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Taming the Dirt: Cheap Desert Landscaping Ideas and Drainage Solutions

  • Writer: Muddy Ruttzz
    Muddy Ruttzz
  • Jan 8
  • 5 min read

Updated: Jan 14

The Hidden Cost of New Construction in Las Cruces

Is it better to buy a resale or new home? Buying a new build in the High Desert of New Mexico is an exciting journey, but it often comes with a dusty wake-up call. When we moved into our home in Picacho Hills, we had a beautiful, finished front yard—but the side and back were a different story. It was a "blank slate" of dirt, rocks, goat heads, and construction debris.

If you’ve priced out professional landscaping lately, you know the quotes can be staggering. I was seeing numbers between $5,000 and $20,000. As a retired sheet metal worker, I’m used to doing the work myself. I knew there had to be a better way to get results without breaking the bank.

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A little weed prevention cloth and some gravel can prevent a muddy mess.

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Muddy Ruttz's empty yard with dirt and debris, bordered by a colorful stone wall. Plant pots next to a building. Text reads: Builders Blues: Just Dirt & Debris.
Looking at a new build backyard in Picacho Hills can be intimidating. Here's what $0 in landscaping looks like.

Cheap Desert Landscaping Ideas Can Alter The Reality Of New Construction Dirt

In Las Cruces, dirt isn't just an eyesore; it’s a liability. Builders often leave the backyard unfinished. This means you aren't just dealing with dust; you’re dealing with:

  1. Monsoon Risks: Without proper grading, heavy rains will send water straight toward your foundation.

  2. Construction "Souvenirs": I found everything from energy drink cans to a circular saw blade buried in my yard.

  3. The Weeds: Desert weeds like goat heads will take over the moment you stop looking.


Person shoveling gravel near a stone wall with a red bucket and rake. Orange bucket stands out. Text: "Buried Contractor Garbage: The Gift That Keeps On Giving."
I worked for weeks trying to make my yard dog freindly. Contractors who built the house used the backyard as a garbage pit. I found cans, nails, rebar, stucco mesh and even a circular saw blade.
Two men landscaping with wheelbarrows and shovels on a rocky yard. Stone wall backdrop, sunny day. Text about DIY landscaping over $20k cost.
Minimum charge from the landscaping company was $5000 I saved at least $3500 if not more hiring a couple guys and doing a lot of work myself.

Stucco building with canales to drain the parapet roof; text explains they are common in the Southwest but not always effective. Blue sky.
Here's a look at how the canales (scuppers) do their thing, draining the parapet roof. They're the Southwest's trusty, albeit slightly imperfect, solution for keeping things dry.

Managing the Roof Runoff (Canales and Scuppers)

In New Mexico architecture, canales (or scuppers) are those traditional drainage holes in the parapet walls. They are great for style, but during a monsoon, they spew water like a firehose. Home owners will add a fancy leader head and a downspout or even a stretch of gutter that drains several with a downspout on the gutter.

Under a canale is a great place for a water harvesting device also.


Pro-Tip: If you don’t manage this water, it will splash dirt onto your stucco and erode your grading. Consider rainwater harvesting or adding leader heads with downspouts to direct the flow.

White dog with a red collar stands in a narrow alley with sloped dirt sides, text below describes drainage details.
Exploring the backyard drainage system like, "Yep, looks good! Just call me Inspector Fluffy!"+

Engineering the Flow: Grading on a Budget

You don't always need a bobcat to fix your drainage. I hired a local crew to help with the heavy lifting, and we did the entire job using 36” aluminum landscaping rakes, standard garden rakes, and shovels.


Drainage ditch in dirt alongside a house, leading to a PVC tube in a rock wall. Text highlights pathway to an Arroyo landscape.
Here's a quick peek at our home's new drainage system: it runs through a ditch alongside the house and out a PVC pipe in the rock wall, heading straight into the arroyo.

Protecting the Foundation

We focused on sloping the ground away from the house. On the left side, we dug a dedicated ditch running from the front of the house to the back stone wall. To prevent the wall from acting like a dam, we installed a PVC drainage pipe at the base to lead water straight out to the arroyo.

Black landscape fabric covers a pathway between beige walls. A red arrow points to it with text about weed control. Sunny day.
This is a zero lot line. The wall on the left belongs to my neighbor and is the property line. The wall on the left is my house.

Installing The Weed Barrier

The trick to installing weed barrier is buy a quality heavy duty fabric and laying it down in large sections with a good lap where the sections meet up. Installed piece meal it is not as effective. I needs to be staked down to hold it in place till the gravel gets there.


Gravel-covered side yard with beige house on left, blue sky, and text about weather protection. Chairs and table visible on side.
Shoveling this much gravel, wheelbarrowing it in and spreading it with rakes is a lot of work. I can't say how many times I wondered what I was going to do here but I like the solution. Simple and not to awful expensive.

Gravel Laid Down: Game Changer For My Side Yard

It wasn't my contractors first rodeo. I worried about having to bring in heavy equipment and a expensive crew but we put our heads together and came up with this simple solution that fell within my budget.

Shoveling gravel is hard work—I haven't worked that hard since I retired—but it is the most cost-effective way to "floor" your desert yard. It keeps the dust down, prevents mud during deluges, and looks sharp.


Bag of Scotts Thick'R Lawn seed on a table, next to a green Scotts Whirl hand-powered spreader. Indoor setting with tools in the background.
I wanted to see some green on my back and side yard but I go ahead of myself.
A Warning: The Grass Seed Mistake

Part of my search for cheap desert landscaping ideas involved trying to grow some green. Also I wanted a nice green carpet for my dog. I used a 3-in-1 Bermuda grass seed and a hand spreader. The Lesson? Timing is everything. Planting Bermuda grass in the High Desert requires specific timing and a lot of water—something I learned the hard way. If you’re looking for low-maintenance, gravel is often a safer bet than grass in this climate.


A trailer unloads gravel onto a street, with a stone wall behind. Text reads: "Trailer dumping gravel... Very cool setup."
It was awesome watching the 2 loads of gravel sliding out of this very cool dump trailer.
Conclusion: Final Thoughts: The DIY Difference

By doing the work myself and hiring a smaller local crew for the grading, I saved thousands of dollars compared to the big landscape contractors. My side yard is now monsoon-ready, dog-friendly, and mud-free.

Watch the full transformation video here: https://youtu.be/T4Ih4gDZdOA

Tools Used in This Project:

  • 36” Aluminum Landscaping Rake

  • Ground Rake

  • Whirl Hand-Powered Spreader

  • Heavy-Duty Weed Barrier Fabric

  • Shovels

    For more tips on taming the desert and making the most of your New Mexico home, stay tuned to MuddyRuttzz.com. Because on Muddy Ruttzz, the best is yet to come!

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