Kyle's spectacular succulent garden – front yard (November 2024)

Over the last few years, my friend Kyle has created a garden that is one of a kind. It’s beautifully laid out, with rock-lined mounds full of choice plants that are lovingly cared for. I’ve written about Kyle’s garden before (here, here, here, here, and here), but it’s been seven months since my last post. That may not seem like a long time, but Kyle is the most active gardener I know, and his garden is constantly evolving. High time for an update!

Kyle is a geologist by profession, and he loves rocks. It comes as no surprise that his garden is full of them – rocks used to create the infrastructure as well as rocks used ornamentally. He thinks that he’s brought in at least 6,000 pounds of rocks, probably more. Inspired by Kyle, I’ve been adding more rocks to my own garden, but whenever I visit him, I realize that I still need a lot more.

As you look at the photos below, and particularly Kyle’s backyard in part 2 of this post (here), you’ll see that virtually all succulents are in mounds, i.e. raised off the ground. When Kyle first started his garden in 2018, he realized quickly that most plants don’t thrive in the silty clay soil typical of his neighborhood. After some trial and error, he began to make mounds consisting of 40-50% garden mix and 50-60% inorganic materials, initially lava fines, later switching to 5/16" lava rock. All materials are sourced from a local rock yard. The addition of lava rock ensures sharp drainage while the garden mix provides the nutrients plants need for healthy growth. Succulents aren’t big feeders, but a fertilizer boost allows them to get bigger faster.

Creating mounds involves extra work at the beginning, but the results are immediate and dramatic, as you can see everywhere you look in Kyle’s garden. If you’re thinking of going this route in your own garden, don’t be intimidated: Not every mound has to be Mount Everest. Even six or eight inches of height make a difference.

The first time I visited Kyle’s garden, in July of 2022, he had just started converting the front lawn into a succulent garden:

July 2002

Look at the same spot now:

November 2024

Kyle is keeping what lawn is left to ensure the two trees in his front yard receive enough water. They wouldn’t if the entire front yard was low-water plants.

There are so many impeccably grown plants in the front yard, it would take forever to show them all. Below are just a few examples. Notice how harmoniously the plants are paired with the rocks.

Agave titanota

The yellow flowers are from a recently planted desert marigold (Baileya multiradiata). The relatively rigid leaves of the Hesperaloe parviflora in front of the desert marigold are great supports for the flower stems that otherwise tend to droop. Kyle says this was an accidental pairing which he now loves.

Agave ‘Kichijokan’

Echinopsis and dyckia

Gymnocalycium saglionis

×Mangave ‘Tooth Fairy’ with Ruschia lineolata ‘Nana’ behind it. This mat-forming groundcover in the iceplant family stays low (no more than 2" tall) and in the spring becomes a carpet of white flowers with a prominent magenta midstripe. According to the San Marcos Growers website, it can handle desert temperatures up to 120°F with no damage!

Ferocactus viridescens and Dudleya brittonii

Agave titanota ‘Lion’s Mane’

You may have noticed that plants are often tucked into narrow pockets between two rocks, either on top or on the side. That’s not by accident. In nature, many succulents grow on cliffs, sometimes at crazy angles. The Hechtia argentea below is a particularly striking example; it’s planted almost vertically:

Look at the “cliff face” bottom right

Hechtia argentea sporting its glorious winter color

You can see many more examples of this technique in my post about Kyle’s backyard (here).

The succulent mounds on either side of the front lawn extend up to the house:

×Mangave ‘Falling Waters’, Agave desmetiana, and ×Mangave ‘Mission to Mars’

Agave attenuata and Agave parryi var. truncata

Right in front of the house, there’s a mix of in-ground shrubs and potted succulents.

Kyle’s 1946 Ford pickup is permanently parked in the side yard on the south side of the house:

The truck bed serves as a greenhouse for smaller plants and seedlings:

Just past the truck is the gate to the backyard:

Click here for a tour of Kyle’s backyard. If you liked what you saw above, you’ll absolutely love what’s behind this gate.

OTHER POSTS ABOUT KYLE’S GARDEN

• July 2022
• December 2022
• February 2023
• June 2023
• April 2024
• November 2024 (backyard)
  

© Gerhard Bock, 2024. All rights reserved. To receive all new posts by email, please subscribe here.