Plants and Trees that Won't Grow
in Los Alamos, New Mexico
Plants That Won't Grow Here
For some reason, certain plants just don't thrive here. Maybe it's the lack of heat, maybe it's the soil on this mountain. Here's a list of plants I've found I can't grow here:
Apricots are a waste of space. They are heartbreakingly fickle. If you have apricot trees, expect to get maybe one good crop every six years, and no crop at all in most years.
Beans and peas of all kinds. Remember Jack and his beanstalk? He didn't grow it here! ;^)
Celosia. Sow bugs love it and will destroy it in three days. The gardener at the nursery won't tell you this when she happily sells it to you.
Melons fail to thrive, and melons don't cost enough at the store to justify any effort in the garden.
Snapdragons barely eke out a living here. Snapdragon plants do not get bigger here, and will not grow from seed. When damaged by gophers or anything else, they do not recover. Do not think of them as perennials. Plant close to the south side of a house, in soil full of large underground rocks, to keep the gophers out.
Tomatoes won't earn their keep by going into heavy production unless the hot season arrives, which didn't happen in 2004 and 2005. It takes most of the winter to get the plants going indoors, and that effort is usually squandered.
Plants That Will Grow Here
Apples
Hollyhocks
Lilacs
Oregano, but be sure to keep it watered, as it wilts easily. Loves cooler weather. Will spread. Makes a great salad by itself.
Peaches grow by the bushel here, and unlike apricots, the peach crop rarely fails. Home-grown peaches taste much better than store-bought, and are easier to pit.
Rosemary
Sage
Spearmint
Thyme
Yarrow
My Recommendations:
Whenever you move into a home in Los Alamos:
If the house has apricot trees, cut them down and replace them with something that will earn its keep, like peaches or apples.
If you don't have fruit trees, invest in full-grown ones. If every home had two fruit trees, the price of fruit would come down. Don't try to grow fruit trees from seed; most fruit that you buy at the supermarket was picked green and then gas-ripened, and the seeds don't grow. For ten years I've planted all my fruit cores, and I have one tree to show for my labor.
Pest Control: If you have a fruit tree, own a dog, to scare off the squirrels and rodents. If you don't have a dog, plant fruit trees in the middle of the yard, away from fences and other trees, to ensure that the only way for squirrels to get into the tree is up the trunk; then electrify the trunk, or surround it in cactus.
Beware of Theft. Plant fruit trees in your back yard, never in front. If you plant fruit trees in your front yard, the neighbors will steal your fruit in broad daylight. One elderly "gentleman" up my street even brought a bag with him and cleaned out my neighbor's fruit tree. I like to think most people were raised better than that.
→ Mind you, the thieves here are always adults. It's become popular these days to blame kids for every unseen act of crime, but I have yet to see anyone under 20 doing the thieving.
Edition of 14 August 2007
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