Photos by Susan Gillingham

A native cactus of the Mojave Desert is the barrel cactus, or Ferocactus cylindraceus. The Latin name Ferocactus means fierce or wild cactus. 

The bright pink-red spines of the cactus are particularly apparent after a rain. Older plants form a medium or tall column. Flowers are yellow, appearing in spring and early summer, while the fruits are bright yellow. 

According to ethnobotanist.com, the "Havasupai collected seeds from the fruit and ground them into an edible, porridge mush. These people also warmed the red spines by fire, then bent the spines into finger rings." The fruit itself is described as "not very tasty."

Photo by Chris Hunkeler from Carlsbad, California, USA,  <https://creativecommons.org/licenses/by-sa/2.0>, via Wikimedia Commons

Ocotillo is a native plant that creates structure and height in our Morongo Basin landscapes. Ocotillo means "little torch" in Spanish, probably inspired by the orange red flowers at the plant's tips. The plant can grow up to 15 feet tall and wide. It prefers full sun and likes our heat.

Fouquieria splendens, or ocotillo, for much of the year appears to be an arrangement of large spiny dead sticks, although a closer look reveals that the canes are partly green. Either through irrigation or rain, water makes the plant come to life with small green leaves all over the stems.

Ocotillo in Landers, CA. Photo by Marina Chavez

A non-native grass-like plant that does particularly well in the Morongo Basin is red yucca, or Hesperaloe  parviflora. Its grassy evergreen leaves provide interest during all seasons, with plants having a purple cast in the winter cold. 

Creative Commons photo by Fritz Hochstätter

As a native of the Mexican Chihuahuan Desert, red yucca can withstand our high temperatures.  The deep rose-pink blooms usually start in June and last for a long time, provided the plant is regularly watered. The bloom spike can reach 5 feet in mature plants. If watered irregularly, it will either not bloom or the blooms will be few. 

This is a low-maintenance plant beloved by hummingbirds!

California buckwheat with Russian sage in the background. Photo by Stacy Doolittle

An outstanding small shrub for Morongo Basin landscapes is California Buckwheat, a native which is likely to volunteer in your yard. Long-lived creamy white flowers eventually turn into attractive rust-colored seed heads. It is attractive all year long. 

Eriogonum Fasciculatum var. polifolium is the grey-leafed variety we see in the desert, and according to Calscape is sometimes available in nurseries. (See our native plant nurseries for potential sources.) It is also easily grown from seed. 

Buckwheat at Mojave Desert Land Trust demonstration garden. Photo by Stacy Doolittle.

Photo by Arch McCullough

A favorite springtime native flower of many Morongo Basin residents (and hummingbirds) is the Apricot Mallow. With its upturned, bright orange-cupped flowers, and grey-green foliage, mallow fits into most any landscaping scheme. With any luck, you won't need to plant it as it will volunteer in your water-wise garden! 

                                     Photos by Stacy Doolittle

One of our most glorious native plants is the Mojave Yucca (Yucca schidigera). With blooms beginning purple and opening to white or cream-colored blossoms, a yucca in bloom is a desert beacon. It's tree-like structure adds solidity to the landscape.

According to CalScape, "the flower is pollinated by only a single species of Yucca Moth, and many of the flowers go unpollinated."  Although a member of the Agave family, yucca's do not produce pups but instead reproduce by seed. 

Photos by Stacy Doolittle

Opuntia basilaris or beavertail pricklypear as it is is commonly known, is native to the Morongo Basin and other areas of the southwest. It is a small to medium sized cactus with the potential for hundreds of pads on one cactus. These pads are usually a blue-green without spines. Instead, beavertail has glochids which are small barbed bristles or thorns. These easily detach so caution is recommended. 

A truly desert-wise plant, the beavertail doesn't need supplemental water except a small amount in the heat of summer. But be careful, overwatering can lead to rot. It does not need any supplemental water the rest of the year, even though it can appear parched. 

There is not a more perfect landscaping shrub for our Morongo Basin yards than the ubiquitous creosote bush, Larrea tridentata. Native and very common throughout the Basin, creosote is not fussy about soil and can be trimmed into a specimen topiary or into a hedge/windbreak. With regular water it becomes denser. 

Small yellow flowers cover the plant in the spring. 

Hollyleaf cherry (Prunus Ilicifolia) is a native and drought-tolerant shrub for home landscapes in the Morongo Basin. It is the most widely distributed native subspecies of holly in California.