum, another group of vining plants related to Milkweeds ..and a couple other related Genus in Mexico. ). While the flowers on many Funastrum are white/ pink, ..maybe yellowish, Flowers on Matelea can be Green, Brown ..or almost Black.. Some have weird looking color patterns as well. While flowers on many sp. aren't all that big, foliage can be quite lush looking. Some species can get large, weird looking pods as well.

Matelea tristifolia: * May have recently been re-named after a population of similar looking plants was discovered in far S. AZ. Trying to source some of the weirder flowered sp.

..Then, there is one of the more " iconic ", but rarely understood desert plants, Devil's Claw.. Proboscidea.. Pink flowered sps. are annual, Yellow, perennial. Lush looking plant that emerges from nowhere during the summer/ Fall. Flowers look like Orchids, smell amazing as well ..and the pods are edible at a certain stage / seeds quite nutritious. Hooked seedpods that can grab a shoe or ankle while hiking, have been used to craft various things for thousands of years.

Proboscidea althaeifolia, Yellow Devil's Claw / Desert Unicorn Plant.

...And that's just a few of the " strangely alluring " leafy things out there to be found..

W/ out seeking out the subtle things, no one would see the lush bounty that exists just beyond the thirsty looking landscape they might see in front of them at certain times of the year.

far S. AZ during last year's wet Summer. Not so " desert-y " right?