By Ali Chipouras EBS COLUMNIST
As we enter peak ski season, many of us are still hoping for more snow. Beyond shaping our ski days, the snowpack we have now also becomes our water supply for summer months—supporting our drinking water, sustaining rivers during drought, impacting our fire season and fueling adventures like rafting the Mad Mile.
That gets us thinking: what can we do besides wish for more snow? In a place as drought-prone as Big Sky, it’s never too early to start planning improvements to your yard that are waterwise and more resilient to wildfire, while also supporting native plants and our ecosystem along the way. To help our Big Sky community get there, Alpenscapes is here to support you.
Formed in 2024, Alpenscapes is a partnership between four Big Sky organizations: Big Sky Fire Department, Big Sky SNO, the Gallatin River Task Force and Grow Wild. Together, these partners share one goal: creating appealing, alpine-appropriate landscapes that are fire-safe, waterwise, and ecosystem-friendly. Each organization brings deep expertise, and all are united by a shared vision for a more resilient community.
In 2025, that shared mission came to life more vibrantly than ever. The partnership’s reach grew, collaborations strengthened and community engagement deepened.
A year of growth: 2025 successes
Alpenscapes supported the Big Sky community through online and printed resources, homeowner’s associations workshops, community events and partner-led free site visits. These efforts helped community members take practical steps toward fire-safe, water-efficient, and wildlife-friendly landscapes.
Grow Wild conducted 37 site visits, covering 272 acres, to help residents identify what’s growing in their yards, address invasive plants and learn about native and waterwise landscaping.
The Gallatin River Task Force doubled their amount of site visits compared to 2024, with half of those visits coming directly from Alpenscapes outreach. These assessments helped residents reduce water use by evaluating irrigation systems, recommending upgrades and offering rebates.
Big Sky Fire conducted 70 home site visits, providing wildfire risk assessments and recommendations to further protect homes and landscapes.
Big Sky SNO supported 12 participants in its newly launched energy audit program, helping homeowners better understand energy efficiency and overall home resilience such as the ability to adapt to more extreme weather like cold snaps, heat waves, wildfire smoke and power disruptions.
Every conversation helped turn big ideas into real, on-the-ground action.
Alpenscapes also continued to grow its educational tools, including the Alpenscapes Landscaping Guidelines and the Plant Recommendations and Noxious Weeds List—practical resources designed to help people choose the right plants, manage water wisely and reduce wildfire risk. Work is also underway on an exciting new project launching in spring 2026 that will bring even more local guidance and inspiration to the community.
Neighborhoods taking action
One of the most powerful ways to create change is at the neighborhood scale. This year, Alpenscapes partnered with several HOAs, including Riverview Apartments and Firelight Owners Associations, to support fire-wise, native, and waterwise landscaping across entire communities. Because these areas are highly visible and frequently traveled, each improvement becomes a living example of what resilient landscaping can look like. HOA partnerships continue to be one of the most effective pathways for widespread change, proving that resilient yards are not only possible, but beautiful and practical.
Landscape planning starts now
It’s never too early to start planning your landscape. Even in winter, you can observe where snow piles up, how water flows when it melts, and which areas struggle or thrive.
Your yard isn’t separate from the land around it—it’s part of the watershed, part of wildlife habitat and important to your home’s fire safety. Every choice, from plant selection to irrigation and maintenance, makes a difference.
Learn more at Alpenscapes.org
Ali Chipouras, writing on behalf of Big Sky’s Alpenscapes, is a sustainability and communications consultant with nearly a decade of experience helping organizations and communities in Montana advance their climate and resilience goals.
