Join our travels through Arizona's Sonora Desert. Discover extraordinary desert plants and animals. Tag along our adventures through sheltered areas of Northern Arizona. Don't forget your sunscreen!
It is difficult to imagine that a flowering plant can thrive in hot desert temperatures; but, these vibrant purple sage bushes love the heat!
Purple flowering sage bushes – Texas Ranger Plant
Also known as Texas Ranger Plants, these lavender flowers fill the sage bushes that adorn the streets of the Sonoran Desert.
Purple Flowering Texas Sage in the desert
Our Texas Ranger Plants, Leucophyllum frutescens, are blooming with butterflies and bees promenading between the purple flowers.
purple sage bush with butterflies
The bees are buzzing noisily as they work their way in and out of the purple blooms.
purple flowers of the Texas Ranger plant
When it comes to drought and heat tolerant plants, Purple Sage is right at the top of the list. The hotter it gets in the desert, the happier this flowering shrub is!
Purple flowers – Texas Sage Shrub in Arizona
As humidity rises during the start of Arizona’s Monsoon season, the Purple Sage bushes will bloom right before it rains. The purple flowers are a built in barometer!
Growing and caring for Purple Sage is easy if you plant them in full sun.
Purple Flowering Texas Sage in the desert
This desert bush is native to Mexico and Texas and needs very little maintenance. Texas Sage is incredibly heat resistant and will not be harmed by moderate frost in the winter.
white flowering shrub is White Cloud Texas Sage
The Sage bush variety with white flowers is called White Cloud Texas Sage. It is exactly like the purple sage but with white blooms.
White Cloud Sage with Red Bird of Paradise Flowering shrubsPurple Texas Ranger Sage Plant
The best time to prune your Texas Sage is in the Spring. Over pruning your sage bush will reduce the amount of flowers and cause the plant to use more water.
Red, Salvia darcyi, survived well through the desert winter months that hit in the mid 30’s and does superb in the high heat as long as it is watered everyday! It is a thirsty plant during these temperatures of 100 degrees or more. I recommend larger pots than the ones I used.
Red Salvia plants in containersremove the spent flowers from Salvia plants
This is by far the MOST hardy, successful flower in my Arizona Garden! This perennial Salvia will generally grow from between eighteen inches and thirty-six inches, yet there are some that are much smaller. Mine is averaging about 20 -22 inches. The red salvia in the picture is a young plant that actually started from a fallen seed. The photo above is just after I pruned the finished red flowers. From having Salvia (red and blue) for over 2 years now I have learned it is best to trim them quite far down the stem to gain a thicker shrub. Best of all this flowering plant is critter proof. Last year the desert rats, squirrels, and rabbits ate most of our flowers except the Salvia. Since then, we are determined to have a rat-proof, squirrel-proof, rabbit-proof thriving Garden. Quick note:Hummingbirds love the flowers and will visit your garden often!
To keep your Salvia looking vibrant and encourage better flowering, deadhead the plant. You can do this by pinching or cutting off the flower spikes with spent blooms, I like to use small pruning shears.
growing Salvia plants in pots
Red salvia flowers can form a striking border when massed together. It is a good choice for a bedding plant. Some people call this perfect Arizona plant, Scarlet Sage.
Can you eatpurple sage, Texas Sage? This perennial evergreen shrub with grayish leaves and budding purple flowers is actually not sage at all.
Purple flowering Texas Ranger Sage Plant
Rarely called Silverleaf, this popular bush is predominately specified as Texas Ranger Plantor Purple Texas Sage.
Leucophyllum frutescens, Texas sage
Leucophyllum frutescens is the scientific name for this Sage Bush, and it is a member of the figwort family.
white flower, White Cloud, Texas Sage
Texas Sage shrubs with white flowers are called White Cloud. According to the National Gardening Association, Texas Sage is one plant that is most often ignored by deer unless they are starving.
Purple and White Texas Sage bush varietiesPurple Flowers Texas Sage bushes in AZ TX CA
Rabbits and other small animals in the desert will not eat this Purple Sage either. It is safe to say that this white or purple flowering bush is critter proof!!
purple flowering bush in AZ, TX
After several hours of research we were not able to find any evidence of the Texas Sage plant being edible. Looks like it is best to leave this luscious purple shrub to the bees and the butterflies.
Texas Sage bush, Leucophyllum frutescens
Eating Texas Sage is notrecommended. Nonetheless, it is a gorgeous addition to your sun-filled garden! White or purple Texas Sage is a popular ornamental plant that does best in dry, warm locations.
Purple flowering bushes sage in the desert
This flowering desert bush can grow up to 8 feet high! In Arizona, Purple Sage is often used as a border or hedge for yards.
Lantana plants and shrubs are one of our favorites for our desert garden and front yard. I recommend this flowering plant to people who want color in their landscaping. Not only is our Arizona Lantanaperennial but it is also a low maintenance plant and easy to grow.
In some cooler locations Lantana plants are annual; but places that do NOT get freezingweather will have new colorful blooms every spring.
Texas Gold Lantana plant
You will find Lantana is inexpensive to buy, easy to find and takes the desert heat!
The entire shrub can be covered with multi colored Lantana flowers even in the worst triple digit temperatures.
white trailing lantana in xeriscape yard
How many Lantana varieties are there? There are about 150 species / varieties of Lantana. This perennial flowering plant is in the Verbena Family, Verbenaceae.
With so many colors to choose from your Lantanas can add vibrant flowersall season long.
White, Purple, Red Lantana mound
Some species of Lantana change color as they mature.
Lantana plants grow into shrubs and mounds
The flower clusters on lantana plants are called umbels.
Confetti Lantana and Purple Verbena plants
Some popularLantana variety names are: Irene, Red Bandana, Radiation, Confetti, Ham ‘n Eggs, Texas New Gold, Dallas Red, Trailing Purple, Christine, and many more….
Camara Lantana Plant in containers
Lantana seems to have no problems surviving on little moisture and soaking up unyielding sun. When watering your lantana try NOT to get the leaves wet but water at the base of the plant. This will prevent the plant from being sun burned.
If I see the leaves wilting I water immediately, soaking the Lantana well to promote deeper, stronger roots.
Lantana plants attract butterflies
Can you grow Lantana in pots and containers? Absolutely and lantana loves it!
We have potted lantana all over the yard. It does take a little more effort to care forlantana in containers but it is worth it.
Texas Gold Lantana grows well in containers
My potted Lantana seems to need more watering than my ground Lantana.
I do not let them dry out completely. Some people do and it works fine for them but I choose not to.
Trailing Lantana growing in pots and containers
Our Purple Trailing Lantana spills over nicely in the above large pot.
Lantana Camara Plant, Confetti
When do I prune my Lantana? Give your Lantana a good pruning in the spring to remove the old growth and prevent the extra woodiness.
Water and lightly fertilize newly trimmed Lantana plants and they will return to bloom quickly. Lantana does not need much fertilizer.
a good pruning helps Lantana plants
When transplanting your Lantana, gently loosen the roots and shake off the excess dirt. Old soil does not help your Lantana plants.
Place it in the hole you made and backfill with healthy topsoil.
Easy to grow Lantana
Most animals avoid Lantana flowers and leaves.
poisonous leaves and woody stems of Lantana
Although Lantana is considered poisonous the RIPE Lantana berries are a delicacy for many birds.
Lantana is a Deer Resistant, Critter Proof plantTexas New Gold Lantana Flower
Growing Lantanain pots is so easy. Choose your size pot or container. Then have a fun time deciding on your Lantana colors. Stick to one or mix them up.
Remember to gently shake off the old dirt from the Lantana roots before you place it in its new home. Potted plants need more watering especially in the hot sun.
Always water at the base of the plants and not the leaves. An exception would be if the Lantana plant was not in direct sun.
Perennial Yellow Gold Lantana in our Arizona garden
The temperatures here in the Sonoran Desert frequently reach over 100 degrees so I add mulch to every plant in our yard. Mulch really helps here in Arizona.
Yellow Lantana in our drought tolerant garden
Lantana is a magnet for hummingbirds and butterflies. These perfect desert plants give you flowering color all season long. That is a lot of butterflies!
Butterflies like Lantana flowers
Lantana will suffer from frost damage so cover them up during cold winter nights. Prune the damage from the Lantana in the spring and they may come back.
Marvelous Praying Mantis with New Gold LantanaPotted Purple Trailing Lantana next to our Red Bird of Paradise shrub
Lantana likes full sun, and isn’t picky about the type of soil it will grow in.
Purple Flowers on our potted Lantana
This is precisely why Lantana is a large part of my desert garden.
different Lantana species plants
Not only are Lantanas resistant to extreme temperatures but also drought tolerant.
Some of our Lantana shrubs are growing in unfenced areas and the desert animals leave the plants and Lantana flowers alone.
landscaping with Lantana plants
Lantana is deciduous meaning it drops all leaves in the winter.
Lantana plants do well in pots
If Lantana plants outgrow their assigned space, they tolerate trimming back well during the growing season.
Yellow flowering Lantana containers
Lantana plants and dogs – Our dogs have no interest in our many Lantana plants, flowers or leaves at all.
Red Orange Yellow LantanaRadiation, Yellow and Red Bandana Lantana VarietiesRadiation species of Lantana
The woody stems on the Lantana plants are especially tough and durable and have been used for weaving.
What is the best way to propagate Lantana? Dividing the roots in the winter when the Lantana plant is dormant is the easiest way to propagate.
Soaps, insecticides and common pest treatments can kill Lantana plants. On the rare occasions that our Lantanas have pest problems, I give them a trim and all is well.
