In Montecito a garden can look glorious even in winter. This colorful, drought tolerant garden sits beneath a large oak
Happy New Year (sort of). I know it”s February, in fact, worse than that, Valentine’s Day was yesterday! Even so, it’s sort of early in the New Year and I figure it’s never too late to come up with some ideas for a more beautiful garden. I hope you can forgive my tardiness and just get into the spirit of things.
There is so much good news! It rained! Lake Cachuma is full and in fact, it spilled water into the Santa Inez river! Honestly, I don’t remember the last time that happened. So exciting!
Here are some ideas for a better New Year Garden-wise.
Santa Barbara Botanic Garden meadow in spring, in foreground California Poppies, Sages and native grasses
Get inspired
Inspiration is everywhere, walk around your neighborhood, and go to public parks and gardens. One of my favorites is the Santa Barbara Botanic Garden. Become a member and you can walk the gardens any day of the week. This garden is the perfect place to get inspiration for a Santa Barbara garden. But, you don’t have to limit your inspiration from public places; walk the neighborhoods where you live or other neighborhoods. You will see lots of different garden styles, plants, and hardscape ideas.
Make a wish list
Making a wish list is really a great place to start. Everyone has different circumstances and priorities. I highly recommend putting them on paper. Be sure to include everything, even the “impossible”.
Prioritize the list
Once you have the “master list” prioritize it according to what is most important and what is not. Once you have the master list, this part is easy. Go ahead and number them. Play around with it until you are happy with it.
Drought tolerant garden in Santa Barbara filled with succulents, olive trees and other exotic plants
4. Decide on a Garden style or theme
To do this effectively, take photos of different garden styles and themes and keep them in a folder so you can refer back to them. There are so many options to choose from and what you select is really up to you. There is no right or wrong when it comes to garden design. There are as many styles as there are people.
5. Walk your property
Now that you have your priorities settled, walk around your property and work out where the different elements will go. If you want a fire pit, pond, orchard or an outdoor kitchen, take a look at where these elements could go.
This beautiful Santa Barbara garden featuring a koi pond is surrounded by drought tolerant ground cover, fruitless olive trees and pittosporum
6. Edit your list again
After your “walk about” you may need to edit your list again. If not, you will at least need to work out some of the details like hardscape materials, here’s where you will refer back to your garden photos. Have some fun with it.
7. Where to start
With all your planning done, it’s time to figure out where to start, and here is where you may need some help. If not, just go for it! However, if you need some help putting it all together, call us today (805) 969-3984 for a Free Home Garden Consultation. We’d love to help if we can.
Lake Cachuma is full!