David Currier's vines love growing up the southeast-facing wall of his home. Fred Miller deals with breezes drying his vegetables. Deanna Korda's cool, shady property makes tropical plants thrive.
All these gardeners live in Bisbee, but their microclimates create diverse challenges and opportunities.
A microclimate is "the local climate on a small site," according to Arizona Plant Climate Zones, available at the University of Arizona's College of Agriculture and Life Sciences Internet site (cals.arizona.edu/gardening/climate/az1169.html). Natural and man-made features can change the temperature, airflow and sunlight from what's experienced just a few feet away.
Currier's, Miller's and Korda's gardens are among 12 in Saturday's tour by the Bisbee Bloomers.
A mountain and tall trees at the east keep Korda's small vegetable garden in shade until midday. The coolness and shade allow plumeria, Persian lilac and fruit trees to thrive. Her location at 5,500 feet makes it "tropic heaven and not native heaven," she says.
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Currier dug catchment basins and swales around his south Bisbee miner's shack to harvest rain for his plants, which he lightheartedly describes as "native or exotic invasive species." The nearby hill of tailings pushes cold air down into his property, but the winter sun warms his home's exterior walls enough for plants to survive. "It extends the growing season," he says.
A hill next to Miller's Warren District home where he's lived for three years creates an airflow "down our street and gardens," he says. "It dries out a lot quicker here than other parts of Warren."
Over the years, the hill also added a lot of "rubble" to his yard. He's replaced almost all of the soil in his gardens and plans to add a basin to capture more rain.
Miller, a longtime Bisbee gardener, says working with microclimates requires a lot of observation.
"The hardest thing to do and the best thing to do is wait a year" before planting, he says. Observe how the sun reaches certain places through the seasons. Recognize areas with natural swales, slopes, terraces and caliche.
Says Miller: "All of that comes into play in deciding where to put certain things."
If you go
"Bisbee's Eclectic Gardens"
• What: Ninth annual self-guided Bisbee Bloomer Garden Tour includes outdoor painting and musical entertainment.
• When: 10 a.m.-4 p.m. Saturday.
• Where: Twelve private gardens throughout the Southeast Arizona town.
• Admission: $10.
• Information: Bisbee Visitor's Center, 1-866-224-7233, www.discoverbisbee.com