Dear Cathy, One of the nice things about the plants Jane is suggesting is that they are for the most part plants that can survive without a lot of summer water. That is a very good thing for an area like yours where there is so little natural rainfall. I had groundcovers in Stockton that worked well and bulbs came up between them, but many of them needed to be mowed occasionally to look good (thyme was one of those) which I wouldn't think you'd want to do on a slope and others began to look a bit scruffy without regular water. I have mentioned before that I like Kunzea pomifera. I don't know how easy it would be to get down there, but perhaps Andrew could suggest a source. It spreads over a wide area (like Arctostaphylos uva-ursi which is another great choice Jane suggested), and doesn't really root much as it goes so things could come up easily through it. It is low growing, doesn't need much water, has white fluffy flowers in spring followed by the fruit which looks like little apples, hence the name. I have found a silver low growing Epilobium (formerly Zauschneria) that has bright orange-red flowers right now that I like a lot. This one was probably a cultivar of some kind that I have lost the name of and is quite delightful right now, but it does get very ratty during our wet winters so I just cut it back all the way when it starts to look that way and that might be too labor intensive for you. In the spring it shoots out and grows again. It does spread a bit by underground runners, but isn't too hard to control. Another silver plant I am fond of that doesn't need a lot of summer water and is low is Helichrysum argyrophyllus 'Mo's Gold'. It has yellow straw-like flowers in the fall. You might explore native ground covers from your area as well. My lotus seems to be working for me, but my slope is gentle. It is starting to look a little less attractive now, but still hasn't lost all its leaves. In the fall I'll cut it all back and then the bulbs will come up and do their thing and then it will start to shoot out and cover the ground. It hasn't gotten ANY rain or watering since our last rain which I think maybe was in May. Mary Sue