Water Smart Plant Picker

Once established, the pineapple guava tree or shrub needs little to no irrigation. The plant grows slowly over the course of a few years and can reach 15-25 feet in height if allowed, though it may be kept to a size of 8×8 feet if pruned regularly. Heavy pruning in the early spring and late summer will ensure a desired shape.

The tree produces small, edible green fruit which naturally fall from the tree in late October-December. Its white and pink flowers bloom in spring or early summer to provide nectar for bees and birds, which ignore the fruit. Likewise, deer seem to be uninterested in this plant.

Large group of mostly cool-season, perennial, bunching or spreading grasses. Bunch grass varieties can be used as a no-mow lawn replacement, help to stabilize slopes, and have ornamental value. Festuca californica (California fescue, 1-2’ wide x 2’) prefers part shade and works wonderfully massed under the dry shade of native oaks. Festuca glauca (blue fescue, 1’ x 1’) is a small, clumping grass with bluish gray-green leaves. Festuca idahoenis (Idaho fescue, 1-2’ wide x 1’) also has bluish gray-green leaves and is more drought-tolerant and longer lived than blue fescue. Festuca rubra (red fescue) grows from rhizomes and has long, fine-textured leaves that lay over to form a pleasing drift effect as a no-mow lawn.

Fraxinus dipetala is a deciduous tree or large shrub. Clusters of lightly fragrant, white flowers in the spring season. Requires pruning to shape when the tree is still young. They are fast-growing up to 15-25 feet tall and 12-20 feet wide.

Fast-growing evergreen shrub with fuzzy, flannel-like leaves. Large golden yellow to orange blossoms that bloom in the spring. Best suited in full sun with well-drained soils.

Low-growing, flowering perennials and annuals with daisy-like flowers in yellows and reds. Gaillardia x grandiflora is a hybrid that grows 2-4’ x 18-24” and may need less water than other hybrids. Many different varieties provide variations in flower color and size.

This fast-growing shrub is native to the Channel and Guadalupe islands of California and Mexico. It can grow to 3-4 feet tall and 5-6 feet wide and will bloom nearly yearround in good conditions. It prefers full sun and will produce more flowers if it is placed there, but will also thrive in part shade. ‘Firecracker’ is a compact selection. ‘Bocarosa’ has bright green leaves and masses of red flowers. Will grow well in a container. Cut back in late winter to renew. May be offered as Galvezia.

This unique shrub is native to dry coastal areas from Southern Oregon through California. Its catkins of gray-green flowers bloom in January or February. It can grow 12 feet tall and 6-10 feet wide, but may also be cut back to grow against a wall. It takes partial shade to cool sun and does well in most well-drained soils.

Group of flowering, evergreen shrubs and trees from Australia with many variations in growth habit and leaf shape. Red is the most common flower color, although some species flower in other colors.

Examples: G. ‘Canberra Gem’ (8-10’ x 10-12’) with needle-like leaves, G. ‘Noellii’ (3-4’ x 4-5’) also with needle-like leaves, woolly grevillea (G. lanigera, 3-6’ x 6-10’), the more prostrate C.I. ‘Coastal Gem’ (18” x 4-5’) and G. l. ‘Jade Mound’ (2’ x 4-5’), lavender grevillea (G. lavandulacea (2-5’ x 6-8’), and rosemary grevillea (G. rosmarinifolia, 6’ x 6’).

Group of herbaceous perennials in the sunflower family that are native to the Americas. Grindelia stricta is native to the west coast of America, including California, with yellow daisy-like flowers in the dry summer months. Spreading gum plant (G. s. var. platyphylla) is a low-growing groundcover form that can reach 6-10’ across. Suitable for meadow plantings.

Low-growing, evergreen, flowering shrub with soft green or gray-green leaves that spreads to about 3’. Flowers in spring to early summer. Many named cultivars provide flower colors that include red, orange, yellow, white, pink, and peach.

Mediterranean, cool-season bunchgrass that grows 2-3’ with blue-gray leaves and graceful wheat-colored stems of flower clusters in the spring. Pull out dead leaves rather than shearing.

Shade-loving perennials with attractive foliage that flower in winter and spring and may self-sow.

Examples: Corsican hellebore (H. argutifolius, 2-3’ x 2-3’), bear’s-foot hellebore (H. foetidus, 30” x 30”), H. lividus (18” x 3’), Lenten rose (H. orientalis, variable size), and hybrids.