Pronounciation: Air-e-mo-FI-la VAL-en-tine

Hardiness zones
Sunset 8, 9, 14-24
USDA 9-11 (arid and semi-arid regions are best)

Landscape Use: Informal accent and/or hedge plant landscape medians, foundation, winter accent for dry landscapes, hummingbird gardens.

Form & Character: This is a compact Eremophila cultivar that has a nice, rounded informal shape. Foliage is light to dull green in summer and a purpish grey during the winter, lovely tough, dependable.

Growth Habit: Evergreen, woody, broadleaf perennial shrub, slow to grow after transplanting into the landscape. Once established, a moderate growth rate to 4 to 6 feet in height with somewhat greater spread, sparsely canopied when young to full with age.

Foliage/Texture: Alternate leaf arrangement, lanceolate, small, light green (summer) to gray green (winter) leaves to 1.5-inches long, sessile; medium fine texture.

Flowers & Fruits: Axillary and tubular on a short, curved peduncle which holds 1-inch long deep bright red flowers, profuse; fruits are small, rounded and inconspicuous.

Seasonal Color: Colorful flowers in late winter and early spring.

Temperature: Cold hardy to 23^oF. In contrast, can be damaged by extreme late summer heat episodes if daily high temperatures exceed 115^oF for multiple days.

Light: Full sun to partial shade.

Soil: Extremely salt and alkaline tolerant, but needs good drainage.

Watering: Tolerates some aridity. Moderate supplemental water needs in Phoenix during summer months.

Pruning: Red emu bush responds well to light shearing after flowering in early May as needed; mostly just leave it alone and control growth rate by regulating the amounts of supplemental water given throughout the year.

The 'Horticultural clods of Phoenix' (commonly known as 'Hort clods'), those unsavvy, misguided persons with gas-powered hedge trimmers in hand who lack any real horticultural knowledge, just love to shear this plant. But hey, in reality they love to shear all plants. Perhaps it's their way of reconnecting with their youth and fond memories of devouring grandma's yummy Valentine Day cupcakes?

A special note for all the 'Hort clods': There's no horticulturally rational reason to shear this shrub into some weird geometrical orb! So please do not do this.

Propagation: Stem cuttings

Disease and Pests: In Phoenix, fungal root rot can cause sudden plant failure during summer if soil is not well drained and if plants are regularly irrigated.

Additional comments: Eremophila maculata 'Valentine' or red emu bush is a wonderful, naturally-shapely, nice, medium-sized landscape shrub for transition areas within oasis design themes or tough landscape spots. It does most of its growing in late summer and fall. Though it might look sparse when first planted, it fills out nicely within one year. Attracts hummingbirds when in flower.

A salient generalization: Eremophila is a genus with many salt tolerant species that have great landscaping potential in the Phoenix area.