Beautiful Lynn! My hubby and I have a project going on with flagstone. Our flagstone here is this area is a lighter (tan) color or a blue color.

I love the cherry skullcap - never heard of it - I am going to look that up.

You have a very relaxing area there.

Thanks for sharing!

tina

Oh, I just love it, Lynn!

So many nooks, different trees and flowers. It just looks so peaceful.

It's beautiful! What is your fence made out of? Love it all. Looks like a very relaxing place.

I'll be over in a little bit for a glass of Lemonade. :)

GREAT JOB! It's so inviting, I can see why you sit out there in the mornings.

Shucks, the morning glory photo didn't show up, I grow those all over the place and they're lovely! Try posting it again if you can.

I love it! So different than what you see around here. Someone mentioned cherry skullcap the other day on the Cottage Gardens forum. Had to look it up.

A quick answer to Sheesharee before I grab some lunch: our garden walls are made of adobe bricks and then stuccoed.

Ah, I see. There's nothing cool like that around here.

Another side question - Japanese Maple huh? Is that larger than a dwarf one? DH wants to plant a dwarf in with the landscaping out front and that's looking a lot larger than what I pictured it to be!

lovely indeed.

How charming, Lynn! Love it and the views.

What a wonderful private sanctuary! I'd take tea in the mornings there too, but would probably never go back in the house :) Thyme + flagstone is a beautiful combination. That will be fabulous when the thyme grows in. Lovely plantings, Lynn.

Your garden is wonderful! Cool, relaxing, and private. When your plants get biggers it's going to be an even better retreat.

What a beautiful tranquil zone you've created. It's just YUMMY!!!!

Lynn...how lovely! I've never seen anything like that in person, never traveled to your neck of the woods.
Thanks...what a treat to see yours!

Oh I ALWAYS love the view into your world. The garden is just so perfect and quintessential New Mexico. I just loved visiting the gardens of friends when we lived in Santa Fe and when we visited Los Alamos and Taos. Thank you for sharing your beautiful space.

How is your finger? I hope also that you bought a very good rebreather mask. I paid 30.00 for one at Lowes and it has made all the difference. Also the spray attachment that clips to the top of the can is a BLESSING indeed. I hope all is well. c

Thanks for all your kind thoughts. I've just noticed that there was hardly any flower pics! I honestly do have flowers out there ;^P
That's my little Tibetan Spaniel, Chloe, lazying in the sun:
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And here's a pic I took a couple of weeks ago when my hollyhocks were blooming:
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Your gardens and plants are beautiful. I really like what you have going on in your garden. I don't know if you have/will have this problem with your creeping thyme, but in my garden I have planted it between pavers, it's beautiful but is covered with honey bees when it is blooming.

That is gorgeous and how nice that you can sit out there in the mornings and evenings. You've made it really special and colorful. It's so hot and humid here in TN that the mornings are just heavy with moist hot air and the evenings are still 80 to 90 with 99% humidity and saturated with mosquitoes. For a few weeks in the fall I get motivated to make myself a pretty outdoor space but most of the time I'm content with the view from my air conditioned world. Enjoy your climate!

Lynn, may I come over and help you pot?? I left my garden room in Indiana, and so far here in Tennessee all I'm growing is thistle and crabgrass. Of course, the goldfinches love the thistle, and we've decided the back lawn will be crabgrass . . . it's doing very well!

I love how you did your raised beds . . . it goes so beautifully with your NM area. Did you have them done or do them yourself?

Mimi is right about Tennessee heat and humidity, but we're high enough on our ridge that we get some cooling breeze and for some reason have no bugs. We all just came in from sitting on the deck watching the grandkids play.

Maybe next spring I'll get started gardening here.

OMG! I love all your pics but the 3rd is just wonderful. That blue gate is lovely. It is just the perfect amount of color for that space. Right out of a magazine.

I am off to bed dreaming that your yard is mine. Thanks for sharing.

So lovely! Did you grow up in NM? It seems like you would have to have a lot of experience in that kind of climate and culture to know what will work . . .and wow, do you know what works!

Like kitchenkelly says, it looks like it's right out of a magazine! Just beautiful, and so inviting!

Well, again thanks for your kind words. Hmmmm, let me answer the questions.

Anele, no I didn't grown up in New Mexico, I grew up on Lake St.Clair in Michigan. I didn't move out here until I got married, as DH wanted to come here to go into practice. I know what works, plant-wise,out here because I'm a Master Gardener, although I haven't worked in the field in many years. I'd love to go back for a refresher course someday soon, though. I need it!

KitchenKelly, thanks for the gate comps. Out here turquoise has long been thought to keep out evil spirits, so it's very common to see windows, doors and gates painted that color. Thanks goodness I love turquoise!

Natal: I'm very happy with the Cherry Skullcap so far. It seems to be a tough little plant.

Marti: that's what I'm waiting for! We had to start completely over last summer with all new plants, as my ivy took over every bed and had to be crowbar'ed out of there.

Mimi and Hostagrams: that humidity, coupled with your heat sounds crushing to me, too! I don't blame you for not wanting to sit outside when it's like that. We don't have mosquitoes up here. I think the elevation, at 6,000 ft, is too much for them . . . thank goodness!

Hostagrams: We had the tall adobe walls built along with the house. We had the raised adobe planters built about two years later. We live in the mountains and the ground is filled with very large boulder. The soil is poor and so raised beds are the most practical and they save us a LOT of water.

Shee, we had that Japanese Maple planted 16 years ago, but I don't believe that it's a dwarf species. The microclimate that we have it in back there works to our advantage, as it never grows much above the top of our house. Beyond that is too sunny and dry for it.

Tina: we're the flagstone sisters! I am so surprised at how long it's taken us to plan, cut, dig in, level and interplant this small garden . . .not to mention, add irrigation to it! Hope yours is going faster than ours did!

Parma: thanks. DH loves that little alley nook and is planning on putting a small bench for reading back there next.

Oakleyok, love my Morning Glories, too! I like the Heavenly Blue but those darn Bush MG's keep coming back. I wish I'd never planted that one little plant!

Upa Lazy River: Yikes, bee's in the thyme are one thing I hadn't considered! I have Pink Chintz, Woolly and Elfin interplanted. Thanks for your warning to look out for them when my thyme is in bloom.

Trailrunner: my finger is still fairly numb. I had no idea that spray painting could screw up a finger like this! Don't you love Taos? I especially enjoy taking a long weekend there in the Autumn when they have the art show in the Plaza and the Wool Festival in Kit Carson Park at the same time. We usually stay at the Fechin Inn nearby.

Yayagal, Joann, Loribee and AWM03, thank you :~)

NewHomeBuilder: thanks! We live in a mountain valley with our big mountain behind the house, soft hills out front and a view to the west, down the valley and out 60 miles. We feel very blessed to have such great views.

OK, the patio table is set with Margaritas, iced tea, chips and salsa . . . when are you all arriving???
Lynn :^)
Oakleyok, here's pic of my Heavenly Blue Morning Glories that I took before:
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What a beautiful, peaceful and relaxing garden you've created. I love your turquoise gate! It's all so very inviting. We're doing flagstone out back, too. Lots of work but low maintenance, which I'm leaning toward more and more these days. : )

I grow lots of hollyhocks in my cottage style gardens. I have one called 'Nigra', a very deep purple, almost black. If you'd like some seed I'll send you some.

Here is a link that might be useful: {{gwi:539787}}

Your garden is sensational & easily the prettiest space I've ever seen in NM. I used to visit friends there in the 80's & all I ever saw were scrubby pines & rock, & the occasional cottonwood tree. You've built an oasis in the desert - enjoy!

Lynn, your garden is so beautiful. You and hubby have really worked hard to make it into a wonderful secret garden! I would love to see pictures at night. I love twinkley lights.

I don't think you need a refresher course-- you should just teach the classes!