Desert Willow | Chilopsis linearis

_________  Texas Native  ______

 

Desert willow 'Flor de mimbre'

Chilopsis linearis 'Flor de mimbre'

Desert willow 'Flor de mimbre'

Chilopsis linearis 'Flor de mimbre'

Desert willow 'Flor de mimbre'

Chilopsis linearis 'Flor de mimbre'

Chilopsis linearis is considered a very large shrub to small tree, 15-40 ft., slender-twigged, often with leaning, twisting trunk and open, spreading crown found naturally in the streambanks and watercourses.  The leaves are linear, many times longer than wide, with a strong central vein. Leaves are deciduous and willow-like.  Desert-willow (Chilopsis linearis) has long narrow leaves like a true willow (Salix).   Desert-willow grows  in streambanks, river banks or along watercourses in the desert called wadi, wash or arroyo. The desert-willow has adapted to desert washes, and does best with just enough water to keep it blooming and healthily green through the hot months.  The U.S.D.A. map shows it growing naturally in the mountainous  regions of the southwestern states and Mexico.

Desert-Willow Tree (Chilopsis linearis)
Texas Native

The blossom is funnel-shaped, 1-2" long, spreading at the opening into five ruffled petal-like scalloped or crenate lobes.. The flowers are irregular in shape with a gradation from light pink to purple with intense purple venation often with white or yellow and purple streaks within the throat. The catalpa-like flowers are born in terminal racemes.
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PROPAGATION.                                                        

By early autumn, the violet-scented flowers, which appear after summer rains, are replaced by slender seedpods, 6–10 inches long, which remain dangling from the branches and serve to identify the tree after the flowers are gone.  The seeds are usually highly viable with a high percentage germination rate. If you want to start desert willow from seed try planting a few in the fall, saving a few seeds for spring planting, in case a cold snap freezes the tender seedlings.

Native Texas Understory Trees, Shrubs, and Forbs

Agarito	Lime prickly-ash
Allthorn	Littleleaf sumac
Amargosa	Live oak
Anaqua	Lotebush
Blackbrush	Mountain laurel
Brasil	Narrowleaf forestiera
Catclaw	Palo verde
Cedar elm	Prickly pear
Cenizo	Retama
Coma	Shrubby blue sage
Coyotillo	Southwest bernardia
Creosotebush	Spanish dagger
Desert yaupon	Sugar hackberry
Four-wing saltbush	Tasajillo
Granjeno	Texas ebony
Guajillo	Texas kidneywood
Guayacan	Texas persimmon
Hogplum	Twisted acacia
Honey mesquite	Vine ephedra
Huisache	Whitebrush
Knife-leaf condalia	Wild olive
Lantana	Wolfberry

  

 

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©  2021 Hyden Photography

 for

~ Grassroots Horticulture ~

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The Arboretum

Desert-Willow Tree (Chilopsis linearis)
Texas Native

The Chihuly Glass Exhibit was awesome and I will share those photographs in the next post. As we walked around the Exhibit the very helpful docents would ask as I photographed the "flowers" whether I needed help. 

The plant combinations that the horticulturists selected were worth  the trip. The deep purples, especially in the evening, created negative spaces and added textures that gave the garden beds depth and dramatic interest.

Purple Elephant Ears, Coleus, Gomphrena

Purple Elephant Ear
Gomphrena

A row of weeping blue cedar and variegated liriope line the entrance.

Weeping Blue Cedar
Variegated Liriope

 Amidst the Shade

Caladium

Silver and Blue:  Blue Marlins and the Silver Trunk of Crape Myrtle

Shade Loving Plants (Mahonia) Turquoise Reeds.

Coleus and Purple Leaf Sweet Potato

American Beautyberry (Callicarpa americana) Texas Native

 The Tapioca Plant 'Variegata' (Manihot esculenta)

As you see the sun setting the tree trunks absorb and reflect the soft rays.  The Tapioca Plant 'Variegata' (Manihot esculenta) is perfectly situated to delight the eyes and pull your attention to the yellow reeds sitting at their base. Green carpet then dark purple delineates the border or edge to frame the bed. Manihot esculenta is considered a native of Brazil and Paraguay and has been cultivated and hybridized as a food plant but this variegated plant ads serpentine lines in the mass plantings.

Yellow Reeds, Chihuly Glass Exhibit
The Tapioca Plant 'Variegata' (Manihot esculenta) 

Yellow Reeds Chihuly Glass Exhibit
The Tapioca Plant 'Variegata' (Manihot esculenta)

Honey scented Blackfoot Daisy
Texas Native

A Few Xeriscape Plants

Berberis trifoliolata 'Agarita'

The Vitex foliage and flowers are a beautiful shade of green and blue

Little Round Leaf Vitex

Monk's Pepper (Vitex agnus-castus)
Native to the Mediterranean Region 

Desert- Willow Tree (Chilopsis linearis)

Texas Native

Anole

Ginkgo Biloba Tree
Female Tree with Fruit
 Fan or Duck-Feet Shaped Leaf

Gomphrena and Canna

Pride of Barbados (Caesalpinia pulcherrima)
Native to the West Indies and Tropical America 

Pride of Barbados (Caesalpinia pulcherrima)
Native to the West Indies and Tropical America

Walk down the path that curves.
                               Ethereal Spider Lily in the moonlight.

Crape Myrtles with the Beluga Glass.

What an enjoyable evening. I hope you enjoyed the photos.

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©  2020 Hyden Photography for

eGrassroots Horticulture e

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An evening at the Arboretum

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The Dallas Arboretum and Botanical Garden 

Desert-Willow Tree (Chilopsis linearis)

Texas Native

The plant combinations that the horticulturists selected were worth  the trip. The deep purples, especially in the evening, created negative spaces and added textures that gave the garden beds depth and dramatic interest.

Purple Elephant Ears, Coleus, Gomphrena

Purple Elephant Ear and
Gomphrena

A row of weeping blue cedar and variegated liriope line the entrance.

 Amidst the Shade

Silver and Blue:  Blue Marlins and the Silver Trunk of Crape Myrtle 
Shade Loving Plants (Mahonia)

Coleus, Purple Leaf Sweet Potato

American Beautyberry (Callicarpa americana) Texas Native

 The Tapioca Plant 'Variegata' (Manihot esculenta)

As you see the sun setting the tree trunks absorb and reflect the soft rays.  The Tapioca Plant 'Variegata' (Manihot esculenta) is perfectly situated to delight the eyes and pull your attention to the yellow reeds sitting at their base. Green carpet then dark purple delineates the border or edge to frame the bed. Manihot esculenta is considered a native of Brazil and Paraguay and has been cultivated and hybridized as a food plant but this variegated plant ads serpentine lines in the mass plantings.

Yellow Reeds, Chihuly Glass Exhibit
The Tapioca Plant 'Variegata' (Manihot esculenta) 

Yellow Reeds Chihuly Glass Exhibit

The Tapioca Plant 'Variegata' (Manihot esculenta)

Honey scented Blackfoot Daisy
Texas Native

A Few Xeriscape Plants

Berberis trifoliolata 'Agarita'

The Vitex foliage and flowers are a beautiful shade of green and blue

Little Round Leaf Vitex

Monk's Pepper (Vitex agnus-castus)
Native to the Mediterranean Region 

Desert- Willow Tree 
(Chilopsis linearis)

Texas Native

Anole

Ginkgo Tree

Ginkgo Biloba Tree
Female Tree with Fruit
 Fan or Duck-Feet Shaped Leaf

Gomphrena and Canna

Pride of Barbados (Caesalpinia pulcherrima)
Native to the West Indies and Tropical America 

Pride of Barbados 
(Caesalpinia pulcherrima)
Native to the West Indies and Tropical America

Walk down the path that curves.

Ethereal Spider Lily in the moonlight.

Giant Spider Lily, Hymenocallis 'Tropical Giant

Crape Myrtles with the Beluga Glass.

What an enjoyable evening. I hope you enjoyed the photos.

Hyden Photography

 for 

Grassroots Horticulture

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