“Julio showed me where the water went in my yard before he drew a single basin. The mesquite by the wall came through its first summer without a brown leaf.”
Tonya S.Catalina Foothills
Native Sonoran gardens in Tucson
Let the monsoon do the watering
We design and plant native gardens, then shape the ground so summer storm water soaks in at the roots instead of running down the street.
- Written estimate first
- Se habla español
The rainwater basin
Follow one storm across the yard
Tucson gets most of its rain in a few hard storms. We shape the ground so that water slows down, sinks in and feeds the roots.
Roof and paving
Rain hits the roof, patio and driveway and runs off in minutes.
One collection point
A downspout or a roof drain sends it to a single spot, with rock under it so the water doesn't dig a hole.
A gentle swale
A shallow channel, sloped to the pace of a walk, carries it toward the plants.
The basin
A dish dug below the planting level holds the water while it soaks in around a tree or a group of shrubs.
A planned overflow
When the basin fills, a rock-lined notch lets the extra go where we chose, away from the house.
The native plant list
Plants that already know this climate
A short list we plant again and again around Tucson. Each one is bought small and set into its own basin or drip line.
Plant in fallOcotillo
Bare canes most of the year, then leaves within days of a good rain and red flowers in spring.
Plant in warm soilSaguaro
Slow and long-lived. We plant young ones and tell you what the next twenty years look like.
Plant in springPrickly pear
Flat pads, yellow or magenta flowers, fruit in late summer. Set it back from paths: the spines are real.
Plant in springBarrel cactus
Round, slow and low. A few set into gravel give a bed some height without much care.
Plant in fallAgave
Sculpted rosettes that hold their shape all year. We space them for the size they reach, not the size they come in.
Plant in fallYucca and desert sage
Narrow leaves, tall flower stalks and a soft gray-green mound. Good along the edge of a swale.
The monsoon guide
Before, during and after the storms
The monsoon officially runs from June 15 to September 30. Here is what we do in each stretch, and what you can do too.
Before: May and June
The dry, hot weeks are for getting ready.
Clear leaves and gravel from basin inlets and the overflow notch
Check that downspouts and roof drains reach their rock pads
Top up gravel mulch where wind and washouts thinned it
During: July to September
Let the basins work. Most of the job is watching.
Turn the drip clock down after storms soak the beds
Note where water pools for more than a day, or runs where it shouldn't
Leave new plants alone: don't pile on extra water or fertilizer
After: October
The first cool weeks are the best time to fix and plant.
Send us your notes and photos for a monsoon check-up
Re-cut a swale or deepen a basin that silted up
Plant in fall, while the soil is warm and the air is not
Who you will meet
A small crew that walks the yard with you
There are four of us. Kristen Maguire runs the firm and does the site visits. Julio Corona leads the digging, and Estrella Rojas sets the plants and the drip.
Julio and Estrella speak Spanish
One person from the crew is on site every day
We build what the written estimate says
Kristen Maguire
Owner and designer
Projects
Gardens in gravel and stone
Sample photos.
Neighbors
What the yard looked like a summer later
“Estrella planted in October and set the drip clock herself. She told me which plants would look bare in January, and she was right.”
Daniela B.Sahuarita
“I wanted to keep the gravel and stop the runoff at the garage. They cut a swale and one basin, and I like the ocotillo more every spring.”
Scott P.Tanque Verde
Sample reviews.
Service area
Tucson and the towns around it
We work in the Tucson basin, from Oro Valley to Sahuarita and from the Catalina Foothills east to Vail.
Tucson
- Tucson
- South Tucson
- Catalina Foothills
- Casas Adobes
East side
- Tanque Verde
- Vail
Northwest
- Oro Valley
- Marana
South
- Sahuarita
- Green Valley
We don't take jobs in Phoenix, in Pinal County or south of Green Valley.
ZIP codes: 85704, 85712, 85715, 85716, 85718, 85719, 85737, 85741, 85748, 85750
Book a site visit
Tell us where you are and where the water goes after a storm. We write back to set up the visit.
Phone(520) 555-0100
Hours
- Monday – FridayToday
- 6 a.m. – 2 p.m.
- SaturdayToday
- By appointment
- SundayToday
- Closed