Harlequins Gardens

Boulder's specialist in well-adapted plants

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Even Deeper Discounts on Great Trees!

Silver Maple in Fall Color

We need to clear space as our big nursery is on a very little acreage, so we are offering rock bottom prices on some of the best trees for the Front Range. They are large and healthy!

We have the following:

5 Acer saccharinum – Silver Maple in #7 pots @ $50 ea.

4 Miscellaneous trees in #5 pots @ $10 ea.

1 Acer tataricum ‘Hot Wings’– Hot Wings Tatarian Maple in #5 pots @ $50

1 Ulmus davidii – David Elm in #10 pots $25

3 Syringa reticulata –  Japanese Tree Lilac in #10 pots @ $50 ea.

1 Acer ginnala – Ginnala Maple in #10 pot @$50

2 Caragana arborescens – Siberian Peashrub in #15 @$75 ea.[Read More]

Terrific Trees for Colorado – on Sale!

It’s risky to plant B&B (Ball & Burlap) trees this late in the season. But it’s a great time to plant our Container-Grown trees (like the Golden Rain Tree above)! Why the difference?

A container grown tree has a complete, healthy root system that’s able to start growing in your landscape as soon as it is planted. A B&B tree has been dug from the field where, unfortunately, about 60 to 90% of its roots have been left behind. This means the tree will struggle, needing a lot more water and physical support to establish. A container-grown tree will ‘catch up’ to or surpass a B&B tree in size in just a few years.

CLOSE-OUT SALE on beautiful Patio Trees in classy, outdoor ceramic pots, AND select trees.

[Read More]

A Hardy Geranium Shows its True Colors

Among our top favorite groundcover plants for low-water, partly-shaded gardens are Cambridge Geranium (Geranium x cantabrigiense) and its best cultivars. They excel as low-maintenance colorful, long-blooming and long-lived, low-growing, spreading evergreen carpets under trees and in east and north exposures.

Right now we have plenty of cultivars ‘Biokovo’(palest blush), ‘Westray’ (pink), ‘St. Ola’ (white flowers from red buds) and ‘Crystal Rose’(unique vivid pink).

Geranium cantabrigiense ‘Biokovo’

Rarely exceeding 12” tall, they provide dense masses of bloom over attractive mid-green foliage that emits a spicy woodland fragrant when rubbed. A second season of color comes in fall and winter, when the foliage turns shades of red and orange.

Cambridge Geraniums are happy in most soil types, including clay, and thrive in USDA zones 4 through 7. They can also be grown in sunnier exposures with more water, and in full shade with less flowering.

[Read More]

Terrific Bulbs, now 30% off!

Allium ‘Graceful Beauty’

We still have some terrific bulbs that want to go home with you, so we’re discounting them by 30%!

Bulb-planting time is here! Spring-blooming bulbs feed early spring pollinators, and help us cheer up as winter recedes. Remember, nearly all the varieties we choose should last for years, even decades in your garden, and most will naturalize, forming larger clumps with a longer succession of blooms every year! And we always favor tough and reliable flowers with fragrance, unique and artistic form and coloration, and minimal care needs. Planting holes are easy to dig with one of our long-nosed trowels or with a cordless drill and an auger bit. Mark the spot with a discreet name-tag or record it on a garden map.

SMALL BULBS
Allium amplectens ‘Graceful Beauty’: 3” fragrant white globes w/mauve anthers on 1’ stems, NW native
Anemone blanda ‘Blue Shades’: long-blooming 1”+  blue daisies on low spring groundcover
Chionodoxa forbesii (Blue Glory of the Snow): brightens any spot in sun or shade
Corydalis ‘Beth Evans’: great early bloomer for shade, maidenhair fern-like foliage crowned with a mass of coral pink
Ixiolirion tataricum: late spring, elegant 1’ blue-purple and low-water
Muscari azureum: gorgeous early azure blue naturalizer
Scilla sibirica: True blue starry blooms naturalize in beds, lawns, meadows, 3” tall
Tritelia (Brodeia) ‘Rudy’: striking, graceful naturalizing California wildflower, late-spring

Narcissus ‘Altruist’

DAFFODILS – deer and rabbit resistant!
Narcissus ‘Altruist‘: Striking deep orange cup and unique tawny yellow perianth, fragrant
N. ‘Barrett Browning’: Brilliant scarlet cup and crisp white perianth, long-lived naturalizer
N. ‘Cornish King’: Very early, wide lemon frilled cup on white perianth, long-lived naturalizer
N. ‘Delibes’: Short yellow frilled cup edged in vivid orange, yellow perianth
N. ‘Double Poets’: Double the fragrance of standard Pheasant’s Eye!
N  ‘Ferris Wheel’: Large frilled orange cup above yellow perianth
N. ‘Golden Echo’: Vigorous Jonquil, several fragrant blooms per stem, long gold trumpet, creamy perianth
N. ‘Jamestown’
N. ‘Mother & Child mix’
N. ‘Mount Hood’: Classic large white trumpet daffodil, lightly fragrant, tall and tough
N. ‘Pheasant’s Eye’: Very fragrant wildflower, late-season, white with small red-edged cup
N. ‘Yazz’: Lovely soft buff trumpet, cream perianth, several per stem, fragrant

and many beautiful tulips are still available!

 

Don’t forget to pick up some bone meal – this amendment helps all bulbs get established.

Bulbs for Spring Flowering – “Staff Picks”

Pheasant’s Eye Daffodil

Our staff have been restocking bulbs, and a few favorites have emerged! Mid–October to mid-November is the right time to plant them. Come in this weekend as they’re going fast! We have a curated collection of flowering Allium, Narcissus (daffodils), Crocus, Tulips, and more!

Our staff have been restocking bulbs, and a few favorites have emerged! Mid–October to mid-November is the right time to plant them. Come in this weekend as they’re going fast! We have a curated collection of flowering Allium, Narcissus (daffodils), Crocus, Tulips, and more!

These Narcissi (daffodils) like full to partial sun, and well-drained soils. They are very deer and rodent resistant!

Narcissus poeticus v. recurvus ’Pheasant’s Eye’– (pictured here) is a very fragrant, late-spring blooming daffodil, very close to its wild ancestor. This storied plant is also known as the Poet’s Daffodil, famous in ancient Greek literature and among the first cultivated daffodils! Pheasant’s Eye is known for its sweet scent and vigorous, spreading habit. This long-lived heirloom  reliably multiplies and produces numerous blooms year after year.

[Read More]

Bulbs to Plant Now – “Staff Picks”

Our staff have been restocking bulbs, and a few favorites have emerged! Mid–October to mid-November is the right time to plant them. Come in this weekend as they’re going fast! We have a curated collection of flowering Allium, Narcissus (daffodils), Crocus, Tulips, and more!

These tulips like full to partial sun, and well-drained soils.

Tulipa viridiflora ‘Artist’ – (pictured here) is a late-spring blooming tulip known for its unique “painterly” blooms with golden-orange petals, soft green feathering, and rosy undertones. This compact variety grows about 12″ tall and is a  distinctive choice for borders, pots, and stunning bouquets! Introduced in 1947, it is still considered one of the best of its kind and has been recognized by the Royal Horticultural Society.

[Read More]

Bulbs to Plant Now, for October Blooms!

Colchicum ‘Waterlily’

Autumn brings surprise treats for gardeners and pollinators alike, in the form of fall-planted, fall-blooming bulbs! Plant bulbs like ‘Waterlily’ colchicum (pictured above), Saffron crocus and Autumn crocus NOW to start richly colored colonies of these hardy fall bloomers that will grow larger and longer-blooming each year! You will love their surprise appearance just when you thought there’d be no more flowers, and so will your local bees.[Read More]

Trees and Shrubs on Deep Discount This Weekend!

Ligustrum vulgare ‘Cheyenne’  Cheyenne Privet Regular $52, On Sale $35
The most cold hardy privet, the least likely to die back in cold winters.  Tall shrub 8-10′.  Stand alone, or plant 3′ apart to make a shorter hedge. White flowers attract butterflies and bees.  The blue-black berries are poisonous to people and animals, but eaten by birds. Makes a dense screen. Low to moderate water needs. Zone 3, 8500′

Pink Velvet Honeysuckle

Lonicera Korolkowii ‘Pink Velvet’ Pink Velvet Honeysuckle Reg $36,  On Sale $25

A large, tough shrub with rose pink flowers and some red berries.  Grows 8-10′ tall with blue-green foliage. Cold-tolerant to zone 3. Fairly fast-growing and water-wise. Very attractive to bees and butterflies.
 
Physocarpus ‘Copper’ Copper Ninebark   Reg $55, On Sale $25
Tall shrub to 8′ with gorgeous copper-colored foliage turning maroon in summer. The showy white/pink flowers look great against the copper foliage.  Best color in sun with once a week deep watering.
 

Western Catalpa

Catalpa  Western Catalpa Reg $85, On Sale $45

Successful big tree to 40-50′. Showy clusters of beautiful white flowers and huge, roundish leaves.  Often a big vertical shade tree.  Water-wise and tough.

Cotoneaster racemiflora soongorica Redbead Cotoneaster Reg $35, On Sale $25

Big, tough, and beautiful shrub to 6-9′. White flowers in the spring, then red berries eaten by birds in the summer. Drought-tolerant, dense screen or windbreak.  Very attractive. Hardy to Zone 3.
 

Autumn Brilliance fall color

Amelanchier grandiflora ‘Autumn Brilliance’ Autumn Brilliance Serviceberry. Reg $160, On Sale $55.

Small tree/ large shrub 12-15′ with beautiful white flowers in spring, delicious small berries in summer, and brilliant red to orange fall color.  The nectar-rich flowers are a favorite of birds. hardy to zone 3. Is good growing in full sun to part shade with deep watering once/ twice a week. 

Get to Know Even More Great Trees!

Chinkapin Oak

Quercus muehlenbergii – Chinkapin Oak
40-50’h x 40-50’w Cold-hardy to USDA zone 5
This handsome spreading oak has proved very successful locally, grows faster than other oaks, tolerates our alkaline soils, and resists oak gall insects. It makes an excellent, long-lived shade tree with strong branching. The attractive foliage has yellow to russet fall color.

Quercus undulata – Wavyleaf Oak
8-15’h x 8-10’w Hardy to USDA zone 4, 9,000’ elevation
A drought-tolerant Southwest (including CO) native oak with small leaves varying in shape,[Read More]

Get to Know a Few More Great Trees!

Chicago Hardy Fig

Sorbus amurensis – Amur Mountain Ash
20-30’h x 15-25’w   Hardy to USDA zone 3

Clusters of showy white flowers in mid-spring are followed by bright red-orange berries that persist through winter and are enjoyed by birds. Attractive dark green pinnate foliage turns purple, red and orange in fall. Plant in full to partial sun. Avoid planting in a heavily watered lawn. Water once a week, deeply. Native to Korea, China, Russia.

[Read More]

Get to Know These Great Trees!

Aspen leaves

Populus tremuloides ‘Erecta’ – Columnar Swedish Aspen
30-40’h x 10-15’w
One of the narrowest of hardy trees, great for small spaces and as a screen or lining a drive. Its white bark is stunning and the leaves with scalloped edges turn shades of orange and yellow in autumn and tremble with the faintest breeze. An underused ‘architectural’ tree and striking exclamation point in the landscape. Supports butterflies and birds. Exceptionally cold-hardy to USDA Zone 2, 10,500’. Water deeply once a week (not lawn watering).[Read More]

New Plants This Weekend!

Here’s some of the new plants available this weekend (7/25/25)

Artemisia ludiviciana, Silver Sage, Native

Asclepias tuberosa, Butterfly Milkweed, Native

Echinacea pallida, Pale Purple Coneflower, Native

Heliomeris multiflora, Showy Goldeneye, Native

Hymenoxys hoopesii, Owl’s Claws, Native

Liatris pycnostachya, Prairie Gayfeather, Native

Mirabilis multiflora, Desert Four-o’clock, Native

Oenothera macrocarpa, Missouri Evening Primrose, Native

Ratibida pinnata, Grey-Headed Coneflower, Native

Rudbeckia occidentalis, Western Coneflower, Native

Solidago ‘Fireworks’, Native

Solidago gigantea, Native

Solidago ptarmicoides, Native

Solidago rigida, Native

Symphyotrichum  oblongifolium, Aromatic Aster, Native

Thermopsis rhombifolia, Golden Banner, Native

Tradescantia occidentalis, Western Spiderflower, Native

Vernonia fasciculata, Native

Allium senescens ‘Blue Twister’

Delopserma: Alan’s Apricot, Carlisle Pink Firespinner, Granita Orange, Lesotho Pink

Iris versicolor, Harlequin Blue Flag

Monarda didyma ‘Jacob Cline’

Penstemon hirsutus, Hairy Beardtongue

Phlomis cachmeriana, Kashmir Sage

Rheum rabarbarum, Glaski’s Perpetual Rhubarb

Sedum: reflexum ‘Blue Spruce’, rupestre ‘Angelina’, sediforme ‘Turqoise Tails’

Sisyrinchium campestre, Prairie Blue-eyed Grass

Veronica liwanensis, Turkish Speedwell

A Trip Back to Spring

By Eve Reshetnik Brawner

On Saturday, I had the great fortune to participate in a botanical field trip to Wyoming with a small group of rock gardeners – members of the Rocky Mountain chapter of the North
American Rock Garden Society. The exploration was led by the incomparable, world-renowned rock gardener and plantsman, Panayoti Kelaidis, whose knowledge of the high steppe region and alpine plants is encyclopedic.
[Read More]

Planning for Spring, Think Bulbs!

A cornucopia of stunning, hardy bulbs will be arriving in August and early September at Harlequin’s, so get ready! Now is a great time to peruse our list (at the link below) and to look at your garden to identify areas where you can add fall-planted bulbs for (mostly) spring blooms (a few special Crocus and Colchicum bloom later in the fall!). Consider the gentle drama of a drift of mixed daffodils (Narcissus) that bloom from early to late spring[Read More]

Japanese Beetle Management/Tolerance

Japanese Beetle is an invasive insect pest that feeds on over 300 different plants. It emerges from a grub stage in the ground in late June, peaks around mid-July and continues until early September. There are no natural enemies for Japanese Beetle in the US, and no one seems to have a successful strategy for eliminating them. We recommend a cumulative approach which combine to be helpful.  [Read More]

Save Seeds from Plants You Love!

Penstemon secundiflorus

To every thing there is season – like sowing and reaping. However, right now we can still be sowing seeds for fall crops (see below) at the same time we are reaping fruits and vegetables, and seeds. In nature and in our gardens at the nursery and at home, we have begun collecting seeds from wildflowers such as Sidebells Penstemon, Blue Flax and Blanket Flower. And in my vegetable garden, the tomatoes were planted late, so it will be a while before I can begin saving seeds[Read More]

How to Plant Successfully in July

Remember that encouraging phrase, “Yes we can!”? Well, at least one thing we can apply it to right now is planting. Here is a list of steps you can take to ensure your success establishing new plants even in summer heat. We have tested all these ideas in-house and at home.

1) Before planting , prepare the soil by spreading a 2″ layer of compost and digging it into the top 6″-8″. OR spread 1″- 2″ of expanded shale with the compost, then dig it in. [Read More]

Welcome to Summer!

Solstice in the Garden, photo by Pacha Edica

Last Friday, June 20th was the longest day and the shortest night of the year. This event is called the Summer Solstice.  What does that mean? Sol means Sun. North of the Equator, where we are, the earth has its maximum tilt toward the sun and the sun is at its highest in the sky.

This is often a very hot time of year, when spring flowers have peaked and soils are drying. You may have noticed that our very green foothills have suddenly started turning brown. From the Summer Solstice until the Winter Solstice on Dec 21 this year, the days will be getting shorter and the nights longer.

For gardeners, this is a good time to remove spent flowers so the energies in the plants are not spent making seeds. Dead-heading followed by a deep watering will help to revive or keep the garden looking good, and can help support the plants to flower more. If you do want seeds, you can remove half the dead flowers, leaving half to make seeds and that will still save energy.

The Summer Solstice is also the best time to prune trees and shrubs for maximum dwarfing effect. Do you want that fruit tree to grow only 15’-18’ instead of 25? Does your Forsythia, shrub rose or Privet get too big? Prune them every year mid June to early July to keep them smaller. Why does that work? In the spring, plants use their stored energy to grow and make lots of leaves. By Summer Solstice, much of the spring energy is stored in the leaves and new growth. When plants are pruned at this time, you are removing resources from the plant so it has less energy to grow.

Two of the world’s top weather agencies predict upcoming years of extreme heat, which can lead to extreme wind and drought. We are already in this trend, so best to be prepared as best we can. We will have more to say in the future about making your garden more resilient. For now: grow more natives and Colorado-adapted plants, feed your soil biology, water deeply and seldom, and mulch.

This is last week of Pollinator Month…..if you’re looking for all-summer assistance, this week annuals are buy-one-get-one (of an equal or lesser price).

And: Mikl and Eve will be taking next week off to celebrate their 25th Wedding Anniversary! Congratulations for being business partners for all those years and still in love!

 

Non-Stop Summer Blooms!

The cool, cloudy and rainy days of this year’s uncommonly long spring brought us many blessings – among them, a spring superbloom, both in the natural world and in our gardens. Now we are headed into a season of intense heat and sun, and probably not a whole lot of rain. There are many stunning plants we can add to our gardens that will bloom non-stop through the summer and beyond. We still have loads of these annuals (plants that complete their life-cycle in one season), as well as choice, long-blooming perennials (plants that return year after year from their roots).
[Read More]

Aphids…Love Them and Manage Them, by Mikl Brawner

The squirming, sucking infestations of aphids are not exactly lovable, but they do have real value and they are not that hard to manage. Aphids are the bottom of the food chain, like plankton in the ocean: everything eats them and they are plentiful nutrition. I have even watched small birds like wrens and chickadees lean under leaves and eat the aphids. Aphids are a food source for many beneficial insects including lady bugs, lacewings, syrphid flies and parasitic wasps, and if we kill off all the aphids, the beneficial insects will not have enough food to prosper and will not lay their eggs in your garden.

[Read More]

June is Pollinator Month!

June is Pollinator Month, bringing awareness to the vital importance of pollinators for the survival of native plants and ecosystems, and their crucial role in producing so many of our food crops. Pollinating insects, birds, and bats need our protection from a broad range of threats. These threats include habitat loss, polluted environments, and toxic pesticides, herbicides and fungicides used in agriculture, landscapes, and home gardens.

Harlequin’s Gardens recently renovated our main xeriscape garden.

[Read More]

We’re Honored to Show off our Work! by Eve Reshetnik Brawner

On Monday, we had the great pleasure and honor of receiving a busload of several dozen public garden professionals from American Public Garden Association member institutions around the US and Canada. They represented prestigious arboretums and public gardens like the historic Vizcaya estate in Miami FL and Lotusland in Santa Barbara CA, and gardens from Guelph to Pennsylvania to Phoenix. . They had come to Denver for APGA’s annual conference, which began with for a tour of public gardens, hosted by Denver Botanic Gardens’ senior curator and director of outreach, Panayoti Kelaidis. Panayoti arranged a brilliant itinerary, including both the Hardy Roses Demonstration Garden at the Boulder Dushanbe Teahouse, and Harlequin’s Gardens Nursery!

[Read More]

Roses that Thrill, by Eve Reshetnik Brawner

I’ve often talked to you about native and water-wise plants, but I am still referred to as ‘the Rose Lady’ at Harlequin’s. I still love roses, and still grow some choice favorites for their fragrance, beauty and ease. Some of them have been in my garden far longer than I have – Banshee and Desiree Parmentier, and a few others that are particularly fragrant thrive and require with little care – Darlow’s Enigma, Stanwell Perpetual, Scotsbriar, Sharifa Asma and The Prince. They are all on their own roots – not grafted – and that’s a big reason they are still alive, robust and beautiful!

We currently have an excellent selection of many dozens of roses.[Read More]

A Boom Year for Yucca Blooms!

Spring rains have awakened a wonderful show of wildflowers on the Front Range this year. And along with all the smaller species, we see that our local Yucca glauca is having a boom bloom year. The flower stalks are pushing upward and will soon be blooming profusely, looking like big white candles dotting the landscape. The large bell-shaped, lily-like, fragrant flowers are creamy white to pale green and hang downward from a central stalk. They have thick, waxy petals that conserve moisture for a long bloom time.[Read More]

Our 21st Century View of Soil and Plant Health

The gardening movement that places soil health at the center of plant health has been where Harlequin’s Gardens has experimented, succeeded and educated for the past 33 years.

Mikl’s taking the movement well into the 21st Century!  Here are his key points for sustainable gardening:

  1. Soil biology is the high road, not inputs made from fossil fuels or extractive methods.

[Read More]

Plant Feature: Prairie Goldenrod

Solidago ptarmicoides

Looking for a really different native Goldenrod? Solidago ptarmicoides (aka Oligoneuron album) is distinctive within the Solidago genus in having white to cream-colored daisy-like flowers, in heads arranged in a flat-topped cluster rather than in an elongated raceme. Known as Prairie Goldenrod or White Upland Aster, one plant can sometimes produce as many as 50 small heads, blooming from August to October. It is an herbaceous perennial that grows in clumps 12 to  24” high and wide, native to dry, sandy, usually calcareous soils, cracks in rocks, limestone pavements, rocky outcrops, grassy slopes and prairies from Quebec to Saskatchewan south to Arkansas, and west to Colorado. It’s cold-hardy to USDA zone 3.
[Read More]

Plan Now for Your Fall Vegetable Garden

Just because it’s July doesn’t mean vegetable planting season is over! This is the month to ensure an abundant fall harvest.

First, prepare your beds. Remove any plant residue from early and mid-season plants like peas and lettuce. Clear out any weeds, make sure your irrigation is still working, and add a general 4-4-4 or similar gentle fertilizer (like Down to Earth’s Fish and Kelp) and an inch of compost if you haven’t already done so for your first crops. Use a garden fork or broadfork to lift and loosen the soil (but don’t turn it all the way over – you want to protect your soil structure). Consider setting up low hoops with a light row cover for greens[Read More]

Preserving Summer’s Spice!

This season’s early rains, followed by heat, have resulted in an herbal harvest bonanza! If you’re finding you have more herbs than you can use fresh, here are four easy ways to taste a bit of summer freshness all year round. We’re saving dill, basil, cilantro, parsley, oregano, lemon balm and mint this month!

Dry Them – Create small bundles and hang until dry, or, remove leaves and dry in an oven on the lowest possible heat (below 180 degrees) to preserve essential oils and flavor, or use a dehydrator. Once dry, place in a jar and store out of the sunlight. Dried herbs can be used for a year or longer.

Freeze Them – Place leaves on a baking tray until frozen and then transfer to a freezer container or bag. We like to store in single-serving sizes. Use for up to a year.

Herbal Tea

Infuse Them – Pack a mason jar nearly full of cleaned, fresh herbs, then cover with any vinegar and seal with a lid. Place on a counter away from direct light for a month, strain out the herbs, and use for up to 6 months, or, fill ice cube trays 2/3 full of chopped herbs, add olive oil, and after frozen place in a freezer container and use for up to 6 months, or, add chopped herbs to softened butter and freeze till needed. Infused vinegar is terrific in salads and brightens vegetable dishes. The flavored oils and butters are great in any recipe that calls for either.

Turn them into Flavored Salt – Add one cup fresh herb leaves, packed, to one cup sea salt, blend in a food processor until finely chopped. Spread mixture in a thin layer onto a lined baking sheet, and bake on very low (under 200 degrees) until dry for 35 – 40 minutes, stirring halfway. Once cool, break up the mixture and store in an airtight container away from direct light. Use for up to a year!

And if your herbs are flowering and going to seed, no worries! Many of the seeds are useful and delicious, too. Cilantro’s round seeds are coriander, and dill’s yellow flowerheads produce many dill seeds. Collect coriander when 2/3 of the seeds are brown and dry, let them fully dry indoors or in a protected area, and store out of direct light in jars. Collect dill seed when brown and dry, and store in jars for use once fully dried.

Parsley, Giant of Italy

 

 

Salvias for Hummingbirds

Salvia Windwalker ‘Ruby Red’, courtesy Plant Select

Create a Hummingbird Haven

If your garden is missing that unmistakable buzz, planting Salvias will fill the void!

Not only do Salvia species and cultivars contain nectar that draws hummingbirds like a magnet, but they also feed a wide spectrum of native bees and butterflies, as well as honeybees.

In addition, Salvias (sages) provide spectacular, saturated color for long periods of time. Our perennial varieties bloom either continuously[Read More]

Our Community is Special!

So many very special experiences! 

We were delighted with the turnout for our May Day festivities and sales, and loved seeing and helping old friends and new, first-time customers and loyal Harlequin’s supporters. The live music and gentle weather kept us all smiling and we so appreciate everyone’s cheerful patience in the check-out line. The Mothers’ Day weekend was equally exciting and heartwarming.

Walks in the neighborhood and the foothills reveal a superabundance of flowering right now! We hope you get a chance to enjoy nature’s show!

What Staff is Reading – “The Garden” by Matthew Ingram

When we garden with a mission of sustainability, driven by our conviction that plant (and all)  life depends on vibrant soil health, we don’t always realize that we’re part of an alternative lineage grounded in an understanding that everything is deeply connected.

Mathew Ingram’s “The Garden: Visionary Growers and Farmers of the Counterculture” invites gardeners to meet the legendary outside-the-box thinkers and growers who quite literally  broke new ground and transformed our contemporary practices.

[Read More]

Save 30 – 50% On Great Trees!

This is your best chance for big savings on healthy, highly desirable, container-grown trees that are very successful in our challenging Colorado conditions! We grew these healthy ‘seconds’ ourselves since they were little babies, in our own soil formulas and without any chemicals, in #5 (5-gallon) pots and larger. The only difference between these and their full-price counterparts is that the sale plants are a little shorter or slightly less full.
Choose from the following valuable plants:

Washington Lustre Hawthorn – on sale $65

Tatarian Maple – on sale $50

Swedish Columnar Aspen – on sale $55[Read More]

2025 Roses in 4″ Pots

Rosa nutkana

Alba suaveolens

Autumn Damask

Banshee

Baronne Prevost

JoAn’s Pink Perpetual

Marchesa Bocchella

Sidonie

Zephirine Drouhin

AUSlot – Sophy’s Rose

AUSmove – Tess of the D’Urbervilles

Autumn Sunblaze

Autumn Sunset

Awakening

Bill Reid

Bridal Sunblaze

Brilliant Veranda

Burgundy Iceberg

Carefree Beauty

Carefree Spirit

Carefree Delight

Celestial Night

Champlain

Cinco de Mayo

Cream Veranda

Denver’s Dream

Diamond Eyes

Dortmond

Earth Angel

Fairmount Proserpine

Firecracker Kolorscape

Fred Loads

Fun in the Sun

Gail’s Glauca Seedling

Gourmet Popcorn

Home Run

Iceberg

Jacqueline du Pre

Jasmina

Jeanne Lajoie

Julia Child

Lady in Red

Laguna

Lemon Fizz Kolorscape

Life’s Little Pleasures

Mandarin Sunblaze

Margaret Merril

Millie Walters

Morden Belle

Morden Blush

Morden Fireglow

Parkdirektor Riggers

Peach Sunblaze

Playboy

Plum Perfect

Red Meidland

Red Ribbons

Red Sunblaze

Rise n Shine

Robusta

Roxanne Veranda

Sally Holmes

Sister Soul Sunbelt

Sunbeam Veranda

Sweet Chariot

Trumpeter

Twilight Zone

Westerland

William Baffin

 

 

Avant Gardening

I recently attended a public conversation on the subject of ‘Avant Gardening’ at the Longmont Museum. Host Emily Maeda, co-owner of Tree of Life Landscaping, conversed with accomplished front range horticulturists and landscape designers Bryan Fischer and Kevin Phillip Williams about what constitutes the current avant-garde in gardening. I didn’t really feel that their discussion was conclusive, but the question has been in my thoughts. I now realize that in my mind, the definitive answer is habitat gardening.

[Read More]

Choice Fleabanes for Colorado Gardens

Showy Fleabane, courtesy SW Colorado Wildflowers

Erigeron is a large genus in the Asteraceae/Sunflower family, with about 460 species world-wide, 170 of them native to N. America. Our Rocky Mountain region is home to some of the most garden-worthy species. Fleabane, the common name in English, appears to be derived from a belief that the dried plants repel fleas or that the plants are poisonous to fleas. Erigeron species are host plants to the larvae of some butterfly and moth species,[Read More]

Cheerful Earth Day!

We are grateful to have one day to acknowledge the value of the Earth. Wendell Berry said, “Earth is what we all have in common.” Pope Francis said we all have a shared responsibility for protecting the Earth, our common home, and he urged us to care for the environment. It’s pretty obvious, isn’t it?

If we poison our water, choke our air with carbon dioxide, kill off the diversity of beings, and in general make our living environment weak and unhealthy, we won’t have a decent home for our children and our children’s children.[Read More]

We’re Expecting These New Plants!

Pink Berkeley Tie Dye Tomato

These are the plants we’re expecting this weekend.  They may not all arrive when we expect them – but there are so many great plants to choose from that we’re sure you’ll be satisfied with the selection in store!

TOMATO

Extreme Bush
Carmello
Gold Medal
Magic Bullet
Orange King
Pink Berkeley Tie Dye

PEPPER

Capriglio Rossa
Gatherer’s Gold
King of the North – Sweet
Marconi Red
Poblano
Beaver Dam
Anaheim
Pueblo/Mosco
NuMex 6-4
Sweet Banana
Surmeli

TOMATILLOS

Grande Rio Verde
Purple Blush

 

Aster x frikartii ‘Monch’

We now have a Big Influx of native plants, including many Penstemon species!

PERENNIALS, etc.

Achillea mil. ‘Paprika’
Agastache cana
Agastache ‘Firebird’
Agastache foeniculum, Anise Hyssop (native)
Agastache rupestris
Agastache ‘Sinning’
Akebia quinata – Chocolate vine
Alcea rugosa
Alchemilla mollis
Allium cernuum
Allium Millenium
Anemone ‘Cinderella’, ‘Honorine Jobert’, multifida ‘Rubra’, ‘September Charm’
Antennaria dioica ‘Rubra’
Artemisia ‘Powis Castle’
Asclepias incarnata ‘Cinderella’
Aster ‘Alert’, ‘Lady in Black’, oblongifolius (native), obl. ‘Raydon’s Favorite’
Aster x frikartii ‘Monch’
Astilbe chinensis ‘Pumila’
Baptisia minor
Begonia grandis v. Evansiana
Berlandiera lyrata – Chocolate Flower(native)
Callirhoe involucrata – Poppy Mallow (native)
Campanula rotundifolia
Centaurea montana, Mountain Cornflower
Ceratostigma plumbaginoides, Plumbago
Coreopsis verticillata ‘Moonbeam’
Corydalis ochroleuca
Creeping Thyme, Red, Wooly, White
Delosperma nubigenum dwarf, ‘Granita Orange’, ‘Gold Nugget’, ‘Granita Raspberry’, ‘Red Mountain’
Delphinium ‘Millenium Dwarf Stars’, ‘Summer Blues’
Dicentra eximia (dwarf), ‘King of Hearts’, ‘Luxuriant’, spectabilis ‘Alba’
Dictamnus a. ‘Purpureus’ – Gas Plant
Digitalis grandiflora, x mertonensis – Foxglove varieties
Draba aizoides
Echinacea pallida, Pale Coneflower, purpurea, angustifolia (native), ‘Cheyenne Spirit’
Engelmannia peristenia (native)
Epimedium v. ‘Sulphureum’
Eriogonum ‘Kannah Creek’
Gaillardia ‘Kobold’
Gallium odoratum, Sweet Woodruff, shade
Geranium ‘Johnson’s Blue’ – sun
Geranium ‘Rozanne’
Geum coccineum ‘Koi’, triflorum
‘Goldie’ Golden Creeping Jenny
Helleborus x ‘Orientalis’
Herniaria glabra – Rupturewort
Heuchera ‘Caramel’, ‘Forever Red’, ‘Melting Fire’, ‘Palace Purple’, ‘Ruby Bells’, ‘Silver Scroll’
Hosta ‘Abiqua Drinking Gourd’, ‘Blue Angel’, ‘Blue Mouse Ears’, ‘Dream Queen’, ‘Earth Angel’, ‘First Frost’, ‘Patriot’, ‘Francee’, ‘Guacamole’, ‘Praying Hands’, ‘Rainforest Sunrise’, ‘Regal Splendor’, ‘Royal Standard’
Iberis ‘Autumn Beauty’
Ipomopsis aggregata
Iris pallida ‘Aurea Variegata’
Jovibarba hirta s. arenaria
Lamium ‘Purple Dragon’ – shade
Liatris aspera, ligulistylis
Linum perenne ‘Lewisii’
Lysimachia nummularia ‘Goldie’
Nepeta ‘Jr. Walker’ – catmint
Oenothera ‘Silver Blade’
Origanum ‘Amethyst Falls’, ‘Herrenhausen’, ‘Kent’s Beauty’ – ornamental oregano
Orostachys iwarenge, spinosus
Othonna capensis
Paeonia ‘Duchess De Nemours’, ‘Flame’, ‘Karl Rosenfield’, ‘Red Charm’, ‘Red Sarah Bernhardt’ – Peony, perennial
Papaver ‘Patty’s Plum’, ‘Allegro’, ‘Royal Wedding’, ‘Beauty of Livermore’, Pizzicato – Oriental poppies
Penstemon pinifolius ‘Steppe Suns’
Phlox div, ‘Louisiana Blue’, ‘Pink’, ‘White’
Phlox paniculata ‘Super Ka-Pow Coral’
Polygonatum m. ‘Variegatum’- shade
Pulmonaria ‘Coral Springs’, ‘E.B. Anderson’ – Lungwort – shade
Thymus – Red Creeping, Wooly
Veronica Waterperry Blue
Rosularia chrysantha, serpentinica
Rudbeckia ‘Blackjack Gold’, fulgida v speciaosa, missouriensis, subtomentosa
Salvia azurea ‘Grandiflora’, greggii ‘Furman’s Red’, pachyphylla
Scabiosa caucasica ‘Fama’
Scutellaria ‘Smoky Hills’
Sedum ‘Autumn Fire’, glanduliferum, spurium ‘John Creech’, ‘Matrona’, spectabile ‘Neon’, spurium ‘Tricolor’, tetractinum, f. ‘Weihen. Gold’
Sempervivum ‘Classic’, arach. ‘Cobweb’, cal. ‘Mrs. Giuseppi’, mixed, ‘Red Heart’, c. mon. ‘Red Tips’, ‘Twilight Blues’
Silphium laciniatum, perfoliatum (native)
Solidago ‘Crown of Rays’, speciosa’Wichita Mtn’ (native) – goldenrod
Thalictrum aquilegifolium, rochebrunianum
Trifolium r. ‘Pentaphyllum’
Verbena canadensis
Vernonia lettermannii
Veronica ‘Crystal River’, oletnsis, ‘Purpleicious’, ‘Snowmass’, ‘Tidal Pool, ‘Illumination’
Vinca minor ‘Bowles Variety’, ‘Ralph Shugert’
Viola corsica – corsican violet
Viola wickroti ‘Ultima Morpho’
Zauschneria – ‘Orange Carpet’
Zizia Aptera

AND EVEN MORE!

This Weekend’s New Plants!

Nasturtium

New Plants!

ANNUAL

Calendula: ‘Indian Prince’, ‘Lemon Cream’, ‘Pink Surprise’; Cleome ‘Rose Queen’, ‘Violet Queen’, Coleus ‘Black Dragon’, ‘Rainbow Mix’, ‘Sunset’; ‘Purple Globe’ Amaranth; ‘Dakota Gold’ Helenium (Native); Nasturtium: ‘Alaska Mix’, ‘Black Velvet’, ‘Cherry Rose’, ‘Gleam Mix’, ‘Jewel Mix’, ‘King Theo’, ‘Ladybird’, ‘Moonlight’, ‘Peach Melba’, ‘Salmon Baby’, ‘Tom Thumb’; Nicotiana alata ’Crimson’, ‘Lime’; Nigella ‘Miss Jekyll’ Love in a Mist; Desert Bluebells, Phacelia (Native); ’ Sweet Alyssum ‘Carpet of Snow’; Tanacetum ‘Tetra Wonder’ Double-flowered Feverfew

BIENNIAL

Asphodeline damascena, Ithuriel’s Spear; Digitalis purpureus ’Apricot Beauty’ Foxglove; Eryngium creticum; Erysimum capitatum, Western Wallflower (Native); Thelesperma filifolium, Greenthread, Navajo Tea (Native); Townsendia eximia, Rocky Mt. Townsend Daisy (Native)

PERENNIAL

Achillea ‘Golden Fleece’; Alcea rosea ‘Jet Black’ Hollyhock; Dianthus nardiformis; Draba rigida, Whitlow Grass; Erigeron compositus ‘Lavender’ (Native); ’Pink’ (Native), Erigeron lineaeris, Yellow Fleabane (Native); Erigeron pumilum, Alpine Fleabane (Native); Erigonum jamesii v jamesii (Native); Geum ‘Mrs. Bradshaw’; Hedysarum boreale, Northern Sweetvetch (Native); Heliomeris multiflora, Showy Goldeneye (Native);  Leucanthemum x supubum ‘Becky’, ‘Snowcap’, Compact Shasta Daisy; Lupinus perennis; Lupinus polyphyllus ‘Chatelaine’ (pink/white); ‘My Castle’ (red/white), ‘The Governor’ (Blue/white), Monarda didyma ‘Balmy Purple’, ‘Jacob Cline’ Tall Scarlet Bee balm; Oenothera berlandieri ‘Siskyou Pink’; Oenothera caespitosa, Tufted Evening Primrose (Native); Phlox paniculata ‘Bright Eyes’, ‘Laura’, ‘Nicky’, ‘Red Riding Hood’, ‘Starfire’; Physaria bellii, Bell’s Twinpod (Native); Physostygia ‘Summer Snow, White Obedient Plant; Polemonium viscosum ‘Blue Whirl’; Sagina sublata, Iris Moss; Salvia ‘Blue Hill’; Salvia ‘East Friesland’; Salvia hypargeia; Salvia nemorosa ‘Cardonna’, ‘Rose Marvel’, Scabiosa ‘Flutter Blue’, ‘Flutter White’, ‘Pink Mist’; Solidago ptarmicoides (Native); Sphaeromeria capitata, Rock Tansy (Native); Stachys lanata ‘Helene von Stein’; Symphyotrichum laeve, Smooth Aster BoCo (Native); Thums praecox ‘Coccineus’, Red Creeping Thyme; Thymus pseudolanuginosus, Wooly Thyme; Veronica tauricola, Turkish Rock Speedwell; Verinica ‘Waterperry Blue

 

 

 

 

 

 

Plant More Bulbs!

Lately, I’ve been taking most of my walks in my Longmont neighborhood. It’s rather charming, with impressive mature trees and mostly older homes, some (like ours) a hundred-year-old or older. Nearly all the houses are what my cousin Charlie, when he visited us from the East Coast, called ‘right-sized’ – neither big nor tiny. A few historic homes that belonged to bankers and wealthy merchants are the exceptions. And with these mostly modest homes, there are a surprising number of quite nice gardens.

But in the past two months, I’ve been searching the neighborhood in vain for displays of spring-blooming bulbs in front yards. A little clump of daffodils here, two or three hyacinths there, and an almost complete absence of crocus, snowdrops, glory-of-the-snow, Siberian squill; no ‘botanical’ iris, no species tulips (except at our friend Leslie’s place). What gives?
[Read More]

New Plants – This Weekend!

Penstemon ‘Silverton’

New Plants!

PERENNIALS

Achillea mill. ‘Paprika
Agastache aurantiaca ‘Coronado’    *Plant Select
Allium ‘Millennium’
Aquilegia barnebeyi
Aquilegia chrysantha
Aquilegia coerulea
Aster alpinus ‘Goliath’
Aubrieta deltoidea ‘Purple Gem’
Aurinia saxatilis ‘Gold Ball’
Callirhoe involucrata
Campanula cochleariifolia
Campanula poscharskyana
Centranthus ruber
Cerastium tomentosum
Coreopsis verticillata ‘Moonbeam’
Delosperma ‘Firespinner’       *Plant Select
Delosperma ‘Mesa Verde’       *Plant Select
Delosperma nubigenum
Delosperma ‘Red Mt. Flame’   *Plant Select
Delosperma ‘Table Mountain’   *Plant Select
Dianthus grat. ‘Firewitch’
Epilobium canum garrettii ‘Orange Carpet’

*Plant Select
Erigeron formosissimum ‘Rambler’ *Plant Select
Eriogonum umbellatum
Eriogonum umbellatum v aureum ‘Kannah Creek’   *Plant Select
Erodium chrysanthum        *Plant Select
Fragaria vesca americana –  Wild Strawberry
Gaillardia aristata
Galium odoratum, Sweet Woodruff
Gaura lindheimeri ‘Summer Breeze’
Geranium macrorrhizum ‘Bevan’s Variety’
Geranium viscosissimum
Geum triflorum
Gypsophila repens ‘Rosea’
Helianthemum ‘Wisley Pink’
Heuchera sanguinea ‘Splendens’
Heuchera micrantha ‘Palace Purple’
Iberis sempervirens
Liatris ligulistylus
Liatris punctata
Lupinus polyphyllus ‘The Governor’
Mirabilis multiflora
Monarda fistulosa v menthifolia
Monarda ‘Gardenview Scarlet’
Nepeta x faassenii
Nepeta x faassenii ‘Six Hills Giant’
Nepeta x faassenii ‘Walker’s Low’
Oenothera fremontii ‘Shimmer’ *Plant Select
Oenothera macrocarpa
Origanum levigatum ‘Herrenhausen’
Paxistima canbyi, Mountain Lover
Penstemon linifolia  coloradoensis ‘Silverton’

*Plant Select
Penstemon mensarum
Penstemon rostriflorus
Penstemon xylus, Tushar Penstemon
Potentilla neumanniana ‘Nana’
Prunella laciniata
Pulsatilla vulgaris
Pulsatilla vulgaris ‘Red Clock’
Rudbeckia fulgida ‘Goldsturm’
Salvia azurea grandiflora, Pitcher Sage
Salvia daghestanica, Platinum Sage

*Plant Select
Salvia x lemmonii ‘Windwalker Desert Rose’

*Plant Select
Salvia reptans ‘Autumn Sapphire’

*Plant Select
Salvia ‘Windwalker Royal Red’
Santolina chamaecyparrissus, Lavender Cotton
Saponaria ocymoides, Rock Soapwort
Scrophularia macarantha, Red Birds in a Tree
Sedum acre, Evergreen Stonecrop ‘Goldmoss’
Sedum hybridum, Oakleaf Stonecrop
Sedum rupestre ‘Angelina’
Sedum spurium ‘Red Carpet’
Sedum spurium ‘Voodoo’
Sisyrichium montanum, Mountain Blue-Eyed Grass
Solidago canadensis ‘Golden Baby’
Solidago rugosa ‘Fireworks’
Sphaeralcea coccinea, Cowboy’s Delight
Sphaeralcea munroana, Orange Globe Mallow
Staychs lavandulifolia, Pink Cotton Lamb’s Ear
Teucrium chamaedrys, Wall Germander
Thermopsis divaricarpa, Golden Banner
Thermopsis lupinoides ‘Golden Candles’
Thymus praecox ‘Albiflorus’, White Creeping Thyme
Thymus praecox ‘Coccineus’, Red Creeping Thyme
Thymus praecox ‘Minus’, Dwarf Creeping Thyme
Thymus praecox pseudolanuginosus, Wooly Thyme
Tradescantia occidentalis, Western Spiderwort
Veronica x ‘Crystal River’ *Plant Select
Veronica liwanensis, Turkish Speedwell
Veronica pectinata, Wooly Speedwell
Veronica prostrata, Prostrate Speedwell
Veronica x ‘Snowmass’ Speedwell *Plant Select
Veronica specata incana, Silver Speedwell
Veronica ‘Sunny Border Blue’
Vinca major, Big-leaf Periwinkle
Vinca minor ‘Bowles Variety’
Viola corsica, Corsican Viola
Waldesteinia ternata, Barren Strawberry

 

 

 

 

 

New In Store – This Weekend!

Pansy Ullswater

New Plants!

PANSY, VIOLA

Pansy –  ‘Alpenglow’, ‘Beaconsfield’, ‘Claret’, ‘Silver Bride’, ‘Ullswater’ (pictured)

Viola –  ‘Bambini’, Johnny Jump-Up, ‘White Perfection’

 

PERENNIALS

Achillea – ‘Little Moonshine’, ‘Paprika’

Agastache ‘Blue Fortune’

Ajuga –  reptans ‘Black Scallop’, ‘Bronze Beauty’, ‘Burgundy  Glow’, ‘Catlin’s Giant’; A. tenorii ‘Chocolate Chip’

Coreopsis ‘Moonbeam’

Delosperma (Iceplant) –  ‘Firespinner’, ‘Garnet Jewel of the Desert’, Yellow Hardy Iceplant, ‘Ruby Jewel of the Desert’

Ibiris ‘Purity’

Lamium ‘Orchid Frost’

Oenothera ‘Siskyou Pink’

Phlox – ‘Crimson’s Beauty’, ‘Drummond’s Pink’, ‘Purple Beauty’, ‘White’, ‘Rose Marvel’

Sedum –  ‘Angelina’, ‘Dragon’s Blood’

Stachys ‘Helen von Stein’

Thyme –  ‘Pink Chintz’, Red Creeping Thyme, Elfin, Wooly Thyme, albiflorus

HERBS

Lavender –  ‘Hidcote’, ‘Munstead’, vera, ‘Grosso’

Mint – Peppermint, Spearmint, ‘Kentucky Colonel’

Oregano – Greek Oregano

Sage – Green and Purple Culinary sage

Thyme – Lemon thyme, German Winter thyme

FRUIT

Strawberry – Fragaria vesca ‘Alexandria’, ‘Yellow Wonder’

 

 

 

The Blooming Begins!

Townsendia hookeri, pictured above, is already supporting butterflies! Also known as the Easter Daisy, it blooms for a long time – often through May. This Rocky Mountain native is drought-tolerant, is found in gravelly areas and grasslands, can withstand freezing conditions and snow, and thrives in crevice gardens.  This particular one bloomed this weekend in Eve’s garden in Longmont!

That’s a Milbert’s Tortoiseshell butterfly – the larvae can be found on stinging nettle. Milbert’s Tortoiseshell’s habitat includes most of North America, extending all the way into Canada and Alaska (south of the tundra). We’re delighted to see these harbingers of spring. We usually carry stinging nettle and Townsendia hookeri later in the season, if you’re of a mind to create this habitat in your garden.  For a list of natives we often carry,  Read More….

Spring – The Garden Awakens!

This Thursday, at 3:01AM RMT, is the Spring Equinox. When you wake up Friday, Spring will be here. For gardeners, this moment when night and day, light and darkness, are exactly in balance marks the beginning of our season of hope, and lengthening days. It’s when we spend our time looking closely for the signs of new growth, and beauty. We find it in the hellebores flowering among last season’s leaves (pictured above), the crocus and early species iris, the earliest daffodils, and fragrant hyacinths.[Read More]

You Can Plant These in March

Ribes aureum, Currant

We have shrubs and Perennials you can plant NOW!

If your soil is thawed and you can dig a planting hole, now is a great time to plant our hardy, over-wintered shrubs and perennials!

These shrubs have been over-wintered outdoors, not inside greenhouses or shipped from the west coast. So they don’t have leaves yet (unless they are evergreen), which is a really good thing; it means that they will settle into your garden and leaf out when the time is right, preventing freeze-damage to prematurely forced foliage. They have also been grown in our own excellent potting soils, which contain mycorrhizae, organic matter, and nutrients, which will help them adapt quickly to your garden soil. In addition, we have lots of perennials that were over-wintered in an unheated structure. These, too, are ready for planting if you are! Here are profiles of a handful of the shrubs ready now![Read More]

Getting Ready! by Eve Reshetnik Brawner

For me, there are no more satisfying late-winter activities than sowing seeds and nurturing seedlings. Preparing, choosing, watching, and waiting offer a quiet form of excitement that grows gradually to a joyous crescendo when robust home-grown seedlings are ready for transplanting into the garden or larger pots. I hope many of you will get to experience this pleasure. Our seed selection this year is excellent, and now is the time to begin your indoor seed-sowing. [Read More]

Get a Jump on Spring!

Welcome to Harlequin’s Gardens’ 33rd year! We care about your gardening success, your health, and our planet. We have spent the winter planning, planting, ordering, cleaning, repairing and getting ready to host you, and we have seeds, seed-starting supplies, gardening tools, books, soils and soil-nourishing amendments, and a great line-up of empowering classes!

And with the arrival of warm weather, our plants are coming; in fact, our hardy over-wintered plants can be planted in March! ALL of our plants are free from bee and insect-killing neonicotinoid pesticides! Our vegetable and herb starts are grown organically and all Harlequin-grown plants are Pesticide -Free.

NEW THIS YEAR:  We have been working hard to upgrade your experience at Harlequin’s Gardens Nursery and Harlequin’s Wholesale.

[Read More]

Evergreen, Eversilver & Beyond! By Eve Reshetnik Brawner

Harlequin’s Silver Germander

If you’re a transplanted gardener from a different region of the country or the world, you may not yet be aware of the amazing plant palette at our disposal for providing lively winter presence in the garden. With our treasury of native flora and plants from analogous temperate-region steppe, desert, and montane parts of the world, we can easily bring wonderful color, texture and form to our winter gardens. These ‘broadleafed’ evergreen, ever-silver, ever-blue, white, and even orange, red, yellow or purple plants tend to serve as mats or spreading ground-covers, or as ‘sub-shrubs’ – mounding plants with  woody structure.

If you’re looking for beautiful, hardy, water-wise plants to carry your ornamental garden through all four seasons, here’s a taste of the possibilities from Harlequin’s Gardens:

EverGREEN:
Bear-Claw Hellebore –  Helleborus foetida
Creeping Mahonia
Creeping Thyme (many varieties)
Daphne varieties
Delosperma selections
Dwarf Broom (Genista lydia)
Ephedra minuta (minima)
Evergreen Candytuft
Geranium x cantabrigiense selections
Hardy Manzanita (Arctostaphylos) – ‘Chieftain’, ‘Panchito’ ‘Mock Bearberry’ and uva-ursi(Kinnikinnick) Hen & Chicks – green varieties

Agave

Jasmine Dianthus (Dianthus petraeus ssp noeanus)
‘Marion Sampson’ Hummingbird Coyote Mint
Narbonne Flax
Paxistima canbyi
Penstemon – Pine-leaf, Bridge’s, Tushar Mountain, Palmer’s, Desert, Blue Mist, many others!
Prickly Thrift (Acantholimon sp.)
Sunrose (Helianthemum varieties)
Sulphur Buckwheat species
Teucriums: Round-leaf Germander, Wall Germander
Veronica – Wooly, Thyme-leaf, Prostrate, Turkish, Crystal Rivers, Snowmass, Tidal Pool

 

Frost on the Lambs Ears

EverSILVER or GREY:
Bell’s Twinpod
English lavender varieties
Filigree Daisy
Fringed Sage
Grey Santolina
Harlequin’s Silver Germander
Hen & Chicks- cob-web varieties
Lamb’s Ears
Mojave Sage
Prairie Sage

Pussytoes
Sand Sage
Seafoam Sage
Silver-edge Horehound
Partridge Feather
Prickly Thrift (Acantholimon sp.)
Wisley Pink Sunrose

EverWHITE:
Hen & Chicks – cob-web varieties
Teucrium gnaphalodes
Eriogonum ovalifolium

 

Eriogonum ‘Kannah Creek’ in Winter

EverBLUE:
Stonecress – Aethionema grandiflora, A. schistosum
Rue (Ruta graveolens)
Blue Avena grass
Blue Fescue grass

Evergreen with Winter-RED, PURPLE, or ORANGE color:
Hen& Chicks – red, purple, pink varieties (color deepens in winter)
Creeping Sedum varieties – Dragonsblood, Red Carpet, VooDoo, , album,
Yellow Hardy Iceplant (red), Table Mountain Hardy Iceplant (purple)
‘Kannah Creek’ Sulfur Buckwheat (deep red)
Opuntia basilaris (purple)
Sedum ‘Angelina’ (orange)

 

Getting Your Soil Ready for Spring

Sunny days in March offer the perfect opportunities to prepare your soil for planting. What do our soils need that they don’t already have? – oxygen-air and biology-carbon. Increasing the air and carbon in our soils support soil life which in turn supports plant life. Our tight clay soils that tend to exclude oxygen and are deficient in organic matter can use some help.

If you are starting a new planting bed or reviving a neglected one, adding compost is key to your plants’ success.

[Read More]

Tending a Changing World

As gardeners, and in community, we can make a real difference to protect and support the planet. We are living in very challenging times. Uncontrolled assaults on our planet’s resources and inhabitants, climate crisis, a political culture of runaway collusion and corruption, our personal safety and our personal freedoms under threat, perpetual wars, etc., etc. And what’s propelling it all is the power of Big Money. And Big, Corporate Money has been behind virtually all of our social, economic and environmental ills. For a very long time, corporations and their allies in power have spent vast fortunes to manipulate us in ways that separate us from each other, make us fear each other, pit us against each other. This is all for the purpose of distracting us from the power we could exert if we came together in community.

[Read More]

Fire-Wise Gardening, for Safety and Renewal

Fire is on our minds. How to prevent it. How to curtail or control it. How to live with it. How to use it constructively. We remember the early winter Marshall Fire at the end of 2021 with feelings of grief and
anxiety, and watch in horror as fires ravage Los Angeles and beyond. Folks living in the relatively wild foothills and mountains have always been aware of their vulnerability to wildfire.

But now city-dwellers and people in close-in suburbs are awakened to the threat facing them (us). We are offering guidance through education, and have scheduled a Fire-Wise Landscaping class with professional landscaper Bill Melvin in April. Watch for details as our 2025 class schedule, including winter classes, develops.[Read More]