Spring in the high country is nothing if not confusing.  Right?

My tulips are still going strong and everything else is starting to leaf out now.  That gorgeous, pristine green and bronze is just so magical.  

One day it's definitely spring, and then we wake up to 2 inches of snow and blowing, cold wind the next morning.  But hang in there.  The good news is that my April list isn't as crazy long as the March list was.  That's assuming you ticked everything off for March!  

My big advise for April is essentially the same as March -- resist!  Resist the urge to plant out tender annuals or young perennials that aren't cool season growers until we are past our last frost date.  And for some it's hard to believe that is actually not until May (Mothers Day).
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After working with a client to design and create a stunning garden or landscape, I check in often.  More often initially, and then a bit less frequently through the first year.  

The success of a landscape is really mostly about a fantastic design, and then the ongoing maintenance of it over the long haul.  While the installation is often the most exciting step in the process, it's not going to be successful unless it's cared for properly every month and for the years to come (and well designed in the first place).

We don't do garden maintenance at The Whiskey Porch, but I wanted to put together a series of garden keeping checklists to help keep you on track.  Whether you are going to do it all yourself, or bring in a maintenance crew to do much of it for you, these monthly guides should be useful to you if you live in and around Prescott, AZ.

When thinking about your garden and landscape, it's common to want to grow and enjoy plants that you are accustomed to.  Either from where you most recently lived, or from where you grew up.  We all have that nostalgia for a familiar landscape.

But, one of the most frequent questions I hear from newcomers to the Prescott, AZ area is that they struggle with finding the appropriate plants that will not only grow, but thrive and become well established without a lot of fuss.

One of the core refence tools for gardeners and landscape design, is known as the USDA Plant Hardiness Zones.  There is also an index by Sunset Magazine, and then there are climate and heat tolerance zones as well.  Lot's of different indicators that can be helpful, but for this post I am going to focus on the USDA Hardiness Zones.

My advise:  Know and embrace your garden zone!

Keep reading for all the details.

​Quick post here!...

I had an almost 100 year old cracked retaining wall along the sidewalk.  

So, about 3 years ago, I planted about 90 plugs - of 3 different creepers and trailing plants to mask the state of the wall.

One of those was Hardy Plumbago, which has settled in nicely, and while it's gorgeous all year, it really shines in the autumn.

And it is doing it's job to help us all ignore the old wall.

Here's a quick little video to give you a feel.  Enjoy.

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Thanks for checking this out.  Let me know what you think!

​~Miriam

I've got a whole lot of garden and landscape articles and inspiration for you here:  Garden.
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Our biggest motivation is always to meet and exceed the needs of our wonderful clients. 

We get almost all of our business through referrals from happy customers and colleagues, and choose to keep it that way.  And this allows us to keep our pricing more competitive without having to cover advertising overhead.

But I gotta say, getting recognition is pretty cool, especially when it's not something we pursued.  

As you know, I'm fascinated with growing less common AND useful plants.  

This is one of the 70-something herbs I've got going on in my little kitchen garden here in the high country of Prescott, Arizona.

And, while you might not know this plant by name, I bet you are still familiar with it.
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I have a kitchen garden that is pretty small but very well designed with 6 large raised beds and a rock garden along a fence - all of which allows me to grow 70-something different types of herbs (along with a couple of tomatoes, and fava beans).   

I keep thinking I need to put a post together with the whole list of what's growing in my tiny kitchen garden...

Today I wanted to do a quick spotlight on Feverfew.
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I grow many different plants in my small downtown garden here in Prescott.  And because of our high desert climate it can be interesting to learn what works, how to help each plant be at it's spectacular best, and at the same time make it a fun and manageable landscape.

Most of what I grow here would easily be characterized as water-wise, possibly native, cottage garden plants, and the vast majority as herbs.  Some are all four, but not always.

They always say:  know your climate (or your zone) when planning a garden.  In other words, pick plants that will have a high chance for success in your particular corner of the world.  I promise this will make it more successful and infinitely more enjoyable.

Those of you who are unable or unwilling to devote a lot of time and energy to your garden will thank me for introducing you to this week’s featured plant. Actually known as an herb that thrives on neglect, clary sage is a showy, fragrant, easy-to-grow favorite with abundant medicinal and herbal properties. 

​Let's get to it...

This time of year, when the abundance is fresh, I like to feature a few plants that I grow, and recommend for the Prescott high desert climate.  

Most of these would easily be characterized as water-wise, possibly native, cottage garden plants, and the vast majority as herbs.  Some are all four, but not always.

Today, I'm featuring a lovely and tough cottage garden plant that is water-wise, and is considered an herb offering various health and well-being benefits:  Monarda.  And in this case it's Monarda didyma.
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Let's get to it...

Summer is in full swing here in the high country of Northern Arizona.  And, for me that means that I'm between blooms on my clematis vines. 

The varieties that I'm growing put out a huge flush in late spring and since I pruned the vines, they should flower again in late summer or early fall.  I'm hopeful, and meanwhile I wanted to share a little bit about this wonderful plant along with images from my spring flush.

Clematis is a luxurious old-fashioned climber that is a showstopper in part-sun here in the high desert.
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Growing in most temperate parts of the world, Clematis is a showy and vigorous vine with over 400 wild varieties. 

The name comes from the classical Greek "klema", meaning vine or tendril, and it's a plant that has been collected and admired since the middle ages. 

There is a bit to know about what type you have (or want to grow) which affects how to care for and prune your vine for success.  Clematis varieties are grouped into one of three categories - spring bloomers, repeat bloomers, and summer or fall bloomers.   They generally do best in part sun, with their roots cool.  And they do best with something vertical to climb on, or can be left to tumble down from a raised location.  They are perennials and will bloom more actively after they are established for a couple seasons.
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