Wednesday, July 7, 2021

Discovering more spikes in the 'hood: Welcome to Tiny Tucson!

On Monday's post "Concordia AZ" I shared an alternate name for my neighborhood, courtesy of my husband's imagination, as we stopped so I could photograph a neighborhood garden. After that we turned a corner, headed home, and in a one block section encountered not one, or two, but three homes with nice agaves featured in the front yard plantings. Tiny Tucson became his new favorite label and it's how I will forever think of this block...

This one was first...

I thought it was an anomaly.

But across the street I spotted another interesting garden.

Small, but dialed.

And their Agave ovatifolia is looking grand.

Along with a strong cast of supporting characters.


I especially enjoyed what I saw as we pulled away. They'd been shopping!

Just up the street was this!

Wow.

I've walked by here in the time it would have taken for these to grow this large, and Google street view from May of 2019 still shows lawn—so they must have been planted out already quite sizable and relatively recently (FWIW the last garden was also still lawn in May of 2019).

I'm not feeling confident enough to throw out an ID on the agaves above, but I think this guy is Agave gentryi 'Jaws'. 

I really love the warm tint to their gravel. Mine had/has a cooler tone, I wonder where they got this?

I also love the stocky little trunk on that Yucca rostrata.

A few more shots...


Agave 'Mateo' maybe? I feel like there's a lighter green stripe in the center of the leaves?

The yet to be planted opuntia on the steps has a definite Mickey Mouse vibe going on...

Well done neighbors! 

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All material © 2009-2021 by Loree Bohl for danger garden. Unauthorized reproduction prohibited and just plain rude.

18 comments:

  1. The variety of gardens in Portland never ceases to amaze me. Folks down here in the Sacramento Valley could learn a lot!

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    1. We do have variety, for sure. I love that about living here.

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  2. AnonymousJuly 07, 2021

    Loree, I have an adult Agave gentry 'Jaws'; I agree with your ID on that smaller agave you photographed.

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  3. I don't know if your influence started a movement, Loree, but I'm willing to bet you've encouraged it!

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    1. I've since had the chance to correspond with one of these homeowners and he confirms that my garden was inspiration and the blog a source of plant research so you're right!

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  4. I think your garden style is impressing the neighborhood!

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  5. Wow! They definitely spent big bucks on those plants... even here in Tucson they would have cost a bundle! Beautifully designed, and I, too, adore that color of stone. So warming, far less abrupt than the whiter tones.

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    1. I want to know where they got those big agaves in the garden of the last house. I may resort to knocking on their door.

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  6. It's nice to see a diversity of plantings from the traditional lawn with a couple of token conifers. Makes walking through different neighbourhoods so much more interesting

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    1. I love walking our neighborhood, there is so much going on here!

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  7. Tiny Tucson is a very good name for the neighborhood. Love the warm hue of the gravel – it goes so well with the house color and nicely extended into the hell strip.

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    1. And after the heat wave we've definitely achieved the temperatures to qualify! (although experiencing them for 3 days is not the same as 3 (or more) months).

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  8. i hope they've bonded and are sharing wine tours in each other's garden.

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  9. There is something about agave that absolutely draws me in .. I can't grow them here, is that it ? the total yearning for a plant I can't grow in my zone ?
    The shadow cast by the Yucca tree is beautiful !
    These gardens are gorgeously exotic to me .

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  10. Still amazes me that xeric planting and agaves in particular are being embraced as architectural and permanent planting in your area. The more the merrier!!

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  11. I too have Agave gentryi 'Jaws' in the same size as that home in Portland. Wow. I wondered what size it was when they planted it? Mine was in a 6 inch pot and after about 10 years it is that big.

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