Learn more about this year's Placitas Garden Tour
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Explore some not-so-secret gardens at the annual Placitas Garden Tour on Sunday, Sept. 7.
鈥淥ur mission is to present an annual garden tour with beautiful gardens and diverse gardens in Placitas for the enjoyment and education of the public,鈥� Sandra Liakus, Placitas Garden Tour chair, said.
The tour has taken place for the last eight years, with a break in 2020. This year鈥檚 tour features five gardens throughout Placitas, with an additional stop at the Placitas Community Library. Local artists will give live demonstrations of their work at each stop.
Sue Ortiz helps find and place the artists who are featured at the gardens.
鈥淚t is a big, big event in our community. It鈥檚 an opportunity for people to see them do the actual work,鈥� Ortiz said. 鈥淲e have exhibits every month, but they don鈥檛 see how the artists really create their art.鈥�
Some gardens have been featured before, such as 鈥淭he Oasis Garden II,鈥� whose owners, Barbara Reeback and Del Packwood, were showcased in 2016 during the inaugural event. New to the tour this year is 鈥淏ienvenido al Jardin de Viento鈥� by owners Randy Martinez and Terry Timm.
鈥淲e have our legacy garden owners that, after three to five years, their gardens change and mature, and they鈥檙e ready to display again,鈥� Liakus said.
Additional gardens to be featured are 鈥淭he Blooming Sanctuary,鈥� 鈥淧ollinator Fiesta鈥� and 鈥淗igh Desert Paradise.鈥� As the gardens have changed over the years, so have the artist mediums showcased throughout the tour.
鈥淲e did do landscapes for a long time. We did plein air, and then we switched over to include different mediums,鈥� Ortiz said. 鈥淎nd then in the last few years, we鈥檝e decided to go with mixed-media because there鈥檚 so many things that apply to art in the garden.鈥�
Beyond showing the gardens and art, the tour also focuses on education, Liakus said.
鈥淪everal of our past garden tours were related to sustainability or how to garden in our high desert climate,鈥� Liakus said.
This year, groups such as the New Mexico Beekeepers Association, sa国际传媒官网网页入口 Bonsai Club, and Bernalillo County Extension Master Composters, as well as Master Gardeners from sa国际传媒官网网页入口 and Sandoval County, will be in attendance for educational activities.
Ortiz said that some people come for the gardens and many come to see what the artists are doing, which includes mediums such as mosaics and sculpting.
The 2025 garden tour artists are David and Karen Croxton, Katie Thomas, Lisa Avila, Laura Robbins, William O鈥橞rien and Tom Salazar.
Placitas tour combines gardens, art and education
