Heavy clay is slow to drain but high in mineral nutrients. With the addition of plenty of compost, plus coarse sand, crusher fines, Payne's Organic Soil Conditioner®, and raised beds to improve drainage, even the worst clay can be transformed over time into a yard of enchantment! Some hardy perennials recommended for Northern New Mexico's clay soils include:

• anemones (Anemone sp.)
• asters (Aster, Machaeranthera)
  
• beard tongues (Penstemon sp.)
• bee balm (Monarda)
• bergenia (Bergenia sp.)
• black-eyed Susan (Rudbeckia)
• bugleweed (Ajuga)
• butterfly weed (Asclepias tuberosa)
• Campanula poscharskyana
• chicory (Cichorium intybus)
• chrysanthemums
• coral bells (Heuchera sp.)
• dahlias
• daylilies (Hemerocallis)
• drooping coneflower (Ratibida pinnata)
• echinops
• euphorbias
• evening primrose (Oenothera sp.)
• gayfeather (Liatris sp.)
• most hardy true geraniums (Geranium sp.)
• German iris (Iris germanica)
• geums
• giant forget-me-not (Anchusa)
• golden columbine (Aquilegia chrysantha)
• goldenrod (Solidago), which does NOT CAUSE HAY FEVER, FOLKS!
• Helen’s flower (Helenium sp.)
• Joe Pye weed (Eupatorium sp.)
• leopard’s bane (Doronicum)
• meadow rue (Thalictrum sp.)
• meadow sage (Salvia nemorosa)
• mints (Mentha sp.)
• perennial sunflowers (Helianthus angustifolius, Helianthus x laetiflorus, Helianthus maximilianii)
• prairie coneflower (Echinacea purpurea)
• red hot poker (Kniphofia)
• speedwell (Veronica sp.)
• threadleaf coreopsis (Coreopsis verticillata)

Perennial grasses for clay soils include

• big bluestem (Andropogon gerardii)
• eulalia grass (Miscanthus sinensis)
• switch grass (Panicum virgatum)
• fountain grass (Pennisetum — not all are hardy here, so be careful)
• Indian grass (Sorghastrum nutans)
• prairie cord grass (Spartina pectinata)