| Picture | Plant Name | Botanical Name | Plant Description |
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| Beavertail Cactus | Opuntia basilaris | Bristly succulent with gray-green, fleshy, flattened pads. Small needles are tinted red. Bright pink flowers bloom in spring. Prefers light soils and and little water once established. |
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| Grizzly Bear Pricklypear Cactus | Opuntia erinacea | Clump forming spiny cactus with bluish-green stems. Short spines grow 1 to 3 per cluster. Showy pink, yellow, bronze, or violet bowl-shaped flowers grow on the previous year's growth followed by spiny green fruit. Plant in well-drained soils. Do not overwater. Tolerates brief periods of 10°F but prefers lows of 45-50°F. |
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| Hopley's Purple Oregano | Origanum laevigatum 'Hopleys' | Erect herbaceous perennial with woody base grown primarily for its ornamental value. Dark green leaves are borne on purple-red stems and though aromatic are not as useful for culinary purposes as O. vulgare. Clusters of pink flowers with dark purple bracts are grown in mid to late-summer and into fall. Grow in well-drained soils. Tolerant of drought. |
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| Kent Beauty Oregano | Origanum 'Kent Beauty' | Trailing semi-evergreen perennial. Not reliably winter hardy. Grown primarily for ornamental and not culinary purposes. Bright green leaves are aromatic but not to the same degree as culinary oregano. Pink hop-like flowers bloom beginning in June continuing into the early-fall. Drought and heat tolerant. |
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| Missouri Evening Primrose | Oenothera macrocarpa | A vigorous perennial with trailing, hairy, often red-tinted stems branching from a central root. Large bright yellow blossoms open up to 4" in diameter in the early evening. Useful as a ground cover. Prolific self seeder and if conditions are right, may become somewhat invasive and require control. |
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| Oakleaf Sumac | Rhus aromatica | A native deciduous shrub that grows 4-6 feet tall and forms large clumps. Deep green summer foliage assumes a brillant bronze-red color in fall. Spikes of edible red fruit develop in late summer. Berries can be used to make a lemonade-like drink. Branches were used by some Native American tribes to make baskets. Very cold hardy and drought resistant. Also known as squawbush or skunkbrush. |
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| Ocean Pacific Iris | Iris 'Ocean Pacific' | Upright growing perennial with fragrant flowers. Deep blue blossoms appear in spring for a short time. Attractive lance-shaped leaves are deer resistant. Will tolerate some drought but performs best with adequate water. |
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| Oceanspray | Holodiscus discolor | Deciduous shrub native to the western United States including California, Utah, Oregon and Idaho. Grows in rocky areas and dry soils but can handle moist soils. Fragrant clusters of white flowers resembling spray or mist bloom in spring to summer. |
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| Old Gold Juniper | Juniperus × pfitzeriana 'Old Gold' | Mounding evergreen shrub. Scale-like leaves are yellow when new turning more green with age. Tolerates poor soils and difficult situations. Requires no additional water once established and very little maintenance. |
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| Old Man's Bones | Sedum divergens | Very-low growing succulent perennial. Light-green, rounded leaves tinted red form small mounds resembling small bonesor curls. Small pink flowers bloom in late-summer. Best planted in rock gardens in an easy-to-see spot. Plant in well-drained soils. May be hard to find. |
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| Orange Butterfly Weed | Asclepias tuberosa | Tuberous perennial wildflower native to North America. Grows in clumps of branched stems with lance-shaped leaves. Clusters of bright orange flowers grow in the summer months. Flowers turn to spindle-shaped seed pods which split and release silky tailed seeds. Does not transplant well. Grows best from seed and left alone once established. Tolerates drought and poor soils. Attracts butterflies. |
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| Orange Carpet Fire Chalice | Zauschneria californica subsp. garrettii 'Orange Carpet' | Low-growing herbaceous perennial. Plant Select winner for 2001. Unlike other hummingbird flowers, this one is more compact. Bright red-orange tubular flowers bloom throughout the summer. Attracts hummingbirds. Requires moderate amounts of water. Good choice for planting over rock walls. |
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| Orange Meadowbrite Coneflower | Echinacea 'Art's Pride' | New hybrid coneflower with bright orange flowers and slender petals with dark green-orange centers. Dark green leaves are lance-shaped and forms mounds. Makes an excellent cut flower. Attracts butterflies and other wildlife. Once established it can handle short periods of drought but performs best with adequate water. |
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| Oranges and Lemons Blanketflower | Gaillardia 'Oranges and Lemons' | Large peachy-orange flowers with yellow tips and golden centers grow on a clump of bluish-green foliage. Very versatile in the garden but prefers full-sun and does well in hot and dry locations. Excellent choice for providing bright summer color in the garden. |
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| Oregano | Origanum vulgare | Rhizomatous perennial primarily cultivated for culinary purposes. Light green pungent aromatic leaves grow on upright stems. Abundant tiny white-pink flowers bloom in late-summer to fall. Leaves may be cut and dried any time to be used to add flavor to food. Easy to grow. Plant in well-drained soil and avoid overwatering. |
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| Ornamental Onion | Allium giganteum | Bulbous ornamental perennial onion. The largest of the ornamental onions. Forms light green strap-like basal leaves up to 3 feet long. Bears dense umbels of about 50 star-shaped purple flowers. Leaves die after bloom, simply remove and wait for the next year. Plant bulbs 9-12 inches apart in clumps for the best effect. |
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| Osage Orange | Maclura pomifera | Medium sized deciduous tree native to the central and south United States. Despite its name, it is not actually related to oranges but rather belongs in the fig family. The wood is dense and prized for tool making and was used by the Osage tribes of Native Americans to make bows. The leaves are ovate and shiny dark green. The branches are covered with long thorns and the bark is deeply rigged and slightly orange. Produces a large fruit, usually 5 or 6 inches in diameter only if male and female trees are present. The fruit is actually composed of multiple densely concentrated fruits. It is inedible and bleeds milky sap when punctured but may be used as a decoration when dried. The tree tolerates drought but prefers adequate water. It is also tolerant of heat, wind and a variety of soil conditions. |
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| Overdam Feather Reed Grass | Calamagrostis x acutiflora 'Overdam' | Mid-sized grass very similar to Karl Foerster Feather Reed Grass. The main difference being the pale yellow margins and stripes, that fade to pink-flushed white with age on the leaf blades. Produces a purplish brown seed head, turning grayish pink in fall. Prefers full sun. A very showy, attractive ornamental grass. |
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| Plains Pricklypear Cactus | Opuntia polycantha | Cold hardy, perennial cactus. Forms rounded clumps with large fleshy stems and numerous spines. Produces large yellow flowers in May to June. Do not overwater. |
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| Tree Cholla | Opuntia imbricata | Large, tree-like cactus that purportedly reaches 8 feet in parts of its natural habitat. Long, tubular stems with many sharp spines that can puncture gloves. The stem pieces of the tree cholla are different from other chollas in that they don't detach as easily. cup-shaped magenta flowers bloom in late-spring to early summer. |
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