LVNMPermie

This facilitates input substitution rather that real sustainable gardening.

Input substitution is when you keep doing the same unbalanced and unnatural things you were previously doing, you just substitute "green" or "organic" pesticides, herbicides, fertilizers for the stuff you were previously using, while retaining the practices that necessitated the chemicals in the first place.

It is a suboptimal approach (although it is how most of what is labeled "organic"in the supermarkets is produced.)

Most of my "pest problems" are taken care of by planting umbelliferous herbs that are candy for predatory wasps. Dills, fennel, lovage, yarrow, all serve that purpose well. "Weeds" are plants we don't know the use of. Many are indicators of soil deficiencies, as they flourish within their own limited spectrum of soil imbalances. So I heed their messages about my soil and work to improve soil fertility in order to manage weeds. And I whack 'em down when I need to, composting them and returning them to the soil as they often function as nutrient miners to bring needed subsoil minerals to the surface. The roots are left in the ground, adding structure and needed organic matter. If they get too frisky, I lay down heavy sheet mulch.

Compost, compost tea, and heavy mulching serve to provide fertility, and this is augmented by planting nitrogen fixers such as clover, goumi berries and Siberian pea shrub.

It's not just good for deer -

Coyote urine repels gophers, too.

"Tell me how you create plant combinations in your own garden. Does it come naturally? Do you find inspiration in great magazines, like right here at Fine Gardening? What is the most difficult part of garden design for you? Include any tips or tricks you can pass on to help other readers."

Allright.

I live in northeastern New Mexico, about 60 miles from Santa Fe-

Here are my standards for plants to be included in my garden -


Xeric
Perennial or self-seeding
Hardy in Zone 5
Must be part of a community, and fill a niche such as nitrogen fixer, mulch plant, nutrient accumulator, insectary. Bonus points for plants that fill several of these niches simultaneously (e.g., a perennial clover that attracts bees and fixes nitrogen.)

Must fill a human need (food, medicine, fiber, etc)

Pretty comes last. But it helps ;-)

Sounds like eyecandy and food for thought.

I mainly design for sustainability, but if it looks great, all the better.