Know what that's like - spending a great deal of time and energy doing something in the garden and then realizing you just don't like it.

Hi Bernieh, thanks for your comments. We lived in Tenerife for 10 years and their weather sounds similar to yours, maybe some of their plants may do well for you.

Gwenvokes - if they survive heat, humidity and drought, then they are definitely the plants for me.

Very nice indeed Gwen, I think, that the white stones looks nice...it reflex the light and the heat as well. Oh, the olive tree looks good as well. Welcome to GYO... :-)

Thanks Louis, I thought so too until my Mom said "Does it snow in Valencia during winter then"! Anyway the torrential rain before we came back washed quite a bit of it away so I may try bark instead.

Hi Gwen, the problem with bark, is that the birds and cats can mess the area, by spilling bark chips all over the place.....It's worth a try anyway :-)

Hi Louis, thanks for that. I´ll have to think again on that one then. We don´t have many cats on our mountain but do have loads of birds. Is your garden as big as it seems?

Hi Bernieh, I´ve just looked through your plant photos and realise that you already have lots of the ones we had in Tenerife. You´ve got some lovely plants and wildlife.

Thanks Gwen - you learn pretty quickly what will survive in a climate like ours. I've tried quite a few plants over the years, in various places, and had lots of failures. It's a great challenge and never gets boring.