Delightful Daleas       

Dalea bicolor var. bicolor Monterrey Blue™

The clone Monterrey Blue™ was selected out from a bunch of seedlings that Ron Gass and Greg Starr brought back from their travels in Mexico. As you might have guessed, this clone was chosen because of its outstanding deep blue flowers, which give a much-needed spot of color in the fall months. Allow plenty of room for this shrub, since it can easily fill a space from 6-8 feet tall by 5-6 feet wide. Cold hardy to 5-10 degrees F, Monterrey Blue™ is a nice addition to the Las Vegas and El Paso plant palettes. Monterrey Blue™ is deciduous, but it grows rapidly enough that you could cut it back hard in the winter, and allow it to produce fresh spring growth. Plant in full sun and well-drained soil, if possible. An added bonus to this plant is that rabbits don’t seem to care for it!!

Dalea capitata Sierra Gold™

This well-behaved ground cover grows to about 8 inches tall by 3 feet wide. Its fine-textured, light green foliage has a fresh, lemony scent. We suspect that it tastes like lemons too, because rabbits seem to avoid it! Yellow flowers carpet Sierra Gold™ in the spring and the fall. Those of you in the high deserts will be happy to know that this plant is hardy to at least 5 degrees F, but it will go deciduous in the mid-20’s. The one drawback to this plant is that white flies seem to like it, so some insecticide applications will be necessary in heavily infested areas around Phoenix. Plant in full sun for best results.

Dalea dorycnioides Cerro Azul™

This evergreen shrub grows to about 5-6 feet tall and wide, with a naturally-rounded growth habit. Cerro Azul™ was selected from a group of 100 seedlings for its showy spikes of blue-purple flowers. Now, for the exciting part… Cerro Azul™ is a winter bloomer! Flowers appear in the fall, and continue through winter and spring. While this plant prefers full sun exposures, it is tolerant of most soil types, including those with high clay contents. Greg suggests that you cut these plants back by half for the first three or four years to encourage denser growth and more flower production. Since this shrub is not bothered by rabbits, you cannot rely on them to do your pruning for you! Cerro Azul™ is hardy in Tucson, and we suspect that it will tolerate temperatures down to 10 degrees F.

Dalea frutescens Sierra Negra™
Sierra Negra™ is a fine-textured, bright green mounding shrub trademarked by Starr Nursery. It puts on a color display in the fall with masses of rose-purple flowers. Be warned that bees are very attracted to these flowers! Allow enough room for this shrub to spread out, since it can grow to 4 feet tall by 5-6 feet wide. If pruning is required, do it in late winter, as you would with the red bird of paradise. A good choice for cold areas, Sierra Negra™ is hardy to at least 0 degrees F. In the Phoenix area, Sierra Negra™ is partly deciduous, thinning out in the winter, while in colder climates it is completely deciduous. This clone tolerates reflected heat, even thriving when surrounded by asphalt in scorching Phoenix summers.

Dalea greggii

Dalea lutea Sierra Moonrise™
When Sierra Moonrise™ blooms in the late fall, the contrast between the deep green foliage and the yellow flowers is striking. In warmer areas this shrub is evergreen, but where temperatures drop to the mid-20’s, it becomes partly deciduous. We know that Sierra Moonrise™ tolerates temperatures as low as 17 degrees F, but it has not been sufficiently tested at lower temperatures. Plant Sierra Moonrise™ in full sun or part shade, and allow plenty of room, since this shrub can grow to 6 feet tall and wide. As suggested for Cerro Azul™, cut back plants by one half to two thirds in late winter to encourage dense growth and more profuse fall flowering. Rabbits do munch on this dalea when nothing else is available.

Dalea versicolor var. sessillis Mountain Delight™
The prolonged blooming period of this shrub has quickly made it a favorite for many users, since it begins in the fall and continues through early spring…another winter bloomer! Mountain Delight™ is evergreen, and a nice medium size, growing to 4 feet tall and wide. It is also well-suited to colder climates, since it is hardy to 10 degrees F. Mountain Delight™ needs good drainage, and is happy in full or filtered sun. A severe pruning in late spring will encourage dense growth.