New Year, New Yard | Sophia Cunningham home & garden design

Desert Dreams

Right now the Bay Area is experiencing an unseasonably warm, dry winter. Some of us are suffering from spring fever, but we’ve still got a ways to go. Now is the perfect time to dream, plan, and set goals for the changes you want to make to your garden this year.

The crisp and sunny days keep making me think of arid landscapes and desert plants, and this months issue of Garden Design just happened to feature one of the most enchanting botanical gardens I’ve ever seen, the Jardin Etnobotanico de Oaxaca in Mexico. 

Organ pipe cactus make the most fabulous border, and their mirrored reflection in the water is breathtaking!

I love the contrast of clean, geometric Hechtia against the rustic beauty of the Santo Domingo monastery. Hopefully someday I can visit it. For a more practical application, the following photos are from an older Garden Design issue featuring a serene cactus garden in Los Angeles...

Love it! Even if arid desert isn't your thing, the simple, sculptural beauty and contrasting shapes and colors can certainly be applied to other garden styles. 

What kind of garden are you dreaming of this winter?