Tag Archive for: Texas Sage

Sometimes when I am driving around, I see a poorly pruned tree or shrub, and I just cringe.  It never ceases to amaze me the crazy ways that people take care of their plants.  Whenever I see plants like this, I whip out my camera and quickly take a photo and then drive away before the homeowner asks what I am doing.

poorly pruned tree

 Butchered Palo Brea Tree

I mean if they catch me taking a photo, I can’t very well tell them, “I am taking pictures of the horrible way you prune your trees ?” Can I?  Well, I probably could and should, but I am too chicken to confront people that way.  I have no problem confronting people about their horrible pruning if they have asked me over to do a consult on their landscaping.  I just like an invitation first before I tell people what they are doing wrong 😉

poorly pruned tree

 ‘Topped’ Willow Acacia

poorly pruned tree

 Willow Acacia as it should look like.

Although, the primary purpose of this post is to entertain with photos of truly awful pruning disasters.  I just have to step up on my “high horse” for just a minute regarding one type of pruning that is widespread.  So please bear with me…

One of the most harmful types of pruning in regards to trees is called ‘topping’ the tree.  It removes a lot of the top growth.  This is usually done to shorten the tree and to preserve a view.  The topping is NOT good for the tree and accelerates more top growth.  The new branches are weakly attached and are much more liable to break, which can cause damage to what is underneath.  Also, topping trees greatly stress the tree which can make them susceptible to insect and certain environmental factors.  You can read more about topping trees here Tree Care.

poorly pruned tree

 Chilean Mesquite with a ‘kink’ in its trunk.

poorly pruned tree

  ‘Poodle’ Olive Tree

 Okay, the vast majority of trees should not be prune into round shapes.

Palo Brea tree pruned into a 'ball

 Palo Brea tree pruned into a ‘ball.’

Palo Brea tree as it should look

 Palo Brea tree as it should look.

Blue Palo Verde tree

 A Blue Palo Verde tree that lost its head.

A few years ago we suffered a severe micro-burst during the summertime at the community where I was working.   The tree above snapped off in the high winds at a weak point in the trunk, which was weak due to improper pruning that was done a long time before the storm.

Orange tree

 This is an Orange tree that has been pruned correctly.

The Citrus tree, above, has been pruned the right way, but I just had to include it in this post because it is so humorous.  Look closely (you can click on the photo to enlarge)…. the homeowner tied CDs to the tree to scare off the birds from eating the fruit.

Many people prune their Citrus trees up so that they look more like a ‘typical’ tree.  But what many people don’t know is that the lower branches produce the most fruit, the sweetest fruit and protects the trunk from sunburn.

Now for some truly awful examples of shrubs….remember the “cupcakes” from a previous post?

Cordia

 Little Leaf Cordia pruned into a ‘ball.’

In an earlier post, we covered the epidemic of pruning shrubs into the shapes of ‘cupcakes.’  Well, there is another epidemic in where people prune their shrubs into the shape of a ‘ball.’  We call this type of pruning, “Poodle-Pruning” because the shrubs resemble the ball shapes that poodles have when groomed.  Either way, ‘cupcakes’ or ‘poodle,’ neither are good for your shrubs and take away from their beauty.

Feathery Cassia shrubs

 Feathery Cassia shrubs with large areas of dead growth.

One of the results of repeated shearing of your shrubs into specific shapes (cupcakes or balls), results in areas of dead growth.  This is because sunlight cannot penetrate inside the shrub and it is constantly trying to replace the growth that is cut off constantly.  There is a cure, which I will cover in a spring time post, which is when corrective pruning should be done.

Thunder Cloud Sage

 Thunder Cloud Sage, unpruned

Now I don’t recommend going to the other extreme, above, and not pruning.  Just do it correctly.  So, if you have any ‘cupcakes’ or ‘poodles’ in your landscape, do not panic!  I will cover the correct ways to prune many shrubs in the spring, which is the time that it should be done.

So, take care to prune properly, because you never know when I will come driving by with my camera….

Has this happened to you?  You walk through the nursery, and you spot “the perfect plant.”   You can envision it in your yard and know precisely where you will put it.  

After coming home and planting it, you pat yourself on the back for finding such a great plant.  Time passes, and your beautiful plant starts to grow, and grow and grow.

perfect plant

 Texas Sage ‘Green Cloud’ (Leucophyllum frutescens ‘Green Cloud’) 1-gallon Approximately 1 ft. Wide and tall.

perfect plant

 Texas Sage ‘Green Cloud’ pruned like ‘cupcakes.’

Fast forward a year or two now it looks bad unless you constantly prune making it high maintenance.  Now your beautiful plant no longer looks so lovely (above and below).  It now looks more like a ‘cupcake’ because you have had to prune it back to keep it small enough for your space.  

No more flowers, no nice foliage…

perfect plant

 More ‘cupcakes.’

Unfortunately, there is an epidemic in our area of homeowners and landscapers who prune flowering shrubs so that they end up looking like ‘cupcakes’ or ‘poodles’ just so that they fit into their allotted space.  More about that in another post…

perfect plant

 Texas Sage ‘Green Cloud’ in its natural shape. They can grow up to 8 ft. high and wide but can be easily maintained at a more moderate 4′ x 4′.

Texas Sage Flower

 Texas Sage Flower

Also with flowers this beautiful, why plant it somewhere where you will have to prune them off so that it can fit?  

So our lesson is…. be sure to READ THE LABEL of plants before you buy them, which should list how large they will grow, along with the correct sun exposure.  If it’s not listed, ask the nursery salesperson for this information, or use your smartphone to get the information.  

Then you can go home and place your new “perfect plant” where they will have plenty of room to ‘stretch out’ and dazzle you with their beauty. 

**Allowing enough room for plants is just part of what it takes to grow attractive shrubs.  Pruning is the next part of the equation.  Click here for guidelines on how to properly prune your flowering shrubs.

Discover Stunning Plant Combinations

Do you ever wonder what plants look good together?  Below are pictures of some of my favorite plant combinations along with some general guidelines that I follow when designing a garden. Keep in mind that planting similar plants together which require similar water needs makes it easier to maintain a landscape.

plant combinations

Color Harmony in Plant Combinations

Sometimes red and pink colors always complement each other. Introducing yellow flowering plants provide a high color contrast that brings out the red and pink colors.  Above is a golf course landscape that I planted with Valentine shrub (Eremophila ‘Valentine’), Parry’s penstemon (Penstemon parryi) and desert marigold (Baileya multiradiata) against the backdrop of foothill palo verde trees.

plant combinations

 Parry’s agave (Agave parryi) with purple trailing lantana (Lantana montevidensis)

Succulent and Perennial Pairings

Also, succulents paired with perennials almost always complement each other with their contrasting shades of green and textures.  Other recommended succulent and perennial pairings include desert spoon (Dasylirion wheeleri) alongside black dalea (Dalea frutescens), prickly pear species with penstemon or try octopus agave (Agave vilmoriniana) with purple or white trailing lantana.

plant combinations

 Autumn Sage (Salvia greggii ‘Red’)

Emphasizing Colors with a White Flower Contrast

plant combinations

 Blackfoot Daisy (Melampodium leucanthum)

I use plants with white flowers as a backdrop for plants with red, pink and purple flowers; I like the way the white flowers emphasize the other colors.

Using the Color Wheel for Plant Combinations

plant combinations

 ‘Rio Bravo’ Sage (Leucophyllum langmaniae) & Red Bird-of-Paradise (Caesalpinia pulcherrima)

Most of the time the pairing of purple flowering plants with those that have orange flowers always looks great.  When deciding what colors look good when paired together, it helps to look at a color wheel. In general, the colors that are opposite each other look great when paired together because their colors contrast so well. Other orange, purple plant combinations to try are cape honeysuckle (Tecomaria capensis) with (Leucophyllum species), or Mexican honeysuckle (Justicia spicigera) with purple lantana. 

The Power of Yellow Flowering Plants

plant combinations

 Angelita daisy (Tetraneuris acaulis) and parry’s penstemon (Penstemon parryi)

Also, I believe that any garden looks better with some yellow flowering plants.  As I mentioned earlier, the color yellow makes the other plants look better, (think of the color wheel).   I have had clients that have said they do not like yellow until I show them how much better their other plants look when we introduce just a few yellow flowering plants to their landscape and they quickly change their mind.

Yellow Bells

 Yellow Bells (Tecoma stans stans)

Large Shrub Plant Combinations

Bougainvillea 'Barbara Karst'

 Bougainvillea ‘Barbara Karst’

I often recommend the following for those who are looking for large shrub combinations. Okay, I realize that many people either love or hate bougainvillea. Personally, I love them.  I have two bougainvillea and since I don’t have a swimming pool, so I am not bothered by their litter. Their beautiful and vibrant colors are amazing.

Timing Matters in Plant Pairings

I pair my bougainvillea with yellow bell shrubs.  Their colors contrast nicely, and they screen out the back wall of my garden. I give them plenty of room to grow, and they produce beautiful flowers spring through fall. If you do have a swimming pool and don’t like bougainvillea, how about trying orange jubilee (Tecoma hybrid ‘Orange Jubilee’) and Texas Sage (Leucophyllum frutescens) together?

Weber's agave

 Weber’s agave (Agave weberi) and purple trailing lantana

I have just one more tip – if you want to pair flowering plants together to enjoy the contrasting colors, make sure that they bloom at the same time of year. It is so easy to visit the plant nursery and see the pretty photos of flowers on the different plants and pick what ones you think will look great together only to discover later that one flower in the fall while the other blooms in spring and so you never see their flowers at the same time.

So, visit your local nursery and try some of the suggested plant combinations or see what beautiful plant pairings you come up with for your garden.