I think there's a low growing, semi-prostrate jojoba cultivar that would probably do well: Simmondsia chinensis 'Vista'.

AMWUA has a list that I'll post the URL to below.

Here is a link that might be useful: AMWUA

What about perennial native shrubs e.g. globe mallow, brittlebush, bursage? It may be cheaper in the long run to plant them in "wind buffer" strips to hold the soil. Once established, they can help to replenish the seed bank and they may be able to act as nurse plants for others.

I'm interested in what other people think about this!

How about some Palo Verde Trees. They are gorgeous. You could plant a lot of them. You can actually get small ones for around $5-$10 at some nurseries and they grow pretty fast.

Whatever you plant, keep in mind that you'll have to provide some water, especially till they get firmly rooted. How will you water a five-acre plot?

Swales, first off.

Are you counting on rain, PC? I'm dubious that we're going to have a good monsoon, rainwise.

Your guess is better than mine, I'm afraid.

But I'm sure it will rain, sometime, and when it does, it's best to have the rain diverted to the most usable spot, right? =)

Right! Luckily, I live on an irrigated lot so when it rains, the water stays in the yard. It pains me to see it running down the street.

Oh geez, no kidding. Or puddling on sidewalks, etc. etc. etc. ... it *does* look like things have gotten somewhat better since I've been gone - a lot fewer lawns in my old neighborhood, and a lot of xeric landscaping in public places.

You are in a Catch-22 ... you MUST take care of even drought tolerant stuff for the first year or two or spend some time making ways to optimize the water.

If it isn't fenced, dirt-bikers will wreck whatever you do.

1 - study the contours.
2 - block any serious erosion with withy dams or gabions in several places from small to large arroyo.
3 - Lay out wood-chip berms across slopes to minimize runoff
4 - scatter seeds of annuals up-slope of the berms
5 - plant seeds of the perennials you want upslope of the berms

It seems there are two completely different trains of thought going on here:

one being the creation of a 5 acre garden with potted trees, shrubs, perennials, and lots of water for the first couple of years; the other being the purchase and spread of lots of seed to let nature do it's work in time.

Somewhere in between is the restoration idea that lazygardens suggests, which is a good one IF the land is significantly degraded (I would not consider "creosote bushes and empty desert trails" to be necessarily degraded).

To make a long story short, you need to think more about your goal... is it restoration? erosion control? beautification? providing wildlife habitat? If the creosote is all that would grow there naturally to begin with, why put up the struggle? After you've answered these questions you can begin to look at species, although I would recommend using seed mixes appropriate to the area and whatever thrives you can always plant more of.

I've been doing the same thing to a 5.5 acre lot in Sunizona. I planted four Desert Museum Palo Verdes at the property corners on Easter weekend. I used a LOT of Soil Moist and went back 7 weeks later to find them doing great. I was there last weekend to water & plant two more. They were growing fantastic and full of flowers.

In fact, if you are a bit adventurous and go hunting around, you can probably get everything you want for free. There are a lot of native plants around in public areas, parks, roadsides, and even along the canals. There are probably suckers, cuttings, and seeds you can get.