Gardening in Cold Climates
By Cindy Bellinger
For years I've scratched out a garden in the mountains of Northern New Mexico. And from all the notes readers send in, many hardy souls are living at 7500 feet or higher also. Zones 3 and 4 make for another world.
Meeting the Challenges
From bad soil, lack of rain and short growing seasons to heavy snows and unexpected frosts this doesn't make for easy gardening. But no matter where you live a lot of gardening is about meeting challenges.
The main limitation in high altitudes is usually lack of soil. Plants require enough soil to establish a root system that will furnish adequate moisture, air, and nutrients. Limit landscapes to areas where adequate soil can be created. Plants will not thrive in bedrock even when they have been chosen correctly for their microclimate.
Determine Microclimates
Sites will vary considerably due to microclimates, where weather patterns and growing conditions differ. Typical microclimates include:
- open and exposed to sun and wind
- sunny but sheltered
- canopied (dappled sunlight) and deep shade
Choosing Plants
The best plants suited to your area are the natives. Take a look around. Natural plants know best where to grow.
- Plants in open areas exposed to lots of
 sun and wind generally have small leaves and flowers, an adaptation that often allows them to escape leaf burn. Perennials include Penstemon, Mexican Hat Ratibida, Boltonia, Blue Flax, Asters, Gaillardia, Yarrow, Tanacetum, Nepeta, Thyme, Sulfur Buckwheat.
 Plants in sunny but wind sheltered areas generally can be one zone warmer than listed. Perennials include Purple Coneflower, Jupiter's Beard, Evening Primrose, Coreopsis, May Night Salvia, Solidago, Oriental Poppy, Delphinium, Shasta Daisy.
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 Plants in shady and canopied areas (overhead trees providing dappled shade) like extra moisture and compost-enriched soil. Upright growing perennials include Columbine, Whipple's Penstemon, Daffodils (and other shade loving bulbs) and groundcovers like Lungwort, Lamium (False Nettle), Ornamental Comfrey, Vinca, Saponaria and Veronica. Keep these plants mulched with shredded leaves, pine needles or composted bark to add organic matter to the soil and retain even soil moisture.
For other cold climate, high altitude plants go to our easy-to-use Plant Finder Just type in your zone and locate the types of plants appropriate for you region.
Keep Plants Healthy
 Winter can be deceitful in higher altitudes. When plants go dormant they look anything but alive. But during the fall and winter all the energy in a plant recedes from the top growth and settles underground. Within plant cells there's a higher concentration of chemically-bound water. This helps the elasticity of the protoplasm, which is what makes a plant remain resilient during freezing.
- Fertilize in the fall --What gives a plant the ability to withstand the cold is the absorption of essential elements from the soil such as iron and zinc. Spread low nitrate fertilizers with trace minerals such as Yum Yum Mix® 'Winterizer Organic Fertilizer. Then, put down a 2" thick layer of mulch after spreading the fertilizer to insulate the soil. This prolongs the fall root growing process, protects roots from erratic freezing and thawing cycles in the soil and prevents moisture loss from wind and sun.
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 Don't forget to water -- More plants perish those first couple of winters from drought than cold temperatures. Again, plants may look dead on top but their roots need moisture to keep the plants hydrated. Give your beds a good deep final soaking in the fall before the ground begins to freeze up. Also remember to spring water if winter snow cover has been sparse.
- Use a frost blanket -- If a freak cold snap hits in spring as the plants are waking up, be prepared to drape plants with a spun fabric "frost blanket." This provides a few degrees of temperature protection that will make a big difference.
There's nothing like living in colder climates. The air brisker and fires in the woodstove become a nightly ritual. And when the snow falls, how pleasant to know your plants are comfy too.
Katherine O'Brien, Nursery Manager and Landscape Consultant for Santa Fe Greenhouses, contributed to this article.
Design Tip #10 -- Naturalizing Bulbs
By Mary Ann Walz
 Few cold hardy bulbs are native to North America; however our large variety of non-native species are such colorful harbingers of spring, they're great additions in our plant palette, even in our native landscapes. Bulbs that bloom from late winter through early summer are mostly perennial and last for years. Many multiply readily increasing their floral display each year.
Bulbs are extremely low maintenance and grow in many types of soils. They can also be planted to look as if they've been part of the native landscape for a long time, thus the term naturalizing. Planted this way they give a great show in the spring, and each year the display will get better as the bulbs multiply.
Types of Bulbs
 The assorted wildflower species (Puschkinia, Galanthus, Scilla), wildflower tulips, crocus, miniature iris and daffodils are some of the best bulbs for naturalizing. Look through the High Country Garden catalog descriptions for bulbs that 'naturalize' or 'multiply quickly'. This means the planting will get bigger year after year and your spring display will be more spectacular as the years go by.
Best Naturalizing Locales
Native grass lawns, wooded areas and wildflower meadows are perfect for naturalizing bulbs because these larger areas allow for spreading.
Planting
Plant the smaller bulbs into native grass lawns. After they bloom, their foliage will be ready to cut about the same time the lawn starts greening up.
 Daffodils look spectacular in wooded areas. Use a single species or a mixture, including varieties that bloom in early, middle or late spring to extend the season. Daffodils, Scilla, Gallanthus (and other wildflower species) also have the added benefit of repelling gophers, rabbits and deer so they are good choices if you have problems with these critters.
Creating That Natural Look
- Plant bulbs in drifts or clumps; gently toss the bulbs onto the soil and plant where they land. Avoid unnatural straight lines.
- Don't plant too close together; they will increase and you'll want room for the new bulblets that form.
- Use a large enough number of bulbs to create a showy display.
• For the smaller bulbs, use at least 50 to 100.
• For larger bulbs, several dozen would work. For larger spaces, use even more.
Since bulbs will naturalize over time, the initial investment is actually quite small and they'll continue adding beauty to your landscape for many more seasons.
Read more articles on bulbs in our new on-line library.
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Plant Combination
This month features two plants that work beautifully together in the fall.
 Blepharneuron tricholepsis (Mountain Mist Grass) Mountain Mist Grass is a little known warm-season clump grass, native to the four-corner states of NM, AZ, CO and UT. It's typically found in scattered locations on the steep slopes of mid-elevation foothills and mountains. Arising from clumps of thin, green foliage the showy, finely-textured flowering spikes emerge in mid-to-late-summer and decorate the plants for many months. Grows easily in lean, well-drained soils. A superb new ornamental grass for the xeric garden. Zones 4-8.
 Calirohoe involucrata v. tenuissima (Mexican Poppy Mallow) Originally collected in the mountains of northern Mexico at an altitude of 8,000 feet, the Mexican Poppy Mallow has proven itself a showy, cold-hardy garden plant. Give this plant room to spread out. It grows rapidly each spring from a substantial carrot-like tap-root with distinctive dissected foliage and multitudes of clear pink, white-eyed flowers that cover the plant all summer. Plant in lean, well-drained soil. Zones 5-9.
Our October Garden Game
This month our Garden Game is another crossword puzzle. To print it out click here.
Our Flowering Bulbs Story
 Our gardening philosophy of "less fuss, more flowers" continues to guide our selection of bulbs. We offer many varieties that continue to bloom and spread year after year.
Our brokers in Holland secure the crops from the farmers. Then at harvest time, the bulbs are graded by size and the largest bulbs (most floriferous) are sent to fulfill our order. Then a lengthy process of cleaning, crating, and rigorous agricultural inspection begins. Finally, the bulbs are shipped to us.
 The bulbs are now stored in our temperature controlled warehouses, and they are fabulous--firm, healthy, and ready to package. Begin integrating beautiful spring flowering bulbs into your home landscape.
Also, we have two new pre-planned bulb gardens--the Shades of Blue Bulb Garden and the White Bouquet Bulb Garden.
View What's New for Fall
View our Fall Flowering Bulbs
View our Spring Flowering Bulbs
Gift Certificates and Gift Gardens
High Country Gardens wants to make gift giving easy for you and a delight for friends and loved ones. In addition to our traditional Gift Certificate, we now offer special gift packages--our most popular Plant Collections and Pre-Planned Gardens.
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When the snow falls, how pleasant to know your plants are comfy too.
