Polmood Farm  

Santa Fe, New Mexico

Client: Withheld at Client’s Request

The gardens of Polmood Farm embrace the site’s dramatic views with a series of sustainably designed outdoor rooms. A hand-hewn flagstone walkway bordered by New Mexico perennials curves up the hillside to the entrance. A garden shared by the main living and dining areas serves as the primary viewing and family entertainment area, complete with a neatly hidden sandbox, flowers for cutting and culinary herbs. A dense stand of piñon pines and large flowering shrubs protects the privacy of the master bathroom suite, while the guest garden features flagstone paving ringed with thyme under a canopy of aspen. Moss- covered rock steps lead to a wooden gate and the pool, which has dramatic views to the Sangre de Cristo Mountains. The pool fulfills fire-fighting requirements for the area and the design emphasizes conservation, with extensive water-harvesting measures throughout the arid, steeply sloped site.