Autumn Stonecrop is the September superstar that explodes into pink flower clusters just when your garden needs it most. This drought-tough succulent provides late-season butterfly fuel and extends the garden party well into fall.
This is a weird rose. It’s happy in shade, and never gets larger than about five feet tall. So it’s sometimes known as a Dwarf Rose or a Little Wood Rose.
Crimson Pygmy Barberry delivers intense burgundy-red color in a perfectly compact package that never needs a size upgrade. This thorny little powerhouse provides consistent color, wildlife habitat, and low-maintenance beauty.
Rose Glow Barberry is the color-changing thorny beauty that shifts from burgundy-pink spring foliage to brilliant fall oranges and reds. This adaptable shrub provides security, wildlife habitat, and year-round visual interest.
Big Blue Sea Holly is the spiky alien beauty with metallic blue stems and thistle-like flowers that thrives in tough conditions. This architectural perennial provides long-lasting blooms, drought tolerance, and otherworldly garden appeal.
Black Mondo Grass is the gothic rebel that ditched green for dramatic dark foliage and never looked back. This lily family member creates stunning contrasts in any garden while maintaining its year-round dark aesthetic complete with purple flowers and black berries.
Blazing Star Liatris sends up dramatic purple rockets that bloom from top to bottom and drive butterflies absolutely wild. This prairie tough native provides vertical drama while handling drought and poor soil like a champion.
Bronze Sedge is the hair model of the grass world with flowing bronze-green leaves that dance in every breeze. This Pacific Northwest native provides year-round texture, warm color, and graceful movement in challenging spots.
Camas is the blue wildflower that creates spectacular meadow displays while carrying thousands of years of Pacific Northwest cultural history. This native bulb provides crucial early pollinator food and authentic regional character.
Catmint is the purple powerhouse that blooms reliably from spring through fall while naturally deterring deer with its aromatic foliage. This low-maintenance perennial provides non-stop color and attracts beneficial pollinators.
Coppertips is the desert gem that glows with burnished copper-colored new growth throughout the growing season. This California native combines stunning metallic foliage with drought tolerance and low-maintenance beauty.
So let’s get a few things straight. This is not the same cranberry that produces the refreshing red juice or the sauce that goes with your Thanksgiving turkey.
Creeping Raspberry is the overachieving ground cover that spreads beautifully while producing edible orange-red berries. This Pacific Northwest native provides erosion control, wildlife habitat, and snacks all in one attractive package.
Our pine is a bit lazy. If we don’t prop it up, it will turn into a blob. The sprawling crazy beast is exactly like other pines in that it grows quickly: about a foot a year.
Golden Lemon Thyme is the edible carpet that releases sunshine-scented fragrance with every step while creating a shimmering golden-green ground cover. This multi-purpose herb handles foot traffic and drought while attracting beneficial pollinators.
Hot Lips Salvia is the two-toned tease that produces red and white bicolor flowers while changing its color ratio with the seasons. This compact, drought-tolerant performer blooms non-stop and drives hummingbirds absolutely wild.
Japanese Andromeda is the elegant evergreen that maintains perfect composure year-round before exploding into cascading spring bell flowers. This sophisticated shrub provides structure, fragrance, and seasonal drama in one polished package.
Kelsey Dogwood is the compact showstopper that delivers four seasons of beauty in a perfectly sized package. From spring flowers to fall color to winter's bright red stems, this dwarf dogwood never stops performing.
Little Bunny Grass is the adorable ornamental that delivers fluffy, rabbit-tail seed heads and gentle movement in a perfectly compact package. This charming fountain grass adds texture and whimsy without overwhelming its neighbors.
Lowfast Cotoneaster is the overachieving ground cover that spreads fast, stays low, and transforms into a fall color spectacular. This reliable performer covers difficult spots while providing brilliant autumn foliage and bird-attracting red berries.
The blossoms on this shrub look an awful lot like orange or lemon blossoms, and they smell rather like citrus as well. Mock Orange is a spectacular combination of fragrance and stunning good looks.
It can sometimes be difficult to distinguish these green woody native shrubs from each other, but Oceanspray simplifies things. Look for leaves that are fairly dark green on one side, and much lighter green on the other.
Oregon Stonecrop is the yellow sunshine spreader that creates brilliant star-flower displays while thriving in the toughest rocky conditions. This native succulent stores water, spreads naturally, and provides months of cheerful color.
Many layers of papery bark give this hardy shrub its distinctive name. Of the native plants on the median, the Ninebark has one of the largest range in the wild.
Pineapple Sage is the edible beauty that fills your garden with pineapple fragrance while producing brilliant red hummingbird magnets in fall. This tender perennial combines incredible scent, gorgeous flowers, and culinary uses in one amazing package.
Pink Chintz Thyme is the woolly wonder that creates the softest, most touchable ground cover crowned with masses of delicate pink flowers. This fuzzy Mediterranean native combines incredible texture with drought tolerance and aromatic appeal.
The common name for this lavender, Platinum Blonde, refers to the unusual, striking light foliage on this lavender. Look closer for a moment and you’ll see it’s also variegated, or a mixture of light and dark on the same leaves.
Purple Rock Rose is the magenta marvel that combines knockout color with Mediterranean toughness for months of vibrant blooms. This drought-loving shrub thrives in challenging conditions while producing waves of papery pink flowers.
Red Hot Poker sends up flaming torch-like flower spikes that create a gradient of orange and red colors irresistible to hummingbirds. This drought-tolerant perennial provides months of dramatic vertical interest and nectar for beneficial wildlife.
Red Currant is the edible ornamental that produces clusters of ruby-red berries perfect for gourmet cooking while providing four seasons of landscape beauty. This adaptable shrub combines spring flowers, summer harvest, and fall color.
Russian Sage is the silver-blue dreamer that blooms for months while handling drought conditions that would defeat lesser plants. This aromatic subshrub creates ethereal clouds of lavender flowers above shimmering foliage.
Spreading Phlox is the floral carpet bomber that creates dense mats of needle-like foliage before exploding into solid carpets of spring flowers. This over-eager spreader solves slope problems while providing spectacular seasonal color.
This Flamingo Heather works hard to avoid disappointment. What other plant has foliage that is hues of red, pink, and green, as a bakground for pink flowers?
If you’re wondering if this shrub is defined partly by what it is not, namely short or small, you’d be right. There is also a Low Oregon Grape (Mahonia nervosa), and we really should get some on the median.
Victoria California Lilac explodes into clouds of electric blue flowers that transform spring gardens into botanical fireworks shows. This compact California native provides spectacular blooms, drought tolerance, and valuable habitat for pollinators.
White Rock Rose is the Mediterranean charmer that produces clouds of delicate white flowers while laughing at drought conditions. This low-maintenance shrub blooms continuously from spring through summer in even the toughest garden spots.
Winter Heather 'Furzey' is the shape-shifting beauty with pink bell flowers that gradually turn purple throughout winter and spring. This compact evergreen provides months of color-changing drama when most plants are still dormant.
Wood Spurge is the chartreuse charmer that creates glowing yellow-green displays in challenging shade where other perennials fear to tread. This evergreen performer provides months of bright color and reliable ground cover.
