
Coral aloe
Aloe striata
Aloe striata

Blue Glow agave
Agave 'Blue Glow'
Agave 'Blue Glow'

Blue finger
Senecio talinoides ssp. mandraliscae
Senecio talinoides ssp. mandraliscae

Blue fox tail agave
Agave attenuata 'Boutin Blue'
Agave attenuata 'Boutin Blue'

Incienso, Brittlebush
Encelia farinosa
Encelia farinosa

Aloe vera
Aloe vera
Aloe vera

Black rose aeonium
Aeonium arboreum 'Zwartkop'
Aeonium arboreum 'Zwartkop'

Desert Museum palo verde
Parkinsonia x 'Desert Museum'
Parkinsonia x 'Desert Museum'

Orange ice plant
Lampranthus aurantiacus
Lampranthus aurantiacus

Autumn sage + cvs
Salvia greggii
Salvia greggii

Queen Victoria agave
Agave victoriae-reginae
Agave victoriae-reginae

Blue Elf aloe
Aloe 'Blue Elf'
Aloe 'Blue Elf'
Description
The Succulent Sculpture Garden provides a variety of easy to grow and diverse succulents of various sizes, with just a few accent shrubs and one tree suggestion to pull it all together and help make everything pop. The succulents selected here were done so to provide visual diversity and to provide a list of plants generally easily sourced from local nurseries that carry waterwise plants. However, there are many other options available, and most succulents and cacti have very similar care and irrigation requirements in the garden, so feel free to do some research about other options available at the nurseries you visit and mix in additional succulents as desired.
This plant palette is available as an option for the Waterwise Community Center's Landscape Design Assistance Program. Visit cbwcd.org/desgin for more details.
Plant List

Desert Museum palo verde
Botanical Name: Parkinsonia x 'Desert Museum'Plant Type: Tree, Native
Water Needs: Low 2
Exposure: All day sun
Height: 20 ft. - 30 ft. Width: 20 ft. - 25 ft.

Desert willow + cvs
Botanical Name: Chilopsis linearisPlant Type: Tree, Native
Water Needs: Low 2
Exposure: All day sun
Height: 15 ft. - 30 ft. (rarely) Width: 15 ft. - 20 ft.
Succulents

Afterglow echeveria
Botanical Name: Echeveria 'Afterglow'Plant Type: Succulent
Water Needs: Low 1
Exposure: Morning sun
Height: 6 in. - 8 in. Width: 10 in. - 12 in.

Aloe vera
Botanical Name: Aloe veraPlant Type: Aloe
Water Needs: Low 2
Exposure: All day sun, Partial sun
Height: 18 in. - 24 in. Width: 3' then offsets to form a larger clump - 24 in.

Black rose aeonium
Botanical Name: Aeonium arboreum 'Zwartkop'Plant Type: Succulent
Water Needs: Low 2
Exposure: Morning sun, All day sun, Partial sun
Height: 2 ft. - 3 ft. Width: 2 ft. - 3 ft.

Blue Elf aloe
Botanical Name: Aloe 'Blue Elf'Plant Type: Aloe
Water Needs: Low 1
Exposure: All day sun, Partial sun
Height: 15 in. - 18 in. Width: 24 in.

Blue finger
Botanical Name: Senecio talinoides ssp. mandraliscaePlant Type: Ground cover, Succulent
Water Needs: Low 1
Exposure: All day sun, Partial sun
Height: 12 in. - 18 in. Width: 3 ft. - 4 ft., can slowly spread further

Blue fox tail agave
Botanical Name: Agave attenuata 'Boutin Blue'Plant Type: Agave
Water Needs: Low 1
Exposure: All day sun
Height: 3 ft. - 5 ft. Width: 3 ft. - 5 ft.

Blue Glow agave
Botanical Name: Agave 'Blue Glow'Plant Type: Agave
Water Needs: Low 1
Exposure: All day sun
Height: 18 in. - 20 in. Width: 18 in. - 20 in.

Blue rose echeveria
Botanical Name: Echeveria imbricataPlant Type: Succulent
Water Needs: Low 1
Exposure: Morning sun
Height: 6 in. - 12 in. Width: 2 ft. - 3 ft.

Coral aloe
Botanical Name: Aloe striataPlant Type: Aloe
Water Needs: Low 2
Exposure: All day sun, Partial sun
Height: 12 in. - 24 in. Width: 12 in. - 24 in.

Orange ice plant
Botanical Name: Lampranthus aurantiacusPlant Type: Ground cover, Succulent, Iceplant
Water Needs: Low 1
Exposure: All day sun
Height: 15 in. - 18 in. Width: 4 ft. - 5 ft.

Prickly pear
Botanical Name: Opuntia ficus-indicaPlant Type: Cacti
Water Needs: Low 1
Exposure: All day sun
Height: 10 ft. - 18 ft. Width: 10 ft. - 18 ft.

Purple prickly pear
Botanical Name: Opuntia violacea var. santa ritaPlant Type: Cacti
Water Needs: Low 1
Exposure: All day sun
Height: 3 ft. - 4 ft. Width: 4 ft. - 5 ft.

Queen Victoria agave
Botanical Name: Agave victoriae-reginaePlant Type: Agave
Water Needs: Low 1
Exposure: All day sun
Height: 1 ft. - 2 ft. Width: 1 ft. - 2 ft.
Shrubs

Autumn sage + cvs
Botanical Name: Salvia greggiiPlant Type: Shrub
Water Needs: Low 2
Exposure: All day sun
Height: 2 ft. - 4 ft. Width: 3 ft. - 4 ft.

Incienso, Brittlebush
Botanical Name: Encelia farinosaPlant Type: Shrub, Native
Water Needs: Low 1
Exposure: All day sun
Height: 3 ft. - 5 ft. Width: 3 ft. - 5 ft.

Mountain marigold
Botanical Name: Tagetes lemmoniiPlant Type: Shrub
Water Needs: Low 2
Exposure: All day sun
Height: 3 ft. - 5 ft. Width: 6 ft.
Horticultural Preferences
All of these plants prefer sandy or rocky soils with good drainage. This also makes them well suited for raised planters and on banks and slopes. Some of these plants can tolerate heavy or clay soils as long as they are not overwatered (and in this case prefer to be planted a bit high so that water will never pool at the base of the plants). If you have clay soil, check the information in each individual plant profile to see if they are adapted to clay soils.
Aesthetic Character
Depending on the size of the site, plants can be used as groupings of the same plant repeated or as individual accents. Most often, the smaller succulents are visually most effectively used as groups of either three, five, or seven, or more although small spaces may require the use of individual plants.
Moisture Needs
The chart shown below provides a baseline guide to the monthly irrigation schedule and volume of supplemental water needed to maintain healthy growth. Several winter months noted by an asterisk (*) indicate when rains can provide sufficient moisture and irrigation is not needed. It is important to note that these plants can successfully grow within a range of supplemental moisture each month; the actual irrigation schedule should be adjusted to reflect specific soil, slope and exposure conditions to achieve best plant performance.
Irrigation Schedule and Graph
Low Water Use Plants
Irrigation Schedule 1
Jan* | Feb* | Mar* | Apr | May | Jun | Jul | Aug | Sep | Oct | Nov* | Dec* | |
---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
Runs per Month | 0x to 2x | 0x to 2x | 0x to 2x | 1x | 1x | 1x | 1x | 1x | 1x | 1x | 0x to 2x | 0x to 2x |
Inches per Run | 1" | 1" | 1" | 1" | 1" | 1" | 1" | 1" | 1" | 1" | 1" | 1" |
Inches per Month | 0" to 2" | 0" to 2" | 0" to 2" | 1" | 1" | 1" | 1" | 1" | 1" | 1" | 0" to 2" | 0" to 2" |
Range of supplemental summer water: 7"
Range of supplemental winter water: 0"-10"
0"-2" |
0"-2" |
0"-2" |
1" |
1" |
1" |
1" |
1" |
1" |
1" |
0"-2" |
0"-2" |
|
Jan* | Feb* | Mar* | Apr | May | Jun | Jul | Aug | Sep | Oct | Nov* | Dec* |
For more information on how to use this Irrigation Schedule and Graph, follow this link.
For information how to calculate your irrigation system’s schedule and precipitation rate, please follow this link.
For information how to calculate your irrigation system’s schedule and precipitation rate, please follow this link.