For Fresno County residents who appreciate beautiful landscapes but prefer not to labor in the blazing summer heat, a new planting at the Garden of the Sun demonstrates a lush array of plants growing in full sun that require minimal water and no summer maintenance.
The heat-tolerant planting is just inside the garden’s front gate, on the left as you enter. A mixture of native and non-native plants with gray and green tones surround selections that produce hardy red blooms nearly year-round.
The backdrop – which will screen the vacant land behind the area when the plants are mature – include Bauhinia tree and vine, Yucatan daisy, spice bush and toyons. In the front, blue fescue ornamental grass and chalky gray artemisia set off the greener foliage of several salvia species, coreopsis, coyote bush and sweet pea bush. Featured in the middle of the bed are lantana compacta, with bright red compound flowers that attract butterflies, hummingbirds and other pollinators. When the lantana begins to fade as weather cools, the miniature bottle brush blooms provide a pop of color.
The heat-tolerant planting bed is drip irrigated for one hour three times per week with one-gallon-per-hour inline emitters placed in a grid pattern 18 inches apart. The soil surface is covered with compost to reduce evaporation and build the soil. Most of the plants will be cut down in the winter, allowing for fresh foliage and vibrant flowers in the spring.
The Garden of the Sun is at 1750 N. Winery in Fresno. Admission is free. The garden is open Monday, Wednesday and Friday from 8 to 11 a.m. In addition, the garden will be open Saturdays, Oct. 4 and Nov. 1, for guided tours, children's activities and the opportunity to ask gardening questions of UC Master Gardeners.
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Written by UC Master Gardener Jeannette Warnert