Top 5 drought tolerant shrubs for OC homeowners

If you decide not to water your lawn this summer and plants drought tolerant trees in October, you should consider the following 5 native California shrubs.

1- Lemonadeberry (scientific name: Rhus integrifolia) 

• bloom period: February to May
• preference: sun/dry
• edible: berry is edible and can be used for  lemonade
• height: 3′
• other information: evergreen shrub
• More photos on google.com

2- California Honeysuckle (Lonicera hispidula) 

• bloom period: May to August
• preference: sun/moist to shade/dry
• height: 1′
• edible: fruit is edible
• humming bird: attract humming bird
• other information: climbing deciduous shrub
• More photos on google

3- Bladder Pod (Isomeris arborea) 

• bloom period: most of the year
• preference: sun/dry
• height: 4′ to 7′
• edible: fruit is edible
• other information: evergreen shrub; flame retardant; found only in California
• More photos of Bladder Pod on google images

4- Purple Sage (Salvia leucophylla) 

• bloom period: April to July
• preference: sun/dry
• height: 4′ to 8′
• edible: fruit has fragance and is edible
• other information: foliage has fragance and edible; can only be found in California
• More photos on Google

5- Sugar Bush (Rhus ovata) 

• bloom period: April to May
• preference: sun/dry
• height: grow to 10′
• edible: fruit is edible
• other information: evergreen shrub; mainly in California with some in Arizona and Baja California
• More photos on Google.com

Nurseries

In Orange county, we googled and found two nurseries that carry California native plants:

• Las Pilitas Nursery – http://www.laspilitas.com/ in Santa Margarita. The five plants mentioned above cost under $10 for 1-gallon size pot.
• Tree of Life Nursery – http://www.californianativeplants.com/ in San Juan Capistrano

If you know any other nursery in SoCal, please let us know we will update the list.

Links

• Native Plants of the Palos Verdes Peninsula that are Suitable for Gardens – http://sccnps.org/plants-of-local-interest
• California-Friendly Guide to Native and Drought Tolerant Garden – http://www.lvmwd.com/home/showdocument?id=711
• Wikipedia list of California Native Plants – https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/List_of_California_native_plants

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