Arizona Gardening

Hi, nice to find an Arizona board!

It's looking as if I'll be a newcomer in Arizona in a few months so... I'm wondering about gardening in that desert state. Is it cactus & yucca from here on out? If not, will many/any other types of plants survive the summer heat? Thanks for any replies! :)

<Is it cactus & yucca from here on out?>

Not at all. I've grown a small variety of plants out here, usually ones that produce edible fruits or vegetables (carrots, green beans, potatoes, tomatoes, strawberries, grapes, etc), with great success.

I have a friend that works at a nursery, and he tells me that plants don't mind they heat, they just don't like to be dry. And, of course, heat tends to dry things out more quickly, so you'll need to take more care to make sure that the soil stays moist and the plant doesn't dry out.

You can find citrus trees all over the place. When I was younger, I even had a neighbor that had an apple tree in their backyard.

Thanks so much for your reply. Citrus trees, yes. I've noticed that comes up often in the real estate mags. Would be great to have one of those!

Sure am glad to hear that you've had success with vegetables. I suppose you can (or maybe have to) set them out in the spring months. How about avocados -- know anyone growing those?

I can see

teehee

I suppose you can (or maybe have to) set them out in the spring months.

That depends on what it is. When I buy a package of seeds, it usually has a US map across the back that is color-coded, and each color indicates the best time of year to plant the seed.

How about avocados -- know anyone growing those?

Nope.. but it can be done. The key is to protect them from winter frosts. While it rarely snows in Phoenix (I think the last time was around 1987, and we got about 1/100th of an inch), it does go below 32F degrees in the winter, and frost does form on plants. Also, water frequently in small amounts to keep the roots moist but not to flood the group often.

The tree should be located where the water can drain easily, like in loose, almost silty sand, dirt. It should be irrigated on occasion to clear away some of the salts and push them down into the soil below the relatively shallow roots. An adult tree could use about one pound of nitrogen per year, but much less for a young tree. Young trees could use a small application of fertilizer every month or so.

If you decide to grow an avocado tree, let us know how it works!

<I can see

teehee

I'm not familiar with any.

snip

Dave is an authority on gardening. If what I post and what he posts are in conflict, then believe him instead of me :-).

Okay Nick, thanks! :)

And thank you for replying to the thread, Dave. I can't help but wonder why avocados do well in other warm states like FL and CA, the dryness maybe... Anyway, that's great to hear that some of my other favorites actually do quite well there, e.g. pecans, pistachios, figs.

LOL, I thought it was a plus to be 'able' to plant more than once a year. I've been doing some reading, and the authors suggested planting perennials out in the fall to winter over so they have a stronger root system in the spring. What I'm not sure of is whether they will live through summer or not (?).

Well your partly rite about the avocado, you see it is too hot here, too cold here and too dry here for them...They are a true tropical..Likes the humid weather of fla. and s. cal..Plus I had 28 degrees at my house two weeks ago..I think it totally killed one of my ficus trees, that would surly be a death toll for most avocados...But yes there are tons of perennials here, alot are available year round but alot are here for sale only in the spring. Gardeners here are so excited about annuals in the fall and the great blast of color you get from them until mid April, so they tend to foget about other stuff..The nurseries carry what sells well for that time of year....