I just saw this post today, so, perhaps, you have already acted on your problem. I have planted with a great deal of success a California native commonly called 'coyote bush' or Baccharis pilularis. They get to be about 6-10 feet tall, 6 to 10 feet wide, and I never water them after getting them established during the winter rainy season. They stay green all year, take high heat (115 one summer), cold down to 0; they can be inundated, deer don't like them, and they grow fast. I grow them in very dense clay soil, in very shallow soil and in sun and shade. They can also be cut down to very low for rejuvenation if the bottoms get too straggly. Is this not perfect? I don't know why it is not more popular, but as a precaution (to avoid babies everywhere)I would get just all male bushes. I easily cloned mine so they are all the same sex. A bonus, they have a wonderful,albeit, elusive smell when it is damp. Try one.

privet hedge - 'cheyenne'

Creosote bush (which I think is the same as coyote bush) is a very good plant for dry and arid hot and cold extremes! When it blooms, it is pretty too imo. If given extra water it will bloom longer and more often too. Oleander is another good choice So is pyracantha