High Country Gardens

I have a very wide range of interests when it comes to plants. Perennials, trees, shrubs, succulents, rock garden plants, native plants, South African plants; I’m fascinated by all these plant groups and many more. Having lived and gardened in New Mexico for the 30 years, one group of plants I have been growing since I was a teen, the cacti, have a special place in my garden.

As the climate and growing conditions in New Mexico have gotten drier and hotter, these natives plants (found only in western hemisphere) have thrived and become the stars of my various xeric gardens. Here are some photos of my home xeriscape taken over the past few weeks. And the cacti have been especially stunning this spring. The colors of the flowers, the geometry of the spines and the musculature of the stems are as fascinating to me now as they were 40 years ago.



This is a spineless form of Claret Cup (Echinocereus triglochidiatus v. inermis) grown from seed originally

collected in the mountains that straddle the Utah and Colorado state borders. Very rare in nature, this spineless form is highly sought after by collectors and cacti aficionados. But even gardeners with little experience growing cacti outdoors will be delighted to experience how easily it is grown in western xeriscapes. And the intensity of the red flowers is nothing short of breath taking to any lover of flowers.



Behold, one of the gems in the Hedgehogs from Texas and Oklahoma, the very small clumping, white spined form of Reichenbach’s Hedge Hog (Echinocereus reichenbachii v. albispinus). Found In only in two limited areas in the world (near Troy and Tishoming, OK) this exquisitely rare cactus is also one of the most stunning plants you’ll ever grow. Like the spineless Claret Cup, this beauty is also easily grown in western xeriscapes.

Both these species are cold hardy to USDA zone 5 and require “lean” (infertile), well drained soil. For best success, cacti should be planted bare-root, even in the heat of summer.* Like all our cacti, I grow these two from seed in our Santa Fe greenhouse facility. Hopefully, even those gardeners who thought they have no interest in cacti will try these native wildflowers a try in their dry gardens. Mix them together with other smaller growing xeric perennials and enjoy the show!

*Watch my video on transplanting cacti on Youtube.

Spring is a long time coming to the high country in northern New Mexico.  By late October our gardens have been frosted back and the deciduous trees and shrubs have lost their leaves. In no time, the snows come and winter is here to stay for a while. So when some of my favorite early blooming spring shrubs come into flower, it is an over-do delight for the senses.

 

Much of my front yard consists of native grass prairie. But up close to the house, I have enclosed my front portal (porch) with a curving 5 foot tall stucco wall. This is a very traditional style in NM and makes beautiful garden spaces, protected from the winds and warmed by the sun.  And when my fragrant Desert Peach (Prunus andersonii) and Dwarf spreading Sand Cherry (Prunus besseyi ‘Pawnee Buttes’) shrubs come into bloom, the walls hold



the wonderful scents close to house so I can sit on the portal, savor a cup of morning tea and enjoyed the sights and smells as the morning sun pops up over the mountain.

 

I have long been enamored with the Desert Peach, it being a choice but unknown native beauty from the remote areas of eastern California and western Nevada. I planted this species in two spots in my landscape three years ago. And to my delight, a pair inside my portal have finally matured and burst into full flower! I have a similar fondness for Dwarf spreading Sand Cherry.  Both of these native shrubs are favorites for native and honey bees. And the scent of their profuse flowers is sweet and delicious.

 

As the West becomes harsher and the weather more unpredictable with climate change, these two along with numerous other species of native shrubs will become increasing popular because they are so waterwise, subtly beautiful and habitat friendly. Start with these two early blooming stars to see and smell why you should be growing them too.

Many folks are hesitant to plant perennials and other frost hardy trees and shrubs before the last average frost date of the spring. “What if it freezes”? “The cold weather will kill my new plants.” And so on. But the bottom line is that many perennial plants (as well as trees, shrubs and evergreens) prefer to be planted in the cool of spring.  I start planting as soon as the soil thaws in March here in zone 6 Santa Fe. Here in northern New Mexico, like most of the Great Plains and Intermountain West can get snow clear through May. So here are my thoughts on why not to wait.

 

Frost hardy plants love to get an early start and shrug off frosts. Occasionally there will be a really hard frost after I plant (temperatures drop into the low 20’s or teens). If I remember I’ll cover the plants for the night with some loose straw or a plastic bag. If I don’t, they may get their flowers or foliage nipped by the cold, but they outgrow the frosted parts quickly.

 

In fact, I always admonish gardeners to plant before a snow storm if they can time it right. Or I just thank my luck that I happened to plant before a nice snow. But nothing beats new transplants covered by a blanket of snow. Snow protects the plants from the first clear, cold night after the storm with its insulating properties. When the snow melts, it waters the transplants and settles the soil gently around the roots.  And snow melt, like rain, has near magically properties when it comes to growing plants. Generally it’s the gentle boast of atmospheric Nitrogen that the snowflakes absorb as they fall from the clouds. I also hypothesize their negative ions have a positive effect on the soil and plants

 

When you’re at the nursery, be sure to ask if the plants have been cold hardened.  We grow our perennials cold and let them wake up slowly in our high desert cold. You don’t want to take plants straight out of a warm greenhouse into the cold and plant them without acclimating (“hardening”) the leaves and stems to the cold temperatures.

 

So next time you look out the kitchen window and see your new Salvia covered with snow, smile and thank the clouds for the gift of frozen water.

 

 

Winter is often the forgotten season when it comes to landscaping. I love a beautiful perennial border in the summer; the colors, the flowers, the interesting foliage and textures. But in winter, when all the perennials have gone dormant and  lost their summer glow, there is not much to look at and enjoy. Woody trees and shrubs along with cacti and succulent plants can provide what is known as the “bones of the garden.” We’re not talking literal bones, but are referring to plants with a year round presence in the garden.  These plants, along with hardscape elements, provide the structure around which a landscape can be planted to have year round interest, texture, form and substance.

It is after a winter snow that the “bones” take center stage, providing a new view, and new perspective, when we see leaves and branches covered in white, peeking out from under a chilly blanket left behind by a quick moving late winter storm. Here are some photos from my front yard showing how xeric cacti and succulents like Agave, Yucca and Opuntia mixed in with the structural grace of a weeping ‘Mary Potter’ flowering crabapple, catch the snow with sublime beauty.