Garden design in Boise, Idaho

A lot of people come to garden design in Boise after a few rounds of buying plants that die. The shrubs from the big box store burned up in August. The perennials looked great for one month and then flopped. The beds are half bare, half weeds, and you're not sure what's worth keeping.

Garden design is planning the planted parts of your yard: which plants go where, how they're layered, how the soil gets prepped, and how they get watered. I'm Kabe Hockema. I design and plant gardens as part of my work as a landscape designer, and I've been landscaping in the Treasure Valley since 2012.

Plants that handle Treasure Valley weather

Our weather is hard on plants. Summers are hot and dry. Winters freeze and thaw over and over. Wind dries leaves out. The soil is often heavy clay, and it's alkaline, which some plants hate.

The good news is that plenty of plants love it here. A few I reach for often:

• Perennials: penstemon, yarrow, catmint, lavender, blanket flower and coneflower.
• Grasses: blue grama, little bluestem and feather reed grass, which hold their shape into winter.
• Shrubs: serviceberry, ninebark, sumac and rabbitbrush.
• Small trees: picked for the space, so they don't outgrow the bed in ten years.

Gardens in Sun Valley and Ketchum get a much colder plant list, since winters there are longer and harder.

Layering a bed so it looks full

A bed with one row of shrubs and bare mulch always looks unfinished. I layer it instead:

• Back: small trees or tall shrubs that give height and block views.
• Middle: medium shrubs and grasses that give the bed its shape.
• Front: low perennials and groundcovers that spill over the edge.

I plant in groups of three or five of the same thing, not one of everything. Groups read as a design from the street. Single plants scattered around look random.

Color through the seasons

A good garden isn't just a June show. I plan for something to look good in each season: bulbs and early perennials in spring, long bloomers in summer, grasses and seed heads in fall, and evergreens and bark for winter. That way the bed has something going on when you look out the window in January.

Soil comes first

Most garden failures here start below ground. Clay soil packs down, drains slowly and holds roots in place like a bathtub. In new subdivisions, the topsoil is often thin over compacted builder fill.

Before planting, I loosen the beds and work in compost so water and roots can move. Then a layer of mulch on top keeps the soil cool and holds moisture through the summer. It's not exciting work, but it's what makes plants live.

Watering a garden here

Spray heads waste a lot of water on beds, and they wet the leaves, which some plants don't like. I set beds up on drip irrigation, with an emitter at each plant. It puts water right at the roots and cuts waste.

If you're on irrigation district water, or on canal or ditch water in Canyon County, the drip system needs a good filter so it doesn't clog. District water also shuts off for the season, so new plants need to be watered in before it does.

Picking your maintenance level

Be honest with me about how much time you want to spend out there. A cottage-style garden full of perennials looks amazing but needs more trimming. A garden built on shrubs and grasses needs a cleanup once or twice a year. Both can look great. I design for the time you have, not the time you wish you had.

If you want a calm, simple garden with stone and a few strong plants, take a look at this custom zen garden overhaul.

What a garden costs, and why

• The size of the beds.
• The number of plants and the size they're planted at.
• How much soil prep the beds need.
• New drip irrigation or changes to the old system.
• Edging, mulch or rock.
• Removing old plants and weeds.

Planting that finishes the hardscape

Planting is what makes a patio or wall feel finished. I usually design the garden with the rest of the yard through yard designs. After the beds are in, garden decorating adds the boulders, lighting and accents that pull it together. For more on planting work, see my softscapes and planting page.

Gardens I design across the area

I design gardens in Boise, from the North End to the Bench and Harris Ranch, and in Eagle, Meridian, Garden City, Star, Kuna, Nampa, Caldwell, Middleton, Hidden Springs, Sun Valley and Ketchum.

Start your garden

If you're done replacing dead plants and ready for garden design in Boise that lasts, schedule a consultation. I'll look at your light, your soil and your beds, and we'll plan a garden that fits.