Last month we discussed the basics of watering and dispelled some myths around properly hydrating your garden. In this month's blog we will look at the pros and cons of hand watering to determine the best way to provide water to your landscaping. Each garden is unique with its own requirements, so we hope the next two blogs will help you and your plants’ requirements! By far, the biggest benefit to hand watering is the very low up-front cost. There are no parts to buy, no fai

Question of the week: Q: When is a good time to plant bulbs? A: We recommend having your bulbs in the ground between October and November depending on how cool the nights are. It is ideal for the soil temperature to be below 55°F. Send us any questions you have!

Plant of the week: 'Burgundy Glow' ® (Ajuga reptans) - Zone 4-10 Beautiful variegated foliage with hues of burgundy gives an excellent background to blue flower spikes that emerge from this dense ground cover. Plant in well-drained, well amended soil and water regularly for best results. 'Burgundy Glow'® ajuga is a fast grower that is also deer resistant. It can handle shaded areas (such as under shade trees) but performs best in full sun. Plant in groups to quickly fill in a

Good morning Santa Fe! This week, we address part II of our Transformation Tuesday: This project required quite a bit of work and often times, we phase out the projects into multiple steps. In this phase, we removed a majority of the juniper bushes and added colorful shrubs, gravel, and a slight mound for elevation. And of course, we love finishing with a sunset rose gravel. Come back next week for part III!

Question of the week: Q: My irrigation seems to not be working right. It is going off at different times than normal. What can I do? A: This question is one we usually get whenever we experience power outages. Most irrigation timers have some sort of back up power in order to save the program cycle during a power outage. Unfortunately, the timers sometimes do power off and the program is not saved. When the power comes back on, most timers have a default program of 10 minutes

Plant of the Week: Japanese Anemone (Anemone x Hybrida) Zone 4-8 Pretty pink flowers with an intense yellow center will catch the eye of anyone walking past this slow-growing perennial. Japanese Anemone is deer resistant and has a long bloom season from late summer to fall. Plant in partial sun and water regularly to get the most out of this compact grower. Blooms can reach 2 feet tall.

Transformation Tuesday: Back to our regularly scheduled programming. This front yard was overrun by Russian sage and weeds. To summarize, it did not have much curb appeal. After removing the old bark, Russian sage and plants, we releveled and extended the moss rock border. Then, we added a flowering crabapple, shrubs, and perennials and finally finished it up with sunset rose gravel. Now, this is what we call great curb appeal! Can’t wait to see the growth next season! The ne

Question of the week: Q: With fall around the corner, is there any type of fertilizing we should be doing? A: Yes, fertilizing can and should be done year round. In the Fall, it is better to fertilize plants with lower nitrogen, high phosphorus and low to medium potassium fertilizer for best results. We will be covering this topic more in depth in a future blog.

Plant of the week: Dwarf Pampas Grass (Cortaderia selloana) Zone 6-10 A multitude of stalks topped with beautiful fluffy white plums sets this ornamental grass apart from the rest. Plant in full sun and water occasionally once established. Adaptable to a wide variety of soils, Dwarf Pampas grass will transform your yard in mid to late summer with 6-8 feet tall plumes. Since Santa Fe does have very unpredictable winters, there is always a chance of the dwarf pampas grass not s

We are going to change up Transformation Tuesday just for this week: Below, we are looking at the transformation of a peony from first growth to bloom. The picture on the left was taken early-mid March. The picture on the right was taken in early may with a bloom bigger than a grapefruit. Remember to cut your peonies back in the fall to prevent any overwinter diseases! Happy Tuesday everyone!