Landscaping material and high winds

[zenpicker]

Last summer I tore out our raggedy backyard and put in a very modest, Japanese-inspired garden. It's just a first draft, so to speak, but I'm fairly happy with the transformation so far. It was a ton of work but very gratifying. Spring can't come soon enough - can't wait to see the plantings begin to fill out.

Now that winter's here, though, I have a seasonal challenge I could use some guidance on....

This being the foothills of the Colorado Rockies, we get some intense winds in winter. Today we had gusts > 80 mph. Guess what? Much of the cedar mulch I'd liberally used to define various zones of the garden has relocated itself (possibly to the next county). I now have quite a few unattractive bare spots to contend with. I could simply replace the mulch, but the windy season will continue for at least a couple more months, so it would be a losing battle.

So the question is, what's a good long-term strategy for covering sparsely-planted zones in a windy area? I'm using fine gravel in two defined rock gardens that "float" like islands within the larger garden, so using the same gravel would provide little visual contrast. I do have some heavier and darker-grey gravel that I bought and then didn't wind up using; that would stay in place better than mulch, but then the garden would look pretty hard and severe. There would be contrast in color and weight of the two gravels but all in all a pretty unforgiving look. I do have some myrtle and other groundcovers started in some areas and could work on expanding that next spring...reducing the mulch coverage over time, but far from quickly.

Any advice or thoughts on options I might not be aware of? I appreciate any and all suggestions from those more experienced than I!