A fast-growing, desert-adapted shrub covered in clusters of bright yellow, trumpet-shaped flowers from spring into fall. It thrives in full sun and heat, draws hummingbirds, and brings long-season color to low-water landscapes across the Valley.
Living with it in the Phoenix Valley
Watering
Follow the shrub schedule in our Landscape Care guide. It is drought tolerant once established, but regular summer water brings more growth and more flowers. Avoid heavy, soggy soil, where root rot can be a problem.
Pruning
Cut back hard in late winter or early spring, once frost danger has passed, to remove cold damage and renew dense growth and flowers. Snip off seed pods if you prefer a tidier look.
Cold
Freezes in the mid-20s brown the leaves and stem tips. It recovers quickly once warm weather returns.
Pests
In wet monsoon years, a leaf-skeletonizing caterpillar can chew the upper growth in late summer. The damage is cosmetic; prune off the affected stems.
How our designers use it
Long-season color
It keeps blooming through the heat when many shrubs pause, giving a reliable splash of yellow from spring into fall.
Hummingbird gardens
The tubular flowers draw hummingbirds, and our designers like it where it can be seen from a window or patio.
Backdrop and screen
Its height makes it a colorful background along walls, or a loose screen beside patios and ramadas.
Good to know
Around the pool
Expect moderate litter from spent flowers and seed pods, and the blooms attract bees. Keep it set back from the water.
