North America
Gardening in Mexico
Altitude decides everything. Rain arrives in a defined summer wet season.
The numbers that decide your year
- Growing zones
- Arid highlands to tropical coasts
- Last spring frost
- February in the highlands
- First autumn frost
- November in the highlands
- Rainfall
- 200–2000 mm, summer wet season
The local challenge
Intense highland sun by day and surprisingly cold nights.
Rules worth knowing
Wild collection of cacti and agaves is prohibited; several species are protected by CITES.
How people actually garden here
- Courtyard patios
- Agave gardens
- Milpa growing
- Colour-block walls
Native to this country
Plants that evolved here. They ask least of you and give most back to local insects and birds.
Reliable in this climate
Introduced rather than native, but proven in these conditions. Each links to its full encyclopedia entry.
Seasonal jobs
Open the calendarThe calendar reads your device clock and orders every job for the northern hemisphere.
The printed guide
The Mexico Gardening Guide
276 pages written for this country alone: its soil, its frost dates, its rules and the plants that reward the effort. Everything on this page, expanded and in your hands.
- Altitude as your real climate
- Agaves, cacti and succulents
- The milpa system
- Courtyard shade and colour
- Summer rain management
- Frost pockets in the highlands
€9.95276 pages · PDF download