(Rose Rockcress, Rote Sensation Rockcress)

This small rockcress, ‘Red Sensation,’ is a bright-flowering selection of a California native. It is a mat-forming, evergreen perennial with oval, deep green leaves arranged in ground-hugging rosettes. Bright clusters of tiny, four-petalled, magenta-fuchsia flowers are borne on short stems from late spring into summer. These are sweetly scented and long-lasting, attracting butterflies.

Grow 'Red Sensation' in full sun and gritty, well-drained soil. If the soil remains wet in winter, this plant...

(Rose Delight Rockcress, Rose Rockcress)

Fragrant and dainty, the pale rose-fuchsia flowers of ‘Rose Delight’ rockcress bloom above the compact green foliage in late spring. The parent species is a short-lived, evergreen, tuft-forming perennial that is native to central and northern California, where it grows in gritty soils and coastal regions.

The oval leaves have small teeth and are a satiny green with haired edges. In late spring, short stalks bear clusters of tiny flowers that attract butterflies. These blooms are rosy pink to pink-fuchsia...

(Peanut)

The unusual and economically important peanut is a bushy or spreading tropical plant that may be grown as an annual or short-lived perennial crop. Technically a member of the bean family (Fabaceae), the peanut's origins stem from South America (Bolivia, Peru and adjoining countries) where they were grown and eaten by indigenous peoples. They have since become essential to life and cuisine in countries worldwide including Africa, Asia, The Pacific Islands and North America. Peanuts were introduced...

(Aristate Hollyfern, East Indian Hollyfern, Variegated East Indian Hollyfern)

The variegated East Indian holly fern has magnificent tapering green fronds with prominent midribs glowing in a pale yellow. This evergreen fern is usually found in dry woodlands among rocks near the coast from India, southeastern Asia into Polynesia and New Zealand. The leaves are long, quite stiff as if made from plastic and arise from a creeping rhizome.

Grow this fern in a shady spot in a moist but well-drained soil. Cold winters may render the plant deciduous, with new fronds arising in...

(House Pine, Monkey Puzzle Tree)

Sparse, architecturally interesting branches laced with sharp, triangular needles makes monkey puzzle tree one of the more odd but entertaining trees for mild temperate zone landscapes. A tall evergreen tree native to the slopes of the Andes Mountains in Chile and Argentina, it has dark grayish brown bark and produces cones. It is pleasingly pyramid-shaped when young, looking like an artificial Christmas tree without the wiry needles yet extended. With time, its shape become tall with a rounded upper...

(Bunya Bunya Pine)

With shiny, prickly foliage concentrated in tufts at the ends of branches, bunya-bunya pine is known for its spiny, heavy cones that drop like bombs to the ground below. Only found naturally in the coastal and inland rainforests of Queensland, Australia, it is a tall evergreen tree that attains a triangular dome canopy at maturity. When youthful, the tree has a pyramid-like habit with a tall central leading tip. The leaves are dark green, brighter when new, and waxy, stiff and notably sharp at their...

(Norfolk Island Pine)

The Norfolk Island pine is a cone-bearing evergreen tree native to Norfolk Island, just east of Australia. It is a large, tall, upright, elegant tree with whorled branches and dark green, fan-like, needle-type foliage. The short, little needles are leathery and linear, densely arranged in flexible, caterpillar-like fingers upon the lateral branches. At the tree's tip, the newest branch growth resembles a graphic, five or six-pointed star with V-form foliage. It produces cones that are either fully...

(Strawberry Tree)

The elegant strawberry tree is best distinguished by its highly ornamental fruits that turn from gold to red. It is a broad, upright large shrub or small tree native to southern European and the eastern Mediterranean with an adjunct population in Ireland. Like many members of the heath family (Ericaceae), it favors moist, rich, slightly acid soil but will also tolerate summer drought. Mature specimens adopt an appealing vase-shaped habit and gnarled branches.

Fully evergreen, ovate leaves of...

(Compact Strawberry Tree, Strawberry Tree)

The Compacta strawberry tree is a large shrub or small tree with white flowers that lead to ornamental red fruits. It is identical to the species except it will only reach one-half the mature size. The bark is gray and peeling, revealing a nice cinnamon brown layer on this southern European and eastern Mediterranean native plant. Often blooming in autumn, the urn-shaped flowers give rise to the gold and then red "strawberry" fruits the following autumn. Over time the trunk becomes gnarled and more...

(Alex Palm, Alexandra Palm, Princess Alexandra Palm)

Stately, tall, beautiful and fast growing, Alexandra palm, named in honor of Princess Alexandra of Denmark, lends a tropical look to the landscape. It is native to the coastal rainforest of northeastern Australia and is much planted in tropical regions around the world. The solitary palm has a slender, gray trunk, swollen base and ringed with leaf scars. The large, feather-like leaves are light green above, distinctively silver-white below with many, pointed leaflets which clasp together to form...