This garden had good bones, and just needed some additional structure, and a bit of flair. Our goals were to integrate a love for rare desert species that can still thrive in the NW. Luckily, high altitude Yucca, and Opuntia native to the Columbia Gorge allow for this aesthetic to seamlessly blend into our local NW style. To create ideal conditions, we installed a great deal of stone in the “crevice garden” style, supplemented with sand and grave to create the perfect drainage required by some of our more soil intolerant plant friends.
The existing metal garden beds were transformed into crevice garden “troughs,” and were planted with some of the smaller and more rare species.
More plants to come, including Agave and more Opuntia species as warm weather returns and allows for their better establishment. This will be a garden to keep eyes on over the years! It will only get better with age.