In order to maximize the number of plants in your garden without overloading your drip system, you may end up planting things that you expect to survive on their own. Luckily, there are some un-prissy plants that can do this. These survivors deserve a medal, instead of being overlooked and under-appreciated. After all, this is the desert! When I moved to Arizona, the house I bought had been vacant for two years and some of the plants in the yard were still alive. That is the kind of landscaping I want.
Trees
Natives: Foothills palo verde, Ironwood, Joshua tree
Non-natives: Catclaw acacia, Whitethorn acacia, Elephant tree (frost sensitive), Smoke tree.
Shrubs
Creosote bush, Desert holly, Four wing saltbush, Jojoba, Las Vegas buckwheat, Limber bush, Mormon tea, Pink fairy duster, Shadscale saltbush, Warnock condalia, White bursage, Yerba santa
Woolly butterfly bush
Wildflowers, agaves, yuccas, others
Bahia, Desert sunflower, Prickly poppy, Variegated century plant, Bear grass, Banana yucca, Our Lord’s candle yucca, Candelilla, Slipper plant, Bush muhly grass, Medicinal aloe
Great article! All the weeds that required moisture have dried up in my backyard, so that’s a plus (haha). Now I just need to make sure everything else doesn’t dry up too! I’ll have to try planting some desert holly plants like you suggested. I also just transitioned my small yard to a drought-tolerant type of sod called Midiron. The local guys over at Evergreen Turf installed the Arizona sod for me. Here’s their site – http://evergreenturf.com/ – thanks for the post!