Last week I made my first real visit to Marfa, the tiny (population 1,750) and improbable art mecca in far West Texas. I’d passed through Marfa once before, at the tail end of a spring break trip to drought-bleached Big Bend with small children, and I confess I didn’t get the appeal then. This time, on a trip that was half work, half road trip with a girlfriend, I got Marfa. I might even have fallen a little bit in love with it.

Downtown Marfa

First off, many of its buildings look like Wes Anderson film sets. Here’s the pink, Second Empire-style Presidio County Courthouse, a landmark visible almost anywhere in town.

And Barbie-pink The Lincoln boutique hotel with egg-yolk yellow door

Love!

Houses around the courthouse square have that contemporary, minimalistic Marfa appeal. OK, I might put a few more plants in the front yard if it was mine. But I adore that ancient leaning desert willow and potted agaves.

A pink fire station!

In a small park, trunking nolinas had sent up bloom spikes resembling a candle’s flame.

At sunset they glowed like flames too.

Wrong is the right place to shop for irreverent and handcrafted gifts and decor.

Across the street, the Marfa National Bank building shows off pretty architectural details.

We had dinner at Margaret’s one evening. Delicious and good people-watching.

Hotel Paisano

Hotel Paisano anchors the main street through town.

We popped in one afternoon to check out the hotel gift shop…

…and sit for a spell in the western-style lobby.

Selfie with bison

Put-yer-feet-up seating

A longhorn, of course

Western art and lamps

And check out that beautiful floor tile. Really, this whole room.

My friend Cat with her new bandana from Wrong

Candellila with Rio Grande Bosque, a painting offered by Greasewood Gallery in the hotel

More cool tile

Outside in the courtyard, a tiered fountain splashes into a large pool.

We came back one evening to have drinks on the patio.

Courtyard gate

Cactus Liquors

When I heard about Cactus Liquors, I had to see it. A nursery that sells booze? A liquor store that sells plants? Yes and yes!

A nicely curated nursery yard offers far more than just cactus.

Although cactus does get pride of place in turkey pots…

…and rooster pots. There seems to be a visual double entendre going on with this gamecock.

The tempting sidewalk display. Inside, the liquor selection was terrific.

Desert landscaping

Cruising around town I spotted a number of interesting homes with beautiful desert landscaping.

Shade-giving trees in Marfa are usually desert willow or mesquite, although I saw crape myrtle at the courthouse.

Sotols, yuccas, cold-tolerant agaves — these earn their place too.

Also, grasses and cacti and cenizo — all good! Check out these towering bloom spikes on two petite Queen Victoria agaves.

The Capri garden

I had hoped to see the Capri again, a bar and event space across the street from the Thunderbird Hotel, with outdoor spaces designed by Christy Ten Eyck. But alas, the place was closed with no-trespassing signs all over the gates to the back yard.

A public front sidewalk offers the only views available right now, and I did enjoy those.

The garden looks well taken care of, so maybe the place is getting private use?

Streetside yuccas

An agave bloom spike has inserted itself into a shade arbor high above a gabion wall.

Mullein in a drainage swale

And cow’s tongue prickly pear, a species I covet for its uniquely shaped pads

Havard agave, I think

Bloom spikes

Sotols and nolinas, agaves and yuccas were blooming all over town. I love seeing their lance-like bloom spikes towering high above their surroundings.

A dying agave still proudly displayed its 12-foot-tall bloom spike in the front yard of our Airbnb, and every morning I saw hummingbirds and bees darting to its flowers.

A mini-oasis in the desert

Up next: An extravaganza of flowering sotols at the Chinati Foundation’s John Chamberlain Building. For a look back at designer Robert Bellamy’s upcycled Marfa garden, click here.

__________________________

Digging Deeper

Come learn about gardening and design at Garden Spark! I organize in-person talks by inspiring designers, landscape architects, authors, and gardeners a few times a year in Austin. These are limited-attendance events that sell out quickly, so join the Garden Spark email list to be notified in advance; simply click this link and ask to be added. Season 8 kicks off in fall 2024. Stay tuned for more info!

All material © 2024 by Pam Penick for Digging. Unauthorized reproduction prohibited.