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Common Plants in Coachella Valley

If you’re new to gardening in Coachella Valley, you may not know which plants you have. While we can’t identify all of the plants (there are too many), we have picked out a selection of very common plants, identified by their water needs.

Once you know what kind of plant it is, you can use our irrigation guides to figure out how long you should be watering each zone in your yard.

To download the whole poster as one big graphic, click here.

Side note: some plants we commonly see here are actually invasive species. If you don’t already know what this means or want to know what to look for, read about local invasive species.

Low Water Plants (Necesitan un poco de agua)

Desert-adapted plants to have smaller leaves, which are often needle like or waxy, and frequently grayish in color.

Plantas adaptadas al desierto tienden a tener hojas mas pequeñas, que a menudo son similares a agujas o cerosas y con frecuencia de color grisáceo.

EnglishSpanishBotanical
Trees / ArbolesAcacia
Little Leaf Ash
Palo Verde
White Bark Acacia
Mesquite
Ironwood
Huisache
Fresno
Palo Verde
Palo Blanco
Mesquite
Arbol de Hierro
Acacia fraxiana
Fraxinus greggii
Parkensonia spp.
Acacia willaridana
Prosopis spp.
Olnea tesota
Shrubs / ArbustosCassia
Red Yucca
Brittlebush
Coral Fountain
Trumpet Flower
Texas Ranger
Cassia
Yucca Rojo
El Incienso
Fuente Coral
Flor de Trumpeta
Palo Cenizo
Senna spp.
Hesperaloe parviflora
Encelia farinosa
Russellia equisitiformis
Tecoma stans
Leucophylum spp.
Cactus &
Succulents / Succulentas
Agave
Golden Barrel Cactus
Yucca
Paddle Cactus
Desert Spoon
Ocotillo
Maguey
El Asiento de Suegra
Yucca
Nopal
Sotol
Ocotillo
Agave spp.
Echinocactus grussonnii
Yucca rostrata
Opuntia spp.
Dasylirion wheeleri
Fouquieria splendens

Medium Water Plants (Necesitan Mas Agua)

Plants that come from other regions need more water than our desert-friendly choices.

Las plantas que vienen de otras regiones necesitan más agua que nuestras opciones de plantas amigables al desierto.

EnglishSpanishBotanical
Trees / ArbolesOrchid Tree
Olive
Palm
Blue Trumpet Tree
Pepper Tree
Mediterranean Fan Palm
Pata de Vaca
Olivos
Palmera de Abanico
Flamboyan Azul
Pirul
Palmito
Bauhinia spp.
Olea spp.
Washingtonia filifera
Jacaranda mimosifolia
Schinus molle
Chamaerops humilis
Shrubs / ArbustosMock Orange
Deer Grass
Bougainvillea
Lantana
Sago Palm
Bird of Paradise
Celindas
Hierba de Ciervo
Bugambilia
Lantana
Palma de Sagu
Poinciana
Pittosporum tobira
Muhlenbergia spp.
Bougainvillea spp.
Lantana spp.
Cycas revoluta
Caesalpinia pulcherrima
Perennials /
Plantas Perennes
Day Lily
Lily of the Nile
African Daisy
Sage
Beardtongue
Mexican Petunia
Lirio de día
Agapando
La Gazania
Salvia
Las Campanitas
Ruellia
Hemerocallis spp.
Agapanthus orientalis
Gazania spp.
Salvia spp.
Penstemon eatonii
Ruellia spp.

High Water Plants

Plants that come from tropical regions in South America or Asia, or those bearing fruit, often require a great deal of water.

Las plantas que provienen de regiones tropicales de América del Sur y Asia, o que tienen fruto, a menudo requieren una gran cantidad de agua.

EnglishSpanishBotanical
Trees &
Shrubs /
Arboles &
Arbustos
Indian Laurel
California Sycamore
Crape Myrtle
Rose of Sharon
Pink Powder Puff

Roses
Ficus
Sicomoros
Banaba
La Jamaica
Soplo de Polvo Rosado
Rosa
Ficus nitida
Platanus racemosa
Lagerstroemia indica
Hibiscus spp.
Calliandra haematocephala
Rosa spp.
Annuals /
Las Annuales
Pansy
Snapdragon
Zinnia
Petunia
Chrysanthemum
Geranium
Pensamiento
Peritos
La Zinnia
La Petunia
Crisantemo
Geranios
Viola tricolor spp.
Antirrhinum majus
Zinnia spp.
Petunia x atkinsiana
Dendranthema spp.
Pelargonium spp.
Fruit Trees &
Vegetables /
Los Arboles
Frutas y Vegetales
Citrus
Green beans
Tomato
Grapes
Lettuce
Apricots
Citrus
Judías verdes
Tomate
Uvas
Lechuga
Albaricoque
Citrus spp.
Green Vegetables
Tomatoes
Vine Fruits
Leafy Greens
Stone Fruits

If you can’t find your plant here (very possible, this is a relatively tiny sample), there are some additional resources to try:

  • Lush & Efficient — a desert gardener’s staple, this book is available from your local water district. They tend to give them away for free at community events (like ours), but you can buy one any time. If you’re familiar with Sunset Western Gardens, this is a desert-centric version. You can find a digital version at the Coachella Valley Water District’s website.
  • Seek (an app on your phone) which uses your camera to detect a plant and make recommendations. We find it’s okay at matching plants, but it’s big brother, iNaturalist, is better. Get download links for Seek at iNaturalist.org.
  • iNaturalist (an app on your phone and a website) is “Citizen Science” at its best. You upload photos you take to help you identify the plant you’re looking at and even if the tools can’t figure it out, a person might. iNaturalist also includes Insects, Snakes, Fungus, Molds, Birds, and Butterflies! Visit iNaturalist to discover your local ecosystem and download the app.
  • Sidebar: if you like identifying things this way, you can get Merlin for birds! This is put out by the Cornell Bird Lab and includes both visual and auditory bird identification. Check out the Merlin page at allaboutbirds.org to get download links.
  • DesertStrawHouse Nursery has a great plant list with photos, too.