Sonoran Desert Shrubs

Desert Hackberry

• Desert hackberry (Celtis pallida) is a thorny, dense shrub that makes a good screening plant. It will go deciduous during drought and cold weather, but if you provide some summer irrigation it will stay green longer and grow faster. This shrub has inconspicuous flowers in the spring, which produce tiny red berries in the summer that birds love. Birds also use this shrub for nesting, as its dense branching and leaf cover make it an ideal, secure place to raise their young. Use desert hackberry on the perimeter of your landscaping where you will not have to worry about pruning.

Whitethorn Acacia

• The whitethorn acacia (Acacia constricta) is one of two native acacias that can be a shrub or tree. It is slow growing, so it will stay in shrub form for many years. The whitethorn has long thorns that are sometimes white, but not always, and sometimes the plant has no thorns at all. This is a drought tolerant shrub that can grow into tree size up to 15 feet tall and wide, but in most cases makes a 3-foot-tall and wide plant. Use whitethorn acacia in areas where non-deciduous plants will hide its bare branches, and it goes dormant during the winter. The yellow puffball flowers in late spring have a sweet fragrance.

Catclaw Acacia

• The catclaw acacia (Acacia greggii) is another acacia shrub that in ideal conditions can reach 15 feet tall and wide. However, it is most commonly in shrub form. This plant has hooked thorns much like a cat's claw, so plant these on the perimeter of your property so you do not have to prune. The catclaw acacia also has yellow puffball flowers that are sometimes fragrant.

Fairy Duster

• Fairy Duster (Calliandra eriophylla) is a hardy small shrub with pink flowers in the spring and again in the fall. This shrub reaches about 3 feet tall and wide, and provides food for quail, doves and desert rodents. The flowers also attract hummingbirds. This is an excellent shrub for a native landscape because of these attributes.

Four-Wing Saltbush

• The four-wing saltbush (Atriplex canescens) is so named for its winged seed pods that have four wings. It is a large shrub, growing to 6 feet tall. It is evergreen, and unlike most desert plants it is thornless. The saltbush makes a good screening plant, and provides food for quail, doves and other birds and mammals.