Year-round Color in the Xeriscape™

Article provide by Cindy Odgers

Remember when…Xeriscape™. In 1980, the Denver Water Department coined “Xeriscape” as “a systematic approach to designing landscapes that conserve water.” Xeriscape™, from the Greek word “xeri” for dry, has become synonymous with water conservation throughout the United States. A landscape can be colorful as well as water-conserving, with the many native and non-native plants for use in Arizona.

Color in the landscape is often taken to mean any color other than green, though green is a color too. Color is a physical property of a plant that results from light acting on its leaves, flowers, fruit, bark, and seeds. The color of a plant’s foliage should be considered most in the design process because the foliage is present for an extended period of the year. Plant foliage colors range from black-green (grayish) to blue-green, brightgreens, red-greens, and finally, to yellow-greens. In Arizona, numerous plants bloom through a significant part of the year, so consider a plant’s flower colors as well as foliage colors.

Colors are warm or cool, depending on their hue. Hue is the name of a color such as red, blue, orange, and so forth. The cool hues include blues, greens, and purples, while the warm hues include yellow, orange, scarlet, and crimson. Cool colors are receding, not as conspicuous as warm colors are bright, inviting, and lively.

Another physical property of plants is texture. Stems, leaves, bark, and buds determine the texture of a plant. Textures ranging from fine through medium to coarse are visible because of the size and shape of these features and the way light and shadow play off them. One can feel texture as well as see it. Larger leaves, stems, and buds, the number of branches and leaves, and the spacing between them create an effect of coarseness. Thick, tight foliage results in finer texture, while widely separated foliage gives a coarser texture. Simple leaves will appear coarser than compound leaves, and leaves with deep lobes in the margin show a finer texture than leaves of a similar size. The coarser a texture appears in a plant, the more significant impact its color will make. Texture can significantly influence the perception of color.

Because many of the plants used in the Arizona plant palette have compound leaves with finer textures, the impact of their green color is not as significant as it would be if they were coarse textured. Therefore, it is essential to vary the texture when possible if using plants with the same shade of green.

Here are some basic guidelines to follow that will ensure year-round color.

Provide interest to an otherwise gray-green area through the use of accent plants. Relieve large masses of one color with smaller groups of plants of a complementary color.

Plants with coppery or purple-toned foliage make great accent plants.

Plant in mass. If a plant is worth using at all, it should be worth using in large enough quantities to be effective. Also, use odd numbers such as three, five, and seven, and avoid planting in a straight line.

Shrubs with bright flowers and foliage can be used at the end of a too-long or narrow vista to make the planting seem close and the view nearer.

A gray or neutral plant will accent the depth of color near it and bring out warm notes.

Plants with variegated leaf colors will lighten and liven up shady, dull corners.

Direct sunlight enhances green colors. Plants on a west wall viewed in the late afternoon will appear more brilliant than at other times of the day.

If a plant is used once in the landscape, use it again for unity.

Enchanted Garden Landscape – Photos by Christopher Rossi

Xeriscape™ is as significant today as it was 42 years ago. The seven sustainable guiding principles of Xeriscape™ can result in water conservation and beautiful colors.

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