Apache Plume Shines in Dry Gardens

Virtues: Apache plume is a deer- and rabbit-resistant, drought-tolerant western shrub. Its visual appeal lies in its white flowers and feathery pink seed heads.

Common name: Apache plume

Botanical name: Fallugia paradoxa

Exposure: Full sun

Season: Spring through summer, for flowers and seed heads.

Flowers: Simple white flowers open for a long period, beginning in late spring. As new flowers open, mature blossoms go to seed, becoming fluffy pink seed heads that give this low shrub a cloud-like appearance.

Foliage: The leaves are small and green with slivery undersides.

Habit: Semi-evergreen shrub growing 2 to 6 feet tall and wide.

Origins: Fallugia paradoxa is native to rocky slopes and dry washes of the southwestern United States into northern Mexico.

How to grow Apache plume: Site in full sun and poor or average soil with excellent drainage. It is highly drought tolerant. It will spread by seed when happy. USDA Zones 4–9.

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