Isabela Merced may be making headlines for her role in The Last of Us, but I'm more distracted by her yard, or more specifically, her clever drought-tolerant planting.
The actress has filled her borders with striking Yucca plants, most of which bring a tropical touch and bold structural interest to her yard. The best part? Her technique is one of the most beautiful low maintenance backyard ideas you can follow in even the smallest of gardens.
While Yucca plants are striking in their shape, they're easily customizable for your environment, either as a stand-alone plant in a small garden. Or, if you're working with a larger space, as in Isabela's case, you can group a series of Yucca plants together – creating a dramatic border that demands attention over these summer months (and beyond).
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This comes in a 10in growing pot which will need to be re-potted when you get it home. It's great for indoor spaces, like living rooms, but equally great on your patio or terrace this summer.
As yucca plants are so easy to care for it hardly seems worth getting an artificial one. But here is an option just in case. This is great for bringing Isabela's look indoors (because there is no bad place to inject some structural interest).
You can grow this yucca outdoors if you live in USDA zones 4a - 10b. Plant it in full sun and enjoy the low maintenance of this Isabela-approved plant.
Isabela, pictured in front of her Yuccas, reminds us that there's more to this plant than its easy maintenance. The leaves are architecturally stunning, adding a unique interest to her yard without the need for flowers. It's perhaps unsurprising, then, that Homes & Gardens' content editor and master gardener Thom Rutter swears by her planting technique.
'Slow growing, tough and visually stunning, Isabela's Yuccas are one of the safest yet beautiful plants you can introduce to your garden,' Thom says.
'As we see in her display, Yuccas bear crowns of thick, architectural foliage that look stylish when grouped together, as she has done, or as a stand-alone plant. Best of all, this plant is hardy and drought tolerant, perfect for borders or in a planter on a patio or terrace. It's also a great indoor plant idea for those who want to fill their home with greenery without worrying about a strict watering schedule.'
These plants are durable but always good looking, and, with the right care, they will impress long into fall and winter. Plus, if they're good enough for Isabela Merced, they're good enough for us.
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