This garden design by L. A. Peluso Designs, located in the neighborhood of Willow Glen, San Jose, qualified for a landscape rebate from the Santa Clara Valley Water District. The homeowners, originally from the south of France, wanted to feature lavender in a big way, to evoke their memory of a favorite villa. As a result, this low-water design called for six different lavenders allowing for extended bloom time and subtle color variety:  Lavandula x intermedia ‘Grappenhall,’ Lavandula x intermedia ‘Provence,” Lavandula x intermedia ‘Super,’ Lavandula x intermedia ‘Grosso,’ Lavandula angustifolia ‘Munstead,’ and Lavandula angustifolia ‘Blue Cushion.’

Gaillardia grandiflora ‘Goblin,’ also known commonly as Blanket Flower, adds a complementary pop of hot color. Autumn Royal apricot is visible in the upper left corner of the photo.

Autumn Royal and Blenheim apricot trees provide a bounty of fruit for an extended period of time, and surprisingly, still qualified as low-water plants for purposes of the landscape water rebate! (You can have your rebate, and eat it, too!–Sorry, we couldn’t resist). Shown here in the background on the right is the Blenheim apricot. Dymondia margaretae fills in between flagstones.

Thyme begins to fill in as groundcover (Creeping Thyme and Woolly Thyme).

And….voila! 🙂