Reason 1: Perfect weather almost year round, (not counting the 12 weeks of triple-digit heat).
Having nice mild winters and springs means you can grow plants that most eastern and northern gardeners cannot. I can leave dahlia bulbs in the ground all year. Never have to worry about a deep freeze.
Reason 2: You can grow about anything in the desert.
I have found only a very few plants I could not grow because of the heat. Everything I plant grows and seems to thrive. Iris bulbs do not have bugs eating away at the roots, and the blooms are huge!
Reason 3: No bugs! No blackspot!
When you live in an area that does not have blackspot you can grow organically, no spray no chemicals ever! Most eastern gardeners cannot grow Tea Roses, as they will die out in the winter. They love the heat. The above picture is the lovely Francis Dubreuil, old garden tea rose. The smell is delightful and the bush is in constant bloom all year round in Las Vegas
Reason 4: Roses love the Heat!
For some reason, my roses just love the warm heat. For the few weeks of extreme triple digit temperatures they will stop blooming and practically go dormant, but as the temperatures start dropping in late September, they start back up where they left off. Eglantine above.
Reason 5: Plant once, never plant again!
The above picture of Stock has bloomed almost continuously for 2 years. I throw out hollyhock seeds, gaillardia seeds, phlox, herbs, marigolds, Nicotiana and about 45 other mixed seeds, everything grows and comes back year after year. No such thing as an annual in Las Vegas, once plant it is there to stay.
Reason 6: Gardening for Dummies!
Do you have bad knees, bad back, can't bend, can't dig, no problem, throw your seeds out in your bed and water, they will grow and grow and grow! If you have caliche dirt you will have to add some cheap bags of compost or cow manure to prepare the soil, but the main ingredient is water it will grow.
