low growing drought tolerant plants?

Wingit

We finally received the approval from HOA for our next project.  We have a corner lot so we've been trying to reduce the size of the lawn for easier maintenance.  So...we want to remove the sod that is between the street and the sidewalk and replace it with crushed granite and a few plants.  But I really want the plants to be low-growing and drought tolerant.  Any ideas for 2-3 kinds of plants for me (zone 9.)

Lantana??

Thanks!

 

Wingit

OH, and we'll probably use some large, flatish boulders to fill in space and create more dimension.  How far should I space the boulders?  Maybe about 6-8 feet apart?

wrysmyguy

chicks and hens and sedum

MMP

I second sedum.  There are many varieties so you could add a lot of textures and color. 

dirtyred

Tritto on the sedum.  Pretty, perennial, low maintenance.

It comes in all kinds of shapes, sizes, and colors.  I have five different varieties and am coveting a couple of new ones that I've seen lately.

~NB~

 I like the Lantana idea. But doesn't the HOA have to approve that? I've worked with a lot of HOAs, and I've never heard of a project getting approved before you show them detailed plans of exactly what you intend to do, including how big an area you're working on, what plants you are adding, what features you are adding or bulding, etc.

dirtyred

And a note on the lantana--it's a shrub that can grow to over 6 feet, so it doesn't meet your "low growing" criteria.  It's also considered an invasive plant in many areas and there might be restrictions on growing it in your neighborhood.

http://www.invasive.org/weedcd/pdfs/florida/lantana.pdf

www.invasiveplantatlas.org

~NB~

dirtyred:

And a note on the lantana--it's a shrub that can grow to over 6 feet, so it doesn't meet your "low growing" criteria.  It's also considered an invasive plant in many areas and there might be restrictions on growing it in your neighborhood.

http://www.invasive.org/weedcd/pdfs/florida/lantana.pdf

www.invasiveplantatlas.org

WHAT SPECIES? There are over 150 species of Lantana, including those that stay under four feet and fall into the low growing category. Of course, "low" is subjective. I wouldn't rule it out because some of them grow taller. Regardless of that, they are all manageable at smaller sizes. I maintain my hedge of Ligustrum lucidum at about 3.5' even though it could grow to 30' if I let it.

another KT

ornamental grasses are very drought tolerant and there are some low growing varieties

Wingit

~NB~:

 I like the Lantana idea. But doesn't the HOA have to approve that? I've worked with a lot of HOAs, and I've never heard of a project getting approved before you show them detailed plans of exactly what you intend to do, including how big an area you're working on, what plants you are adding, what features you are adding or bulding, etc.

 Surprisingly, we didn't have to jump through major hoops with our HOA!  We did have to submit plans but they weren't even incredibly specific.  Since we didn't know exactly what plants we wanted at the time, we mentioned low growing, drought tolerant and gave a couple examples of lantana and mexican heather grass and that was it.  I know some lantana can grow a bit crazy so it's not my preference but might work. 

I've wanted some sedum, so thanks for that suggestion! 

smscully

http://www.highcountrygardens.com/

 

This place has the best section of drought tolerant plants i have seen.  I haven't ordered anything yet but i have browsed and dreamed about almost all of it. 

flame

smscully:

http://www.highcountrygardens.com/

This place has the best section of drought tolerant plants i have seen.  I haven't ordered anything yet but i have browsed and dreamed about almost all of it. 

I second High Country Gardens/Santa Fe Greenhouse. They're my local nursery and I swear by their plants.  David Saloman, the owner, is a horticulturist who has made a business out of low water (i.e. zeric) plants.

For ground cover, I'm a big fan of thyme, plumbago and veronica/speedwell.  For lower plants, look at the penstemons, hummingbird mints, salvias and blanket flowers.

As for the boulders, I'm a fan of clustering them.  Place 3-4 boulders in a grouping with plants aroudnd them.  o add interest, dig in the boulders/moss rocks - it looks more natural.

To get some ideas, look at Sunset Magazine and their dozens od zeric garden photos.