Heather's Front Yard — Built for Heat

Heather's Portland front yard skips the lawn entirely in favor of agaves, mangaves, and a palm anchoring the whole composition — high-drama, low-water, and striking year-round. A mass planting of Pennisetum spathiolatum serves as a hedge, tough and handsome enough to be worth stealing for another garden.

The tour covers a sotol that blooms once every five years, an agave collection built on repetition rather than variety, and the honest trade-offs of growing plants that pup freely. It closes with a preview of Heather's backyard — an entirely different garden, just a few steps away.

Watch Heather's backyard tour:

More front yard gardens without grass.

For more ideas on planning a low-water front yard read this blog post.