Santa Fe - Placitas

Summary: Santa Fe - Placitas "Sapper 1864" resonates with the stunning landscapes of New Mexico. Serquis + Associates Landscape Architecture's "Santa Fe - Placitas" brings together a design that celebrates and synthesizes the local flora with sustainable practices and innovative design strategies sensitive to the surrounding micro-climate. The Santa Fe - Placitas features a series of exquisite xeriscapes, which require relatively little irrigation, while adopting local plants of artistic merit, such as sage, lavender, and ornamental grasses. Further, beautiful, local stone pavers constructed of flagstone are deftly laid throughout the property, minimizing disturbance to the natural terrain while simultaneously allowing access to experience each garden area. The stone pathways entice visitors as they weave constantly between spaces, creating an enjoyable experience for visitors to eventually experience the gardens surrounding each of the homes' large outdoor patios. One significant challenge addressed was much of the site's rocky terrain and the variety of soil conditions in the area's gardens. Use of state-of-the-art engineering, shaped the performance of the gardens, but application also allowed the stability of materials while allowing water drainage to assure soil stability to resist erosion. Each of the gardens' materials create a sustainable site, improving the existing topography while limiting maintenance and potential irrigation. A serene water feature, often framed by native plants, serves multiple purposes, providing soothing sounds that draws in nature, while acting as point of interest to an area potentially needing longer grass which cannot be encouraged because of potential lack of water to tolerate this invasive weed. The outcome of the "Santa Fe - Placitas" prompts a stunning landscape that seeks to capture the visual beauty of New Mexico, while exceeding metrics outlined and the aspects of the original vision. The integration of art, design and functionality has captured balance through the many garden spaces to promote enjoyment of the visiting experience which resonates with both location-sensitive design and captures Serquis + Associates' mission and outcomes. In fact, the client was pleased with satisfaction as the clients directly recognized the "site" benefit of being able to see and acknowledge their connection with the land.