Deer don't like herbs (or anything aromatic), so how about something in the
small herb family (e.g., one or more of the many varieties of thyme, or
compact Mexican sage, or curry plants)? I have all of these and the deer
leave them completely alone. Just go to a nursery that has a good selection
of small herbs (e.g., Pots and Plants at Bee Caves x 360 or some of the herb
specialty places) and find yourself some nice, aromatic, low-growing
perennial herbs. Also a perennial verbena might be a possibility. You might
have to trim it to keep it off the sidewalk but it would look nice with your
other plantings. In my experience, verbena does okay in lots of different
environments. Also, brachycome might do well - I'm not sure, but they seem
to need more water than actual xeriscape plants so if the "muck" is damp,
they might do okay. Vinca is also pretty, hardy, and completely unappealing
to deer. You could also dig a little sand into the muck to improve its
drainage and aeration.

"Marc Stephenson" wrote in message
...
I've been slowly filling in a 7' x 30' strip between my driveway
and a western retaining wall. The strip is on a 35-degree slope
along the 30' dimension. The retaining wall varies in height
from a few inches to a high point of about 8 feet. It's still
basically a full sun area.

As I've worked my way down to the street, the soil has changed to
a mucky consistency (along with solid rock). I'm concerned that
some of the plants that I've utilized farther up the bed will
not hold up well in the muck. The other plants that I have in
the bed a (basically from the top, though some repeat in areas)
Silverado sage, copper canyon daisies,
salvia greggii, Mexican marigold mint, zexmenia, society garlic
(variegated
and non-variegated), Russian sage, Thompson yucca, garland gold yucca,
pavonia, Mexican wiregrass, and flame acanthus.

That leaves me with a 7x7 patch at the bottom. The plants at the bottom
cannot be tall because we need visibility to the sidewalk and street
as we descend the driveway. I was thinking about wall germander at the
bottom but am concerned that they will rot. I would like something that
is compact so that it won't sprawl out on to the driveway and sidewalk
(which takes trailing rosemary out of the picture).

Any ideas for drainage-indifferent, low-growing, compact perennials
which are deer-resistant?

--
Marc Stephenson IBM Systems Group - Austin,TX
T/L: 678-3189