Top Southwest Native Plants for Desert Gardens

Native Beauties That Thrive on Rainfall Alone

Native plants are smart additions to Southwest gardens. The nine species featured here are naturally adapted to desert climates where heat and aridity prevail. Most bear showy blooms, and when water is scarce, all are appropriate—and thrifty—choices since they survive on nothing more than rainfall once established. Just give them sun and well-drained soil, and they'll flourish.

If you start with nursery-raised plants, remember that even drought-tolerant natives need supplemental watering during the dry season for a year or two until they're established.

Plant Profiles

• Angelita Daisy (Tetraneuris acaulis) – 8 inches tall, 1 foot wide. Yellow flowers during warm months. Sun; little to moderate water. Zones 1-3, 10-13.
• Blackfoot Daisy (Melampodium leucanthum) – 1 foot tall and wide. Fragrant white daisies in winter (mild climates) or spring/summer (cold areas). Sun; little water. Zones 2, 3, 10-13.
• Brittlebush (Encelia farinosa) – Deciduous shrub, 3 feet tall, 4 feet wide. Silvery, woolly leaves; yellow daisies with brown centers in spring. Sun; little or no water. Zones 10-13.
• Desert Marigold (Baileya multiradiata) – 1½ feet tall, 2 feet wide. Bright yellow flowers spring through fall. Annual or perennial. Sun; moderate water. Zones 1-3, 10-13.
• Mexican Hat (Ratibida columnifera) – 2½ feet tall, 1 foot wide. Sombrero-like flowers with drooping yellow rays around conical centers all summer. Sun; little to moderate water. All zones.
• Verbena gooddingii – 1½ to 2 feet tall, 3 to 4 feet wide. Pinkish lavender flowers in summer. Sun; little water. Zones 10-13.
• Woolly Butterfly Bush (Buddleja marrubiifolia) – Evergreen shrub, 5 feet tall and wide. Soft, silvery foliage; orange flower clusters in spring and summer. Sun; little water. Zones 10-13.
• Yellow Bells (Tecoma stans angustata) – 4 to 10 feet tall, 3 to 8 feet wide. Deciduous shrub with bright green, finely divided leaves; trumpet-shaped yellow flowers from mid-spring to late fall. Sun; little to moderate water. Zones 12, 13.