Coffeeberry is a great candidate for that hard-to-fill niche of an evergreen native shrub that also attracts birds and pollinators; is drought tolerant, deer resistant, and fire resistant; and even makes a good hedge or screen. In fact, it may well be the only plant that fills that niche!

Coffeeberry is a west coast native; occurring from southern Oregon all the way south into Baja California. It gets its common name from its fruit: berries that change from green to red to almost black over the course of the year. The flowers are inconspicuous (although pollinators notice them just fine) but the birds definitely notice the colorful berries.

Rhamnus makes a great hedge, usually growing at a medium rate to 6-8' tall and wide, with the potential to get larger in more wooded areas. The named variety 'Eve Case’ has broader and brighter, green foliage and will stay a bit more compact at 4-8' wide and tall. Its leaves are long and pointed and are a matte green with a paler underside.

Coffeeberry prefers full sun but can also be happy in part shade or a more wooded garden. In the Rogue Valley, it can tolerate the heat and most soils, although it prefers a sandy, well-draining soil. This is truly a drought-tolerant plant - once established, it can survive on no irrigation. To keep it more fire resistant, though, we recommend giving it a deep soak every two weeks during the summer months. We have found Coffeeberry to be deer resistant in most situations, especially once established. Deer may have a tendency to chew the new growth, but will leave plants alone when they get some size on them.

If you are new to growing native plants, this is a great plant to start with. Try it out to see how easy, attractive, and sustainable native plants can be in your garden!

These amazingly tough roses provide us with intoxicatingly fragrant flowers; long lasting, vitamin-rich rose hips; interesting leaf texture - as well as drought tolerance, disease resistance, and deer resistance. They’ll even grow and bloom in partial shade. Why would you ever plant any other rose? 

Rugosa roses were originally wild roses native to Asia, but they’ve been cultivated and naturalized in many parts of the world. Both varieties we carry (see below) will grow to about 5’ to 7’ tall and wide and will spread by runners, making them a good barrier or hedge plant. Rugosas also look great in a mixed border, especially because they don't need the extra care of sprays that most other roses need. Flowers come in single or double petaled forms and range in color from deep magenta pink to red to pure white and yellows. Once established, rugosa roses only need an occasional soak and prefer full sun, although they will do fine in part sun.

 Here are the two varieties of rugosa roses Shooting Star Nursery carries regularly:

Alba: Big white single flowers – up to 3.5” across - with yellow tufted stamens sit atop deep green, quilted leaves. These lovely, bushy plants are known for their hardiness and tolerance to salt sea conditions. Fat round bright red hips give a bonus of fall color, providing food for local wildlife. Flowers to 3.5” across. Moderate fragrance. American Rose Society rating of 9.2 - out of a possible 10 points.

Hansa: Raspberry-purple, semi-double flowers with a wonderful fragrance (shown above). Great for barrier plantings in cold climates, extremely hardy, large abundant rose hips. ARS rating 8.4 - out of a possible 10 points.

 Fun fact: Rugosas have also been called “sea tomato roses” because of their large orange to bright-red rose hips that appear in fall and last throughout the winter; providing a great source of nourishment for overwintering birds like robins, cedar waxwings, and hermit thrushes. The rose hips are prized by humans too – they’re a great source of Vitamin C and a popular ingredient in tea blends.

The 'Vanderwolf' Pine has proven itself a good conifer choice for a hot, dry spot; one that won't get too large and has soft, two-toned needles. This western North American native Pine can tolerate our dry, hot summers and wet winters.

Well drained soil, including dry, rocky hillsides, will help it tolerate those conditions even better. We have especially been attracted to it because it doesn't have the scratchy quality of most conifers, you can get close to it and enjoy the soft blue and green needles. 'Vanderwolf' has a more open habit than some other sheared looking conifers when young but gets denser with age and can be used as an effective screen, a specimen position, or looks great in groups of three.

It is difficult to pin down a mature size on the 'Vanderwolf' but it is slower growing so it is useful in smaller spaces. It can get 20-25' tall and 10-15' wide but it seems to get taller more quickly than it gets wide. Like most pines, it only needs occasional watering once established and this variety is more disease and pest resistant than some other pine species. Also, like most pines, Vanderwolf's Pine is deer resistant.

Holly may seem a bit pedestrian of a choice for a plant of the week, but it fits the season and the red berries brighten up these gray fall days. Plus 'Blue Girl' Holly is deer resistant (although in Ashland, the deer are ignoring this advice), drought tolerant, tough, and can tolerate sun or shade.

The glossy dark green leaves do have spines but they are not as sharp as many other holly types or even barberry. The leaves look fresh and clean and are complimented by purple stems and bright clusters of red berries. You can keep this holly around 3'-4' if you like with occasional pruning or let it get 5-6' tall and 3-6' wide for a dense hedge. You do need a  'Blue Boy' to keep the berry production up, but it seems that there is usually a holly bush in the neighborhood to assist with pollination. This species is especially cold hardy and can handle clay soils, appreciating the typically acidic pH of clay soils.

Keep watering to the drier side of the spectrum, and prune back if needed in the winter. 'Blue Girl' Holly is not a fast grower, so it is a good choice for growing in a container paired with other festive-colored plants, like Heuchera, Nandina, and ornamental grasses.

If your only exposure to Rockroses has been the Orchid Rockrose (Cistus purpurea), which can get a bit rangy and raggedy after a few years, you are in for a real treat!

There are some spectacular varieties of Rockrose on the market, and these plants easily fill that challenging niche of a drought-tolerant, deer resistant, evergreen shrub with showy blooms. They do require well-drained soil - not too fertile is best - and minimal summer water once established.

Cistus are native to the Mediterraneas region and thrive in our hot, dry summers and mild, wet winters. They do especially well on a slope or rocky hillside with well-drained soil. Make sure they are placed in a location that gets winter sun. Rockroses look great as a mass groundcover (they usually are wider than tall) or mixed in a drought tolerant bed of lavenders, rosemaries, Ceanothus and other Meditteranean plants. Each individual flower doesn't last long but they bloom successively over many weeks. They don't tolerate heavy pruning, just annual tip pruning to keep them compact.

Here are some of our favorites:

Cistus skanbergii - A beautiful little groundcover Cistus. And abundance of soft pink 1" wide flowers are complemented by gray-green leaves. Low, broad habit- 3' tall and up to 8' wide.

Cistus 'Blanche'- a large shrub in habit and bloom.  Ours have grown well over 5' tall and about 4' wide in 4 years.  Seems to be more upright than wide with an especially resinous and scented medium green leaf.  Needs some tip pinching to keep dense but has a nice habit for a large hedge.  Extra large white blooms with yellow center.  Seems to be one of the most deer resistant because of its resinous leaves.

Cistus ladanifer maculatus- Crimson Spot Rockrose - shown above.  White petals with crimson spot at base.  Rounded habit to at least 4'x4' and dark green leaf.

Cistus 'Sunset'- Another good rockrose for groundcover. 'Sunset' will spread at least 4-5' wide and stay 18"-2' tall, with bright magenta flowers on sage green/silver foliage.  Great contrast and long blooming.