High Altitude Gardening: Albuquerque Edition
There are many similarities between Albuquerque and Flagstaff in terms of high altitude gardening. Most gardeners in both cities deal with huge temperature swings, a good amount of wind, and being closer to the sun, which can result in sun scald or differing sun requirements than low-elevation locations. Having been raised in Albuquerque, it’s interesting comparing the two climates and different gardening conditions between the two. I’ll dive more deeply into some high-altitude gardening observations following my recent visit to Albuquerque last week.
The lovely Sandia Mountains in Albuquerque, New Mexico.
The Similarities
As I touched on a bit above, high-altitude gardening has many similarities across locations. Huge temp swings, many have short growing seasons, wind, pests, late frosts, you name it!
Okay, now let’s look at some similarities between Albuquerque and Flagstaff:
Both have mountains. Albuquerque has The Sandias and Flagstaff has The San Francisco Peaks.
Temperatures swings: both cities deal with major temp swings across the days, but also between night and day. There’s upwards of 40-50° F difference sometimes during the day and night temps. This can make it hard for protecting your plants.
April winds bring...a whole lot of frustrated gardeners in Flag and Albuquerque.
We’re closer to the sun. When plant tags say “Full Sun,” it’s full sun for sea-level locations. Many of us high-altitude gardeners have found that it really doesn’t mean full sun here. We either shift to part shade for some things, or provide shade cloths.
Droughts: nearly any desert area is experiencing extreme drought due to climate change right now. Some great methods to offset this is to water in the morning or evening, use mulch to maintain moisture and protect soil, and plant water-wise and regionally adapted plants.
While we have lots of the same high-altitude gardening issues to deal with, we have some differences too.
Here I helped my client plan out her Herb Garden based on my Garden Design & Consultation. The wall and shade from surrounding fruit trees help with wind and sun protection. After planting, we mulched the area with wood chips to help maintain moisture and soil structure.
The Differences
First, let’s look at the actual elevation differences.
Albuquerque: 5,312 ft
Flagstaff: 6,909 ft
An interesting article by Colorado State University Extension details that “for every 1,000 feet gain in elevation, the temperature drops by an average of 3.5° F.” With that math, there’s about a 5° F between Albuquerque and Flagstaff. Comparing the actual temperatures with my parents in Albuquerque, it seems that we’re generally about 10° F cooler (and get LOADS more snow).
Now, you may think that every high-altitude gardening location has a short growing season. While that’s definitely true for Flagstaff (hello, 100 days), it’s not at all true for Albuquerque. With the last frost towards the end of April and first frost in late October, Albuquerque has nearly 180 frost-free growing days!
While I was in Albuquerque during the last week of April, I helped plant out tomatoes, peppers, and lots of herb transplants. They are gearing up for summer veggies! Meanwhile in Flagstaff, I have peas, arugula, and radishes growing. I haven’t yet planted my other root veggies (but I’m a bit behind on that), and plan on transplanting some cool-season Asian greens and kale soon. Tomatoes and peppers will have to wait a bit longer.
This massive rosemary plant is starting to bloom in Albuquerque after it overwintered. It’s generally too cold in Flagstaff for rosemary to overwinter (but I have one that’s been here for 3 years, shhh!).
Albuquerque also has much hotter summers than Flagstaff. It often gets in the 90s during the heat of the summer in Albuquerque, requiring both lots of watering and extra protection for your plants. Shade cloths and extra mulch are always a help during those hot days. So while Flagstaff doesn’t have as long of a growing season, it also doesn’t get those swelteringly hot summer days.
As far as critters go, it really depends on where you’re located in both cities. I’m in a spot where we get lots of curious deer that like to try almost anything. Columbines that are supposed to be deer resistant? They’ve eaten multiple. Newly growing strawberry plants? Those are a tasty treat. And other locations deal with prairie dogs, coyotes, skunks, squirrels, and gophers. Albuquerque can often deal with many of the same pests, but it again depends on where you are. Just something else to add to your experienced gardening repertoire once you master how to deal with them!
The Long Growing Season
Because Albuquerque is at a lower elevation range, they have a longer season that allows them to grow lots of warm-weather crops that will thrive. Think tomatoes, peppers, eggplants, squash, all the good ones.
Now that doesn’t mean we can’t grow tomatoes and peppers in Flagstaff. It just means we have to be more creative! Here are some tips:
Look for specific varieties labeled “short season,” “adapted for cool climates,” “cold-tolerant,” etc.
Start them early indoors. If you have a reliable grow light setup, you can get things growing early. But not too early--their growth may be stunted if you do that. Timing can be tough, so it requires some trial and error in your location.
Grow bags! Growing tomatoes and peppers in at least 5-gallon grow bags allows you to either move them indoors at night or cover them with frost cloths and blankets. It takes more work, but I’m willing to do that for those delicious home-grown tomatoes.
Walls-O-Water: they are essentially a wall of water-filled tubes that are placed around your plant, insulating them from winds and cold temperatures, and extending your growing season by weeks.
Some fruit varieties can grow well in both Albuquerque and Flagstaff, but it takes a bit of research. This dwarf nectarine and grape are thriving in Albuquerque.
Whether you’re gardening in a short season like Flagstaff or have more growing days like Albuquerque, there’s always something for you to grow. If you haven’t gotten it already, check out my What to Grow & When to Grow It: Edible Gardening at High Elevation guide that details something to grow during each season. We certainly have to deal with lots while growing at high altitudes, but every gardener has something they have to overcome! If you’re needing some extra help, I do Virtual and In-Person Coaching Sessions to help you deal with your specific gardening issues. Keep on growing!
