Arizona Landscaping

FLAGSTONE PATH IN THE LANDSCAPE

2012-02-21T11:45:00.000-08:00

Paths can be a very important part in any Arizona landscape project. The obvious reason is function, they get us and our guests from point "A" to point "B" safely and effectively. But alas, there is another, very good "pro" to creating paths in the landscape. It gives the design a "flow" and the plants an outline in which to be positioned - all working together. It also guides our eyes along the terrain, allowing us to wonder and look beyond where we are standing into the garden.
So weather the path is used frequently or not, sometimes it just makes sense to incorporate one into the design.

The above path is from a recent landscape design in Chandler, Arizona.
The Flagstone is called "chocolate" and the steps are kept as large and as close as possible for easy strolling. This particular path actually leads to a very nice paver patio with seating and movable fire pit. The whole project turned out quite unique and the path really gets a good bit of credit in my book.

I am "Cereus" -Two Interesting Arizona Cacti

2011-08-31T08:04:00.000-07:00

Pictured above are two of my favorite cacti for Arizona landscape design. To left is a Mexican Fence Post Cactus - Pachycereus, marginatus - and to the right is a Totem Pole Cactus - Pachycereus schottii f. monstrosus. They are columnar cacti which means they grow vertically, and have "spears" as you can plainly see. Cereus is the genus of both and any cacti with that the genus are generally going to be columnar and upright growing.

The Mexican Fence Post pictured at left was planted as part of a xeriscape design in Scottsdale.
These columnar cacti are great for those people who may not "love" cacti as much as I do. They are not very thorny, (only small spines on the edges but I can grab them with my bare hands easily) they are usually quite symmetrical and balanced, and they have a darker green color with an interesting white stripe. Definitely unique and great for a focal point or as a tree substitute in a smaller landscape. I really love to cluster boulders around them along with some Angelita Daisy or other small flowering plant.

The Totem Pole pictured at right was planted as part of a desert landscape design in Fountain Hills, Arizona. This "cereus" cacti is great for the quirkier of folks. Its is thornless, which is a plus for those that are just starting to appreciate cacti. It has very random shapes and really no two ever look alike. Totem Pole are also a great focal point, great near the house, and again I like to surround them with boulders and small flowering plants.

Both of these cacti are so useful in Arizona landscapes. They give character, size, and a really unique shape to work with. Both are very low water use and can also be maintained easily by removing "spears" as they get too tall or wide. Cuttings of these cacti are easily harvested and transplanted around the yard or given to friends and neighbors. Cereusly, try them out.

TREES TO AVOID IN PHOENIX LANDSCAPES ENTRY #1.

2011-05-19T12:13:00.001-07:00

Pictured above are a few Acacia Salicina, AKA "Willow Acacia". I took these particular pictures in Gilbert, but it is not unusual to see them used throughout newer (1-20 years old) developments in Mesa, Chandler, Scottsdale, and others, both residential and commercial. Very often, I would say 1/3, or more, they look like the ones above. For some reason they are used as parking lot and street trees a lot. I just don't get it.

OK, so before I go on breaking down just how bad of a choice planting these trees in Arizona Landscapes can be -especially in above mentioned situations- let me say that every tree has it's place and I am not knocking the tree, the way in which it is used. The trees don't choose where and by whom they are planted !

Cons to Acacia Salicina for city use:

1. Require a lot of trimming/maintenance (which also means lots of man-power, dump trips, etc)
2. Branches are quite likely to break in the wind because of rapid, erratic growth
3. VERY shallow (and invasive) root system (you can see the surface root top left, just waiting for a combination of rain and wind - hmmm... Arizona Monsoons? This is one of the most common trees you see blown over during "micro bursts" or even moderate storms)
4. Inconsistent growth rates, inconsistent structures in general. Not a plus for a city street tree or providing shade.
5. Consistently produce pollen, pods, cycle through leaves, creating a need for more maintenance, clean-up, gas blowers, dump trips, etc. (mess level - 8.5/10)

So after all this hard work, keeping it in line, cleaning up, dealing with emergency service bills ($) for broken branches and fallen trees, here is the toughest part to swallow.......drum roll......
A lot of these trees, after all the investment our tax dollars (or personal dollars) and the energy of the maintenance crews put in..... A very large amount of them will have to be replaced, thus requiring costs of removal -labor, hauling, dump again, costs of buying a new tree, labor to plant it. And finally our city's or our neighborhood's maturity and character (which is SO essential, especially in the rapidly growing, culture struggling to keep up Valley we live in) starts all over after all this work ! And it's quite possible the replacement could be another Salicina !

Now I am feeling bad for harping on the tree. It didn't decide to come from Australia to Arizona. Somebody realized they were easy to grow, fast growing, and inexpensive. ($$) This is similar to what seems to have been a Eucalyptus craze in the eighties. And the more current Sissoo over-use :)

I will end with some pro's: fast growing, beautiful weeping look, great for farms or riversides, especially in Australia :) See, isn't that better !

Adam Bruce

PS - I don't want to be cynical often in this blog, but this has been bothering me for about a decade. Please hire a professional to help you select trees and locations, it makes a big difference for all of our futures.

PSS - Another culprit with strikingly similar issues is the Chilean Mesquite (there are many types of Mesquites that grow well here and are reliable, it's just this particular one and it's over-use that is many times a true waste of resources)

Phoenix landscape design Scottsdale landscape design Chandler landscape design

Arizona Landscaping; Some Very Special Caciti/Succulents

2011-04-04T11:09:00.000-07:00

In this one picture, a lot of the different textures, shapes, and colors available to an Arizona landscape designer are shown. Let me 1st tell you what all is pictured above, from nearest to furthest away with a short description and then I will rant about it a little:

1 - Left corner Aloe, a "Blue Elf" I think (just the tips are shown) - dark and light green contrast, flowers orange/yellow at the tips of interesting "stalks".

2 - Next to the right is the Agave Parryi (such a useful Agave in designs) provides an almost perfectly symmetrical shape and, as you can see, brilliant (and year round :) blue color.

3 -Next to the right - the fuzzy looking vertical ones - Cleistocactus strausii or "Silver Torch". Again, provides year round color (white of course), beautiful pink flowers in the spring, and an a unique shape and texture as well.

4- Behind the Silver Torch is an Argentine Giant. They have an AMAZING flower in the spring that makes everyone drop their jaw ... everytime. There is a picture in our potrfolio of the Trico Cereus, which is quite similar

5 - To the far left you have the native Ferocactus wislizeni or Fishhook Barrel. With its red "hooks" and yellow fruit, round shape AND orangish flowers. Yes, it brings a lot to the landscape.

6- In the background you have the Green Desert Spoon (wispy one), a Purple Prickly Pear, and some more Agave.

So... the point I am trying to make here is that there is plenty of character, color, texture and style to create a really beautiful, diverse landscape using all cacti/succulents whilst NOT using all the water from the Colorado River to grow a few Hibiscus or Ficus that will freeze and need replacing/ heavy trimming like this year (I am not anti-Hibiscus or totally against using tropical plants here and there. I even have large Ficus that was already there when I bought my house. Just using those as a comparisons)

Guess how much trimming the above grouping of cacti need? Zero. Water? Minimal to None once established. This means no dump trips, no waste, a lot less money/time, fuel etc etc. They also gain consistent, real VALUE and character for the landscape as they mature.

Also, these are all pretty slow growing varieties that don't really ever get to big to control. If the Prickly Pear or Aloe gets a little big for the space, you can cut a piece off and RE-USE it somewhere else, or give it as a gift to your favorite sister or something. Pretty awesome right !

If your interpretation of "Arizona Landscaping" is what you see at Sky Harbor airport, or in the medians.... Please go to Arizona Cactus Sales and look around or call us to design something special just for you. The more I learn about Cacti, the more I fascinated I become.

Adam

Publish Post

Landscape Lighting/Saguaro/ Fountain Hills

2011-01-19T14:19:00.000-08:00

This Fountain Hills landscape was recently designed and installed by Ultimate Landscapes. The landscape lighting really turned out great. (Especially because this home is in Fountain Hills and it's darker at night!) We planted to the large, specimen Saguaro pictured above along with many other unique cacti and succulents. To find that particular Saguaro, the homeowner and I met at a salvage yard in Phoenix. This one struck both of us immediately, I think the homewoner experienced "love at 1st sight" even :)

Above is pictured a slate sidewalk and porch. This front area has a pretty strong slope (hard to see in the pic) and after racking our brains, we came up with this little nook instead of doing a retaining wall. It now blends in and looks like it was there all along.

The lighting pictured is all manufactured by FX Luminaire. Unlike plastic / metal kit lighting, the FX system is comprised of architectural grade components engineered to be specified and installed by professionals. The effects shown on this page cannot be performed with “kit” lighting. There is a big difference. These lights will usually go 10-20 years without much maintenance other than the occasional bulb change. They cost ~$120 per fixture installed are well worth it.

Adam

OLIVE OIL IN ARIZONA ?

2010-12-07T10:03:00.000-08:00

"Why, YES, of course!" says Queen creek Olive Mill. And now I am hoping to get on board. You see I have an Olive tree that I absolutely love, however, I have always seen the actual olives as either: 1. a mess OR 2. a cost to spray so the tree does not produce olives. After learning to make Spanish Tortilla from my brother (long story) and picking up on the passion of good Olive Oil and cooking from a dear friend, I gained a whole new and long overdue appreciation for Olives. So I wondered, "What can I do with all these Olives? There must be SOMETHING!" I started to research to learn about what type of Olive tree I had and what purpose the fruit could serve. I had a tough time finding any good info. Even the all powerful google didn't seem to know. Then I remembered a nice visit to the Queen Creek Olive Mill this year for lunch. I had a great time there sampling wine and olive oil. I was truly just reveling in the fact that a local business here in Phoenix was actually producing foods all itself and promoting sustainable farming, etc. In my travels I had seen many places like this but never here in my own town!
OK, I am beginning to ramble. Just check it out. I will be trying to have them press my olives this year and I guess they split the oil with you. Exiting. No mess, an nice excuse to be outside in the yard, AND a really great holiday cooking bonus! Happy Holidays!

Adam

PS: ON a landscaping note, Olive trees are no less than AMAZING. Very clean (you can get fruitless Olives too), very nice, versatile style, low water, easy to maintain, totally reliable, and..... get this.... they can lived over a thousand years old, needing less and less water as they mature. Planting them is really, really good for the future of this valley ! Why they are not used more by cities, homeowners , and businesses always surprises me. (I must add, that there are some allergy issues, so look into that before planting)

Arizona "Fall" And Outdoor Living

2010-10-27T19:42:00.001-07:00

If one can create a good environment, sitting outside in Arizona in late October can be very, very comfortable. Things somehow even seem a bit more quiet now that we are not baking in the concrete oven. The pool that was attractive in May has been long off the radar since late August when "taking a warm bath" didn't seem all that appealing. So now its the the patios, the fire pit, and, especially, the plants that will draw us into enjoying the landscape. Even though they do fine in the summer, many of the more tropical plants are starting to seem more relaxed or something. Like they too understand the relief and celebration of the "end of summer" here in the desert. This Sago Palm (Cycas Revoluta) has the right idea. "Ah. . . . . . ."

One of my favorite trees, the Tipuana Tipu

2010-08-01T16:11:00.000-07:00

The Tipu Tree is easily one of my favorite trees to plant in Arizona. Besides being about the fastest growing tree I have ever seen, the Tipu has a very unique shape and structure. It can blend in nicely with a desert landscape or even compliment a sub-tropical landscape. It is important to know that with any fast growing tree such as Tipu, Sissoo, Mesquite, and Acacia, the proper maintenance of the tree's structure is essential. This is especially important during the 1st few years when the main branches are easily accessable and the ground work is being layed out for the long term shape of the tree. I once planted a 24" box Tipu for a client (7 ft tall, 3 ft wide canopy) and with good watering and care, I watched that tree become a huge assest to the landscape in about 2 years when it reached about 20 ft high and 15 ft wide. These trees continue to amaze me.

Vibrant Desert Landscape Design

2010-06-08T08:18:00.000-07:00

This Scottsdale Landscape Design completed by Ultimate Landscapes in the summer of 2008 shows the power of multiple textures, colors, and shapes in the landscape. The plants range from desert to sub-tropical and the goal was certainly to create a unique desert landscape - but a bit more lush and tropical looking. This landscape is very low water use and low maintenance as well.

The rock/ground finish used is called 1/4" minus "Madison Gold." The boulders are real, collected surface boulders that were built into the natural flagstone walkway. The landscape lighting fixtures are "Sedona Brown" in color and made by FX Luminaire. "Saguaro Pettite" is the style of the path lights used.

Some Plants pictured above: Aloe Striata (foreground, right side), Totem Pole Cactus (small "knobby" green cactus in the middle), Bougainvillea (bright pink in the background, right), Yucca Aliofolia (straight center), Twisted Myrtle (right side, dark green) Angelita Daisy (small, yellow flowers). These are all some personal favorites of ours.

Thanks to the homeowner and the crew! I can't wait to see this beautiful landscape thrive and mature for years to come.

Adam Bruce
Ultimate Landscapes
"Family Owned and Operated"

Desert Museum Palo Verde; What a tree!

2010-05-07T08:09:00.000-07:00

Desert Museum Palo Verdes are a real marvel of science. With a succession that includes the Blue Palo Verde (Cercidium Floridum), the Foothills (Cercidium microphyllum), the Mexican (Parkinsonia aculeate), and the Sonoran/Palo Brea (Parkinsonia praecox). The DMPV takes great qualities from each of these which makes it faster growing, totally thornless, smooth trunked, have enhanced flowering, more cold resistant, basically a super tree ! This sometimes doesn't seem fair to other Palo Verdes. But don't worry, they all have a place in the landscape and we still use most varieties at one time or another. This particular tree just tends suit more "human" needs which is important. I have been at war with Palo Brea and Blue Palo Verde, those thorns cut right into your skull! Now you really know why the DM's are one of my favorite trees to plant in Arizona !

Phoenix Landscape Design

2010-05-07T07:43:00.000-07:00

This Phoenix area home, designed and installed by Ultimate Landscapes, really encompasses the flavor of the native desert while spicing it up a bit with some cacti/plants from around the world. In the foreground above, one of my favorites, the "Argentine Giant" (Echinopsis candicans) is pictured in full bloom.

The native rock (2" to 8"grey stone you see) was used to really preserve the natural theme of the area. Gold 1/4" minus was put over the exposed dirt areas to give it a cleaner look but all effort was taken to use native colors.

In the background, you can see the specimen Saguaro (a real beauty that added its weight in gold) and specimen Yucca right in front of it. The hybrid "Desert Museum" Palo Verde was used as a shade tree for the home and the front courtyard. The Acker Stone Pavers really blend in with the home's theme and style. With the steep slope, we had to be creative but this paver driveway turned out to be a huge asset to this landscape.

The crew, the homeowner, myself, and even the HOA all worked together well from start to finish and we were able to complete this front yard project in about 12 working days @ site. (2.5 weeks) I appreciate when a project is really allowed to become what it was meant to become through creativity, hard work, and trust from the clients.

Phoenix, Arizona Landscape Remodel - Desert Landscape weaved with Mediterranean

2010-03-25T16:28:00.000-07:00

This Phoenix/Scottsdale area front yard landscape was recently completed by Ultimate Landscapes Inc. Many of our clients really enjoy the Mediterranean and Tuscan style landscape. Fortunately in the Arizona Desert, we are able to create a similar feel, while still staying true to the spirit of the surrounding area and water usage, etc. I really enjoy designing Desert landscapes with a Mediterranean influence.

Many of the new or remodeled homes we landscape have strong Mediterranean tones. The great thing about Arizona is that the spectrum of plant life and origin that we have to work with is seemingly endless. The above landscape features a tree from Brazil/Bolivia - Tipuana Tipu, a palm from Southwestern Europe (Mediterranean Fan Palm), a cactus from Central Mexico (Mexican Fence Post), the native Ocotillo and Golden Barrel, along with many others of course. Most require little to no water and all are easy to grow and very consistent.

This landscape is a testimony to the value of hardscapes, elevation changes, boulders, and natural materials. When I say hardscapes, I mean boulders, stone, masonry, granite, and grading. Although they require more time and resources, they are permanent and require no resources to maintain once finished. When panning a project, compare the hardscape to the base coat or primer coat in painting. With a great base, the colors, textures, and feel come through crystal clear.

The Wonderful Rocky Pt (Malephora luteola) and Copper Ice Plant (Malephora crocea)

2010-03-18T11:19:00.000-07:00

The yellow flowering Rocky Point Ice plant (Malephora Luteola) and pink -flowering Copper Ice Plant (Malephora Crocea) can be magnificent, colorful ground covers for Arizona Desert Landscaping. I can think of no other ground cover that will bloom as frequently and heavily as these do.

Last year (Jan 09) I planted two 1 gal Rocky Pts. in my own front yard and they bloomed gorgeous yellow flowers all the way until July. The flowers close at night and re-open every morning. They have a curiously perfect round shape like the one pictured if they have room to grow.

A plant that flowers almost year round, requires little to no water except for the hottest parts of summer and blends in great with the desert landscapes. Seems perfect. There is one issue though.. They seem to have a "hit or miss" JULY/AUGUST. Of the 2 I planted, 1 died very quickly in the midst of the summer and the other stressed out for about a month and returned to health in Sept. That surviving one is still blooming now (Mar 2010) and really has not stopped since I planted it over a year ago. We have planted over 1000 of these for clients the last 2-3 years (all 1gal) and there are probably 400 left.

Many of our clients are only in Arizona for the winter, so that makes this plant's solid winter color very valuable to them -most AZ plants bloom in Spring and Summer.

So, what will I leave you with ? If you choose to plant either of these Ice plants -or many others for that matter - Carpabrotus and Desert Ice are 2 other good ones we use - understand that they have a 50/50 chance to make it through the 1st summer and sometimes they just can't handle the heat. Their year round color is so powerful that this does not bother me nor does it bother a fair amount of our clients. So give them a chance and see what they do for your garden.

Tips: Plant in an area that gets at least at least 4 hours sun to full sun. Avoid high traffic areas. Water very little in the colder months (1-2 times per week - if that) Remember they are a succulents and by design retain water quite well. Water frequently in EXTREME heat only(95+) (3-5 times per week) and cross your fingers... if they make it through one summer, they seem to be a lot tougher next time around :) Good luck

AB

The Powerful Affects of Contouring, Boulders, and Wash Scenes

2010-03-04T10:47:00.000-08:00

This landscape remodel is a perfect example of the power of creative contouring, use of boulders and different types of granite and rip rap. Creating dimension and contrast in the hardscape and prep work really makes the plants/cacti/succulents blend in and look more natural. We have granite/boulders ranging from 1" to 3 ft wide and everything in between with an assortment of colors.

This Chandler landscape design requires very little maintenance but still provides a great deal of character to the home.