Edible, cannable, useful stuff. I'm thinking along the lines of rosemary, which makes great low hedges in our climate. But also fruit, nuts, berries, vines like vanilla, etc. I'm also considering some prickly pear cactus, but I'd like to know if there are varieties that produce more fruit than others.
Soil is useless for the most part...very heavy and hard. A caliche layer often runs anywhere from 6" to 36" deep. Always has to be amended except for native plants.
Heat in the 9b summers is a major factor. Daily highs average 107, and can reach 118 in an average summer.
I do have friends here who have figs, pomegranate, apricots, passionfruit, and some other non-citrus trees. They've offered me cuttings of those, which I intend to take them up on. But I'd also like hedges and vines.
I'm headed over to check out the Phoenix Permaculture site that TF recommended. And by "permaculture version", I just meant productive rather than merely decorative. It's the software guy in me coming through.
