If your new home sits in the middle of a pile of sand and rocks, beginning to plant the landscape is essential. Bare dirt blows into the house, supports an abundance of weeds, and is discouraging to the spirit. Nearly everyone wants to look out the windows to see trees, flowers, and shrubs in their seasonal dance. Many people also want to create an inviting habitat for birds and butterflies. New gardeners to the desert often find it difficult to get young plants established in our harsh environment. Professionals may be able to install a full landscape with an irrigation system in a short time, but most homeowners would be wise to work more slowly. Even a professionally installed landscape will suffer some losses in the beginning if the homeowner does not carefully check to see that the irrigation system is doing its job. So what is a homeowner to do? There are several ways to cut a landscape project down to size – that do not promote covering the landscape with rocks and a few cacti.

Some gardeners may choose to begin the new landscape by installing the structural elements including trees, larger shrubs, and hardscapes, such as sidewalks and planting beds. Then each year, the landscape gets filled in with the details of smaller flowerbeds, blooming perennials, bulbs and other accents.

Another approach to tackling a large landscape is to work in sections. Choose a section that is in front of a window or near a door or patio. Select an area that will give immediate visual impact and reward. Install the large structural elements such as trees or arbors, then add the second level of shrubs, and fill in with perennials, annuals, groundcovers and bulbs. After several months or a season, select another section and do the same thing again.

Either of these approaches to creating a landscape allows the gardener to focus on specific plants or a specific area as the plants get established. An ambitious gardener who tries to plant too many young plants at a time that are scattered around the landscape will struggle with getting all the plants established. Invariably, some plants are forgotten and die from neglect. By focusing on a few plants or a specific area, the gardener can be certain that plants get watered more often while they are getting established.

While the weather is cool, gardeners can put in hardscapes and create garden beds that will nourish young plants. The local nurseries will have their largest selection of plants from mid-March through June. So set a goal for a first landscape project and get out there to execute the plan. The sooner you begin, the sooner you will have a colorful, relaxing oasis.