When you think of the southwest desert, you usually picture cacti growing on a barren landscape--a challenge for those who want to create a beautiful backyard. However, when you mix the cacti with other desert plants, boulders and water, dry and dull can blossom into a dazzling desert design. One spectacular example of this magical transformation can be found at a home in Cave Creek, Arizona.
The homeowners hired landscape architect George Pingitore to design their landscape. Pingitore has spent many years using native plant materials to perfect his award-winning landscapes. The homeowners gave him free reign so that he would not be limited and told him to use his own creativity and imagination. And he did!
Everything in the this desert garden today was not there originally when he started. The goal in this project was to bring the desert back to this landscape, which was disturbed during the construction of the house. Pingitore did this by bringing in rocks from Pinnacle Peak, which is located to the far north of the house. Then he added native plants around the rocks.
The homeowners wanted to have a view of the desert from every window, so a spotlight garden was created near each one. The garden view from the house to the north blends together the desert and the garden with Pinnacle Peak in the background.
The biggest spotlight, however, shines on the backyard. The once-flat landscape now undulates with color, texture, rolling terraces, and water--not an easy task. It took 500 tons of soil and a lot of boulders to lay the foundation. Once that was done, the space was divided into several sections and then it was filled with different plant combinations.
Certain areas have different textures and different heights. At one of the higher points of the backyard are tall columnar cacti paired with lower plants like agave. Beyond the wall, yuccas were planted to add interest to the desert landscape.
Although this garden was planted only a few years ago, the homeowners requested 20- to 50-year-old plants to give the garden a sense of maturity. Bringing in these mature specimens took some effort, but it wasn't the biggest concern. The biggest challenge was bringing water to the desert. At the time of landscaping, the pool was already in. More rocks were added to give it style and some bulk. The rocks blend well with the desert background as the water gently flows down the boulders and into the pool.
As you might have guessed, creating such a striking landscape can be an expensive and massive undertaking, but here are some basic tips for anyone, no matter the size of your budget or your backyard. Start off with different colors, especially blues and greens. The second step is to define plant shapes, sizes and textures, such as the leaves and spines on the cacti, and mix it up.
The third thing to think about is the hardscape. Elevation changes are important so that not everything is flat. Keep the lower plants in front and the higher plants in the rear.
Another thing to consider is lighting. In the evening when you're walking by the garden you want to see different shadows on the wall and the rocks.
Ground surface is also important. After the planting was done, the architect laid a three-quarter-inch minus granite and one-half-inch minus granite mixed together, which mimics what you'd find in the natural environment.
Guests George Pingitore
Landscape Architect
Desert Foothills Garden Nurseries, Inc.
333840 North Cave Creek Road
Cave Creek, AZ 85331
Phone: (480) 488-9455
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