Desert Willow is a small, deciduous tree with shrubby inclinations. It grows about 15 to 25 feet tall and nearly as wide, with an open, though twiggy appearance. New bark is green, becoming brown and shaggy as it ages. Leaves are fine-textured, long and narrow, and willow-like. Remarkable, orchid-like flowers of white and pink appear in late spring and continue, to a lesser extent, all summer. It can be pruned as a multi-stemmed, low canopied tree or left more shrubby. There is a specimen at the Greater Avenues Water Conservation Demonstration Garden.
Grow in full sun in well-drained, loose soils; cannot tolerate overwatering. Cold hardy to -15F once established, but may experience some die-back in particularly hard winters or as it establishes. It does, however, thrive with reflective winter heat, so siting it against a south, west, or even east facing wall can help it over-winter. Flowers on new wood and so pruning, if necessary, ought to occur afterwards. It is quite xeric and requires no supplemental watering after establishment; however, a monthly soak will encourage better flowering.