Notes: Successful Gardening in the Santa Fe Area,

Saturday, March 30. 1-2pm

                  Vista Grande Library in Eldorado by Ken Bower, Ed.D.          


Gardening Conditions in the Santa Fe Area

§  Santa Fe is a semi-arid, steppe w/cold winters
§  We are now in Zone 6, from 5 (getting warmer)
§  Last frost date is May 15
§  The soils are very alkaline (pH greater than 7)
§  av. 9-12 in. of precipitation
§  Use of water catchment & retainment is recommended
§  Grow plants that are suitable to this environment (xeric)
§  Raised beds vs. in-ground planting

Preparing for your vegetable garden for the upcoming year?  Factors to consider:

1.  Placement of the garden (water & light)
2.   Soils & compost
3.  Coverings or not (for both heat & cold)
4.  What do you like to eat?
5.   How big is your garden? How many partitions do you have?
6.   What veggies do well in Eldorado?
7.   All veggies are seasonal. When to plant each type.
Order vegetable seeds you if haven’t already!
Put seeds in pots inside – April 21     Plants in ground - May 12

Selection of Plants

Recognizing micro-environmental zones

      walls
      high and low places
      windy zones   
      water availability from a controlled source
      use of existing native plants

 

Suitable Plants for the Santa Fe Area

Cacti: cholla, prickly pear, rainbow, claret cups (both Echinocereus triglochidiatus and  Echinocereus coccineus), succulents (ground covers), ice plants, veronica, thymes, yuccas
Perennials: salvias, catmint, jupiter’s beard, Russian sage, blanket flower, Agastache, penstemon, maximillian & native sunflowers, chamisa, lavender, yarrow
Trees, Bushes & Grasses: pines, junipers, various fruit trees and berry bushes, lilacs, spirea, various grasses

 

Little Garden Pests

1.  flea beetles (eat mustards) –spray with (2 cups isopropyl alcohol, 5 cups water, 1 tablespoon liquid soap)
2.  aphids (ant cows) - wash off with soapy water often
3.  white fly- spray with soapy water
4.  leaf miners- spray with neem oil
5.  squash bugs (especially zucchini) – herbs that repel them (nasturtium, petunia, catnip), pick off
6.  various caterpillars & tomato hornworms (use of UV flashlight) - pick off

 

Big Garden Pests

1.  pocket gophers- various gopher traps
2.  rabbits- screen off garden with chicken wire
3.  squirrels- Havahart trap with pieces of apple
4.  mice- Havahart trap, snap trap (peanut butter or shrimp), electric (battery) trap
5.  pack rats- Havahart trap with apple
6.  birds (quail+) - netting, Pop-net (Parker Seed Co.)
7.  dogs- keep them away from your plants

 

              Plant Diseases: Most specific to the variety of plant.

Try to buy genetically resistant plants
Wilt diseases (verticillium & fusarium), fire blight (fruit trees), powdery mildew and other molds, viruses, gummosis (fungus)

 

                   Learn More About Gardening in the Santa Fe Area

      Go to area plant nurseries
       Join a gardening group
       Visit the Santa Fe Botanical Garden on Museum Hill
       Become a Master Gardener
       Talk with neighbors
       Attend plant lectures

 

Resources: Books, Nursery workers (Aqua Fria Nursery, Plants of the Southwest, Newman’s, Payne’s), Santa Fe Extension Master Gardeners, Google , Specific internet sites www.eldoradowindyfarm.com(santafebotanicalgarden.org)