Tucson Flowers

Ode to the Bougainvillea | An Arizona Native

If you are native to Arizona or the desert southwest, you are familiar with the bougainvillea. It’s everywhere. Newcomers and those snowbirds, however, are not as familiar with this fabulous little perennial. They love its beautiful blooms and wandering nature.

Gardening in the Tucson area can be tricky. Even if you had a greenthumb elsewhere in the United States, it may not be as apparent here. The desert, with its wide range of temperatures and lack of rainfall, can wreak havoc with many a garden.

My grandfather was a gentleman farmer. He had 20 acres in Southfield, Michigan. He grew everything imaginable, from heirloom tomatoes to grapes that he crushed by hand. Well, technically, he crushed them by foot and made homemade wine. He sold the excess produce at a little roadside stand on a street that is now a 6-line asphalt beast. He had one of those infamous green thumbs.

When he and my grandmother retired to Arizona in 1970, he tried to set up a small garden plot on his suburban lot. He tried and tried to grow tomatoes and other vegetables, but repeatedly failed. The only plant that prospered in his yard was the bougainvillea. It thrived. It was beautiful.

That’s the nature of a bougainvillea. You can’t kill it no matter how much of a learning curve there is to gardening in Tucson. If you give it a little TLC, cover it when there is a frost warning and water it during those unbearably hot summer months, it will bloom its little heart out for you.

Tucson Wildflowers | Saguaro National Park

The rest of the U.S. may not think of wildflowers when they think of Tucson, but those in the know do. In fact, Tucson offers some of the best wildflower viewing in March and April. The desert is warm enough at night to keep these delicate flowers alive, yet not so hot during the day as to overheat them. And, of course, the temperatures are great for long walks and bird viewing, too. Here are the top wildflowers to look for at Saguaro National park this time of year:

1. Mexican Poppy: This little beauty grows about 16” high, has intense yellow flowers and whispy, blue-green leaves. In fact, after a winter rain, an entire mountainside can be covered with the bright yellow blooms of Mexican poppy.

2. Arizona Penstemon: This wildflower is a member of the snapdragon family and has lovely 3” purplish flowers that grow on plants reaching up to 4’ tall. Generally, this wildflower is found at elevations above 2,000 feet.

3. Fairy Duster: This is one plant that comes highly recommended for gardeners new to the southwest. The fairy Duster, or Calliandra, is an easy perennial to grow and offers a vivid array of red puffy blooms on 3’ plants. They can be seen in the wild at Saguaro National Park as well as purchased at most local nurseries.

Saguaro National Park is open year round. The gates open at sunrise, which is generally around 7 am. The cost of admission is $10 per vehicle or you can purchase an annual pass and help support the national park system.

Using Flowers in your Outdoor Space

When you live in a place like Tucsan, there are a lot of options for your living space and the flowers that you may have. With there being nice weather all year round; you can grow those items that other people are not able to grow in climates that get snow and cold temperatures in the winter. It is important that you pick those flowers that can survive these types of temperatures though as the heat may not work for some.

For this reason, it is a good idea to use the outdoor space that you have to extend the amount of room you have to live in. This can be especially helpful if you live somewhere that you do not have a lot of square footage in your home or if you want more space. This is an easier way to expand your living space than going to the effort of moving and all the costs associated with it.

If your yard is a mess, then you will want to take some time to clean it up and make it a liveable space. One of the easiest ways that you can do this is to clean up any mess and debris and then add some items. For instance, you may want to add some outdoor patio furniture and some flowers. One flower that you may want to try is a “Salvias” which is native to the area. You can get it in a variety of colours so you are able to sele4ct the one that works with the color scheme you are creating in your yard.

Winter Care for your Yard

For those that live in Tucson, Arizona, winter does not mean that they can ignore their yards like people in other climates. Due to the temperatures in Arizona, the yard does not get covered in snow and as a result, the yards and flowers still need to be tended to. But here are some tips to help you if you are new to the area or are just not sure what you need to do to keep your yard looking good and surviving the winter season.

Lawn – You likely will still need to water but you shouldn’t need to do this more than once or twice a week. At some point you should fertilize; February may be a good time to do this as it is the middle of the winter.

Garden – If you enjoy growing vegetables now may be a good time to prepare the soil for the upcoming season. Depending on what you want to plant, you can put in seeds for some of the hardier plants such as beets, corn and carrots. You can also transplant other plants such as artichokes and asparagus.

Roses – If you have roses, you should prune them in mid-February. Be careful that you do not prune too much as it can cause the plant to stress which makes it susceptible to diseases and insects. Do not remove more than a quarter of the plant and make sure you use clean, sharp shears. This is also a good time to fertilize the plants and make sure to water the day before and after you fertilize.

Rocky Mountain Bee Plant

What a kooky, crazy little flower! The Rocky Mountain Bee Plant is a spiky, hairy clover covered in unique, small flowers. The flowers are typically pink, purple, or white, and the plant’s leaves are arranged in a very interesting spiral pattern. The flowers usually feature six dark stamens in their centers. Though you can find the plants all over North America, they tend to grow best in the Rockies and Great Plains area. The medicinal plants can also be eaten.

Pretty, Mystical Tucson Native Flowers

I’ve never been to Tucson, but when I think of it, the film Boys on the Side always comes to my mind, and I always think the scenery as a romanticized part dessert, part spiritual retreat. Whether or not this is true, I do happen to know that in addition to succulents, Tucson is home of some pretty romantic, spiritual looking blooms.

Some native plants to Tucson include lichen, desert mistletoe, and fabulous winding vines, like twining snapdragon. If you’re going to move to Tucson or you already reside there, you might want to think about adding some of these pretty native plants to your landscape.

Tucson Flowers: What next?

In the past few weeks and into the next few - there has been a lot going on in Tucson regarding flowers. First there was that terrible and tragic shooting, where sorrow has been expressed in flowers. Then there was a report by the Arizona Daily Star about how the cities wildflowers will not be as brilliant this year. Finally, in just a few short weeks we will be hitting Valentine's Day, arguably one of the biggest day for florists in the nation.

If you were to guess - which one of these situations do you think has me the most concerned right now? I will give you a hint - the image to the left is a clue.

Tucson gardening tips, native plants, and best places to buy flowers