California Homestead: Year-Round Interest Plants in a Zone 9 Permaculture Effort

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Plant selection criteria
Key terms
Spectabile sedum – Stonecrop in “Brilliant”
Muhlenbergia capillaris / Pink Muhly Grass
Agapanthus africanus – Lily of the Nile in “Deep Blue“
Liriope muscari – Lirope Grass in “Big Blue”
Tulbaghia violacea – Society Garlic
Agastache hyssop – Hummingbird Mint in “Blue Fortune”
Phormium tenax – New Zealand Flax in “Amazing Red“
Westringia fruticosa – Coastal Rosemary
Pelargonium x hortorum – Geranium in assorted colors
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Plant selection criteria

Selecting plants that compliment spring and summer blooms is key to establishing a year-round interest in your landscape. We recommend finding plants that are:

Perennial
Evergreen
Heat tolerant
Disease resistant
Deer and rabbit resistant
Attractive to birds, bees and butterflies

Key terms

Evergreen – Flora with apparent green leaves year round. The plant may not flower during colder months but does not go fully dormant.

Permaculture – A way of seeing method to gardening that incorporates landscaping, watering, incorporation of the wildlife and the surrounding nature.

Perennial – Flora continually recurs; it does not have to be planted year-over year, unlike annuals (plants that flower and die in one season).

USDA Plant Hardiness Zones – A standard to determine which plants are most likely to thrive at a given location based on the average annual minimum winter temperatures, divided into 10-degree Fahrenheit zones.

Xeriscape – Low water landscaping.