We are in the last week of Pollinator Month. We still have a lot of good pollinator perennials and shrubs. Our pollinator garden is looking beautiful and many plants have labels. This garden was given a boost last spring by a grant from People and Pollinators Action Network, plus a lot of Harlequin’s plants. Last Saturday Mikl led a tour of the garden for the Garden Conservancy a national nonprofit working to share and celebrate America’s gardens.
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Just in: Two Rare Native Shrubs
We just got in two plants we have had many requests for: come soon, supplies are limited.
Boulder Raspberry
Boulder Raspberry, Rubus deliciosus: This lovely local native shrub is adorned with large single white blossoms that look similar to wild roses, blooming in May and June. Pollinators that are attracted to Boulder Raspberry are: Bumblebees, native solitary bees like metallic green sweat bees, mason bees and mining bees, also honey bees, lady bugs, butterflies and beneficial syrphid flies. It grows 3-5’ high and wide with arching stems. Although it is named Rubus deliciosus, it is neither a thorny raspberry, nor are the fruits delicious. But it is a beautiful shrub for the home landscape. It grows best in partial shade with water once a week.
Leadplant
Amorpha canescens, Silver Leadplant – This Colorado native plant fits into small water-wise landscapes, growing only 2’-4’ tall and wide. In June/July it blooms with showy spikes of purple flowers which are rich in both nectar and pollen. Pollinators include Bumblebees, metallic green sweat bees, plasterer bees, leaf-cutter bees, butterflies, beneficial wasps and is a host plant for butterflies. The small compound leaves add a lovely texture, and the plant is nitrogen-fixing.
Mycorrhizae bring water and vitality to plants
root system with myccorhizae
Mycorrhizae are fungi that form mutually beneficial relationships with plants. Over 90% of all plants on Earth form these relationships with plant roots: plants share the food sugars they produce through photosynthesis, and mycorrhizae, with their extensive mycelial network, bring water and nutrients to the plants. This relationship is often essential to the survival of plants growing in harsh conditions or through climate extremes. [Read More]
Perfect Time to Plant Tomatoes, Peppers, Eggplants, and Annuals in Containers!
Tidy Treats tomato
Now that hot weather is here to stay for a while, we can plant outdoor containers for our balconies, porches and patios without having to worry about cold nights. We have plenty of great varieties to choose from, and superior potting soils like Ocean Forest and Coco Loco. At last count, we had just a few large decorative ceramic pots left.[Read More]
Now Featuring our Best Selection of Sustainable Roses!
Darlow’s Enigma
Though I’ve often talked to you about native and water-wise plants, 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, Banshee and Desiree Parmentier, have been in my garden for 34 years – far longer than I have. [Read More]
Blue Blazes is here! Pollinators & Gardeners Rejoice!
Blue blazes
One of our favorite hardy Hummingbird Mint varieties, ‘Blue Blazes’, is ready now in 1-gallon pots, perfect for summer planting. For many years, the gorgeous specimen in Eve’s water-wise front yard elicited admiration, comments and questions from passing pedestrians, cyclists and motorists. Many asked ”What is that shrub with the glowing purple-magenta flower spikes?”
This vigorous, showy, large (40-50” tall x 24-30”w) native hybrid blooms non-stop from mid-June to fall, providing a tremendous pollen and nectar source for hummingbirds, butterflies, and bees. The fragrant foliage resists deer and rabbits. Plant in well-drained, low-fertility soil, in full sun. Hardy in Zones 5 to 9. ’Blue Blazes’ was bred by our friend and Colorado horticultural star, Kelly Grummons. Eve’s trees eventually shaded out her ‘Blue Blazes’.
Also available now in #1 pots: Agastache ‘Poquito Butter Yellow’, a newer dwarf, bushy hummingbird mint (10 – 13”h x 15”w) for smaller gardens, ‘hell-strip’ plantings, containers or mass plantings. Its fresh, buttery color is new to Agastache, and the large flowers keep coming
from mid-June to hard frost. Dead-head spent blooms in summer, but leave some spikes standing for the Goldfinches and other songbirds that love the seeds. Plant in full sun in low-fertility, well-drained soil (not heavy clay). ‘Poquito Butter Yellow’attracts butterflies, hummingbirds and native bees, and is resistant to deer and rabbits. Hardy in zones 5 to 10.
Plants for Shade – Hosta and more!
Dicentra
As much as we are looking forward to summer heat and sun, we will be equally grateful for a bit of cool, shady respite. Many of us living in older neighborhoods enjoy mature trees that provide quite a bit of shade. These present a challenge: what plants will thrive beneath them and in their shadow? Right now, Harlequin’s has our biggest selection of plants for dry shade, moist shade, and moderate shade.[Read More]
Explore New Dimensions with Vines
Lonicera x brownii ‘Dropmore Scarlet’
Vines are plants that grow stems so long that they either ‘crawl’ along the ground or use a method of climbing using twining, tendrils, leaf-stems that wrap, hold-fasts, aerial rootlets, or hooked thorns. Many a wall, fence or planting patch cries out for the fabulous color, texture, shading, ground-covering, screening, bird habitat and fragrance opportunities offered by vines.
Native Shrubs for the Garden and Landscape
Mikl with Desert willow
Desert willow in bloom
Harlequin’s Gardens is famous for our selection of Native Shrubs. Not only do we have them when few other nurseries do, but we know them and we have mature specimens planted in our display gardens. These woody plants that are so well adapted to Colorado conditions are often drought tolerant, low maintenance, bee and pollinator-supporting, wind-tolerant, cold-tolerant and good-looking. Like many shrubs, some benefit from a once-a-year pruning to remove dead flowers before they make seeds. This will make them more tolerant to drought and snow and wind, but seeds can be left for the birds and pruned late fall.
Native shrubs can be grown together for a very water-wise and low maintenance garden that is tied together visually with a fine woodchip mulch.
Fernbush (Chamaebatiaria millifolium) is a beautiful Plant Select® shrub that is usually 4’- 6’ tall and wide with fern-like leaves that come out in mid January or February. It is very tolerant of dry conditions, heat and bright sun. In summer, clusters of small white flowers cover the bush densely and often bloom a little more in fall. These flowers are extremely attractive to beneficial insects, especially native, non-aggressive wasps which help keep down populations of pests and are intent on pollen, not people. This shrub is tough enough for the back 40 and attractive enough for the front yard. It can be sheared (or pruned) lightly after blooming for a tidier appearance and to encourage rebloom. Fernbush is native to Idaho, Utah and northern Arizona.
Fernbush
Chilopsis linearis is called Desert Willow because it has narrow, willow-like leaves and is very drought-tolerant. It is a small tree 6’-15’ with an open structure and does not leaf out until May, even late May. It is related to Catalpa tree and Trumpet Vine. The orchid-like flowers are so surprising and breath-taking; ruffled, trumpet-shaped, pink to red-purple, striped purple inside. Chilopsis prefers dry, loose soils, but clay is OK if it is seldom watered. At night it is visited by hawkmoths and is scented of violets according to Bob Nold. He also says it “…is the toughest shrub that can be grown in our garden…I have never watered my plants.” The flowers bloom for a long time and are followed by narrow pods that are not messy. Chilopsis is native to New Mexico, Nevada and Utah. Books often say it is hardy to zone 7, but we have specimens over 10 years old at Harlequin’s and Denver Botanic Gardens has many older trees. Often, the flowering tips die and look better pruned off.
Dwarf blue rabbitbrush
Dwarf Rabbitbrush (Ericameria or Chrysothamnus) has been called The Gem of the Tribe. It is a compact shrub 1’-2’ high and 2’-3’ wide with short and narrow bluish leaves and clouds of golden yellow flowers in throughout autumn. The flowers are very attractive to pollinators; it is a crucial late-season food source, supplying nectar and pollen for native bees, honeybees, Monarch and other butterflies, moths and even hummingbirds. Once established, this shrub thrives with little or no watering. It also provides a welcome display of color in the late season and if it is sheared after flowering, will stay compact and attractive enough for the front yard. It is native near Harlequin’s in the open and dry high desert and steppe, and in much of Colorado.
Prune Now to Keep Woody Plants Smaller
Do you have a tree or shrub that you’d like to restrain from getting much larger? For the next 3-4 weeks, pruning will be the most effect in reducing the size of woody plants. As we near the Summer Solstice, this year on June 21, we are approaching the midpoint in the growth cycle. This is the time when the days are longest and sunlight is strongest in the northern hemisphere. Woody plants start growing rapidly in early spring using energy that was stored in the roots and branches last fall. By mid-summer, the tree’s resources are being stored in the foliage to support photosynthesis.
So, when we prune at this time, we are removing these resources for growth. This is why summer pruning slows growth. By late summer and fall the nutrients are again being stored in the roots and branches, so pruning removes fewer growth-inducing resources. This is also the reason that fertilizing in late summer and fall is the best time to strengthen a tree or shrub, and support development of the buds that will become next year’s flowers and fruits. Note that solstice pruning of trees and shrubs that bloom in mid to late summer will remove the current year’s bloom and fruiting potential (Bluemist Spirea, Russian Sage, Golden Raintree, Rose of Sharon, Seven Son Flower, etc.)
Incidentally, If you would like to keep certain tall fall-blooming perennials more compact and stocky and less floppy or top-heavy, you can shear them back by a third to a half in late June/early July. This works well for tall asters and goldenrods, Blue Sage (Salvia azurea), Agastache.
More plants coming! Others selling out fast!
Hostas
First of all, we have MANY plants just becoming ready, MANY we had held back for lack of time and space. So just because we had a huge influx of perennials a couple of weeks ago doesn’t mean we’d brought them all out for sale. But here they come now! Also, we’re now bringing out flats and flats of perennials now that they’re fully rooted into their pots. And these all look glorious!
Many are specialty items, including great Native and Pollinator Favorites! At the same time, if you’re looking for Peonies, Hosta, Ferns, Bleeding Hearts, Lungworts (Pulmonaria), Variegated False Forget-me-not (Brunnera), Hellebores, Golden Wood Poppies (Stylophorum diphylum) and some other classic long-lived spring perennials, these sell out quickly and will not be re-stocked until next year, so come for them now!
A note of advice about plants in small pots or 6-packs: These may have come recently from greenhouse conditions, so be sure to water them frequently until you get them planted in the ground or in larger pots.
Penstemon palmeri – Palmer’s Beardtongue
Palmer’s Beardstongue
2-5’ tall x 1-2’wide, Full Sun
Hardy to 6500’
Deer-resistant
Stop the car! What’s that mass of pink soaring above the roadside slopes? The largest of the hardy Penstemons, both in plant size and flower size, Palmer’s is a magnificent plant with a commanding presence. Above the substantial and attractive serrated, fleshy gray, evergreen leaves, towering flower spikes from 2 to 5’ tall display large, wide-mouthed light pink flowers marked with darker veins, and exuding a sweet fragrance.
These are specifically adapted to accommodate larger pollinators, particularly bumblebees, carpenter bees and hummingbirds. Butterflies and moths also visit them. Native to dry washes, sandy plains, and canyon slopes of the Intermountain West and Southwest, including Colorado and Wyoming, Palmer’s Penstemon colonizes open, well-drained soils from desert foothills to about 6,500 feet elevation. Adaptation
to poor, gravelly soils and periodic drought makes it a perfect choice for xeriscape and low-water gardens. Widely adapted and requiring minimal care, it will thrive and naturalize from seed, and can form impressive colonies.
Compost Tea Featuring Local TerraForma Compost Ready this Weekend!
Brewing Compost Tea
You can think of compost tea as vitamins for plants; they are a great overall plant health booster. In turn, healthy plants are better able to resist pests and diseases. Our customers have told us that our compost tea has very clearly strengthened and improved the growth of their plants. Benefits associated with compost tea include:
Improves soil health. If soil is nutrient-rich, the need for fertilizer is minimized.
Improves water retention. This reduces the need for frequent watering.
Improves soil structure. The biological components in a soil are what create its structure. For
good soil structure, all organism groups in the food web – bacteria, fungi, protozoa, nematodes
and micro arthropods – need to be present. By using compost tea you are adding this large
spectrum of beneficial microbes.
Stimulates plant root growth. Deeper roots retain moisture better and help reduce runoff.
Rocky Mountain Native Plant Primer
The Rocky Mountain Native Plant Primer: 225 Plants for an Earth-Friendly Garden
by Lauren Springer and Bryan Fischer
The great Colorado gardening book we’ve been waiting years for is HERE AT LAST! Over the years, Colorado’s best and brightest garden writers, including Lauren Springer, have produced excellent books to help gardeners understand and work with the weather, soils, plants, pests and peculiarities of gardening here in the Rocky Mountain region. But before long, they were all out of print! With so many new gardeners, ‘new-to-Colorado’ gardeners and ‘new-to-natives’ gardeners needing expert advice for gardening HERE, in our various situations, from the urban-suburban metro area, to the plains, foothills, steppe and mountains, the lack of good resources in print was a big problem.
Fortunately, Lauren Springer returns, partnering with colleague Bryan Fischer, with an essential resource for gardening successfully and beautifully with native plants to attract and support pollinators and beneficial wildlife, and reduce maintenance at the same time! The wonderful photographs, the organization and presentation of accurate, practical growing information, and the solid decades of experience behind this book make it a treasured resource you will refer to for a lifetime. And remember – Harlequin’s Gardens members get 25% off books all year long!
New Perennials, Vines, and Annuals!
This Weekend! New Perennials, Vines, and Annuals
Here’s a glimpse of some of the influx of plants we expect to have ready for you by this weekend! Some are rare finds in limited quantities, so try not to miss out! .
Agastache cana – Double Bubble Hummingbird Mint
Artemisia frigida – Fringed Sage
Asclepias incarnata – Rose Milkweed
Dalea purpurea – Purple Prairie Clover
Engelmannia peristenia – Engelmann’s Daisy
Iris missouriensis – Native Wild Iris
Liatris pychnostachya – Prairie Blazing Star
Nepeta x faassenii -‘Walker’s Low’ Catmint
Tradescantia occidentalis – Western Spiderwort
Dahlia – Bishop’s Children
Dahlia – Short Mix
Nasturtium – Alaska Mix
Nasturtium – Jewel
Nasturtium – Ladybird
Nasturtium – Peach Melba
Nasturtium – Tall Mix
Nasturtium – Tiptop
Pansy – Velvet Mix
Poppy – Lauren’s Grape
Poppy – Mission Bells
Poppy – California Orange
AND MORE!
Cool-Season Vegetable Starts expected 3/26/26
Cold-Season Vegetable Starts – March
We’re very excited this week to debut spring vegetable starts that MASA has grown for us! These bioregionally-adapted varieties are so robust and full of vitality, and so irresistible! They are also selected for resilience in our wide weather swings. If you can water your garden, these plants will give you a bountiful head-start on home-grown, delicious, nutritious, greens! We’ll be bringing in more each week.
Arugula Astro
Broccoli Nutribud
Broccoli Umpqua
Cabbage, red Amarant
Cabbage, green Tendersweet
Cabbage, green Tiara
Chard Bali Red
Chard Bright Lights
Chard Fordhook
Collards, Flash
Kale, curly purple Redbor
Kale, lacinato Black Magic
Kale, curly DarkiborCo
Lettuce, butter Adriana
Lettuce, Romaine Forellenschluss
Lettuce, dwf Rom. Spretnak
Lettuce, red leaf Hyper Red Rumpled
Lettuce, green leaf Winter Density
Shrubs and Grasses this Weekend!
Tufted hairgrass
Trees:
Amelanchier alnifolia (native)
Shrubs:
Amelanchier alnifolia ‘Regent’ (native)
Peraphyllum microphyllum (native)
Prunus besseyi ‘Pawnee Buttes’ (native)
Prunus besseyi ‘Flatiron’ (native)
Syringa vulgaris – Common Lilac
Viburnum x ‘Sarcoxie’
Cotinus coggygria ‘Winecraft Black’ – Purple Smokebush
Raspberries:
Heritage and Polana red raspberries
Grasses:
Deschampsia caespitosa – Tufted Hairgrass (native)
Panicum virgatum ‘Shenandoah’ – Red Switchgrass
Schizachyrium scoparium ‘Prairie Blues’ – (native)
Perennials:
Sedum ‘Purple Emperor’
groundcover – Ephedra minima
First Tomatoes and Peppers!
There is nothing like a homegrown tomato! Here they come, Harlequin’s’ fabulous and enormous selection of tomato starts, and some of the first peppers, too! We cover all the bases, including varieties of many uses, sizes, colors, flavors, days to maturity, origins and special qualities, but they are time-proven and resilient in
Colorado.
Tomatoes:
[Read More]
May To-Do List
TREES & SHRUBS: To avoid breakage from heavy snow, periodically put on your boots, heavy coat, and a hat with a brim, and gently shake snow off trees and shrubs that are already in leaf.
ROSES: If you have not already pruned them, now is the time to remove canes that are dead,
damaged, crossing and rubbing, or growing out of bounds. Make clean cuts with a good, sharp
pair of clippers. Avoid cutting back roses that only bloom in spring until after they’ve bloomed.[Read More]
Tomatoes Worth Waiting for!
Tomatoes: We’ve always started bringing out our outstanding selection of tomato varieties in the second week of April, but a little glitch with our new grower has caused a slight delay…we expect them to arrive starting the week of April 21st. So please hang in there with us – our exceptional, locally adapted varieties are truly worth waiting for!
Anasazi
Aurora det.
[Read More]
More vegetables for your Summer Garden!
Planting a vegetable garden provides access to fresher, more nutritious, and organic produce while also cutting down on grocery bills. It acts as a therapeutic, stress-relieving activity that offers exercise and sunshine, alongside positive environmental impacts like lowering your carbon footprint and supporting local pollinators.
The list of magnificently MASA started veggies is updated to incude:
Arugula – Astro
Arugula – Surrey
Broccoli – Happy Rich
Broccoli – Nutribud
Broccoli – Spring Raab
Broccoli – Umpqua
Cabbage (Green) – Tendersweet
Cabbage (Green) – Tiara
Cabbage (Red) – Amarant
Chard – Bali Red
Chard – Bright Lights
Chard – Fordhook
Collard Greens – Cash Crop
Collard Greens – Flash
Kale (Curly) – Rainbow
Kale (Curly) – Redbor
Kale (Lacinato) – Black Magic
Kale (Lacinato) – Darkibor
Kale (Lacinato) – Mamba
Lettuce (Butterhead) – Australe
Lettuce (Butterhead) – Nancy
Lettuce (Green Leaf) – Green Pack
Lettuce (Little Gem) – Spretnak
Lettuce (Oak Leaf) – Oscarde
Lettuce (Red Butter) – Alkindus
Lettuce (Red Leaf) – Hyper Red
Lettuce (Red Leaf) – Ruby Sky
Lettuce (Red Romain) – CalShot
Lettuce (Romain) – Solid Green
Onion (Cippolini) – Gold Coin
Onion (Grilling) – Red Bottle
Onion (Keeper) – Front Range Globe
Onion (Keeper) – Rosa Milano
Onion (Keeper) – Valencia
Pac Choi – Little Shanghai
Pac Choi – Mei Quing
Pac Choi – Tatsoi
Pac Choi – Win Win Choi
Radicchio – Indigo
Spinach – Hammerhead
Spinach – Kolibri
Spinach – Rangitoto
Dill – Bouquet
Cilantro – Calypso
Acer Tataricum – ‘Hot Wings’- Tartarian Maple
‘Hot WIngs’ Tartarian Maple
Looking for an attractive, tough, adaptable, cold-hardy, water-wise small tree with bright and unique seasonal interest? This very special selection of TatarianMaple fits the bill beautifully. Discovered as a chance seedling by the horticulturists at Fort Collins Wholesale Nursery, this tree stood out from all the other Tatarian maples for six weeks every summer with its breath-taking scarlet red samaras (wing-like seeds) contrasting with the rich green foliage giving it an appearance of being in bloom. Growers also noticed that Tatarian Maple was much more tolerant of our alkaline soils than other cold-hardy ornamental maples.
Fruit Trees!
“Even if I knew that tomorrow the world would go to pieces, I would still plant my apple tree.” This famous quote, often attributed to Martin Luther, symbolizes hope, faith, and the importance of stewardship. It highlights that planting a tree is a proactive, hopeful act for the future, regardless of current circumstances.
If you are wondering what the best fruit trees are to plant in your yard, join Mikl Brawner’s class this coming Saturday, Best Fruit Trees for Colorado REGISTER HERE
Serviceberry
Indigenous scientist and author Robin Wall Kimmerer tells us that the serviceberry’s relationship with the natural world is an embodiment of interconnectedness and gratitude. The tree distributes its wealth of berries to meet the needs of its natural community, and this ensures its own survival.
This is the ethic of reciprocity that that lies at the heart of the gift economy, in which wealth and security come from the quality of our relationships, not from the illusion of self-sufficiency.
New Perennials, Fruit trees and Berry buses are Just in – and Ready to be Planted!
Aquilegia chrysantha
Blossoms are blooming, fruit trees are full of promise, perennial flowers (both natives and non-natives) and vines are emerging from their seasonal slumber. Some new perennial arrivals that are available include:
Natives:
Aquilegia chrysantha, Yellow Columbine
Aquilegia barnebyi, Barneby’s Columbine
Native and Waterwise Shrubs in Full Bloom -Ready to Plant
Ribes aureum, Golden Currant
You have likely been seeing delightfully spectacular shows of blooms around the Front Range these past couple of weeks. There are currently many gorgeous spring blooming shrubs to choose from at Harlequin’s -your trusted source for native and waterwise shrubs. In stock and ready to plant are:
Amelanchier alnifolia, Saskatoon serviceberry
Amelanchier regent, ‘Regent’ serviceberry
Artemesia ludoviciana, White sagebrush
Water-wise Shrubs Available Now
Our healthy, overwintered and water-wise shrubs are waking up! Choose from hardy Manzanita, Banana Yucca, Creeping Mahonia and Western Sagebrush.
- Arcostaphylos x coloradensis, Mock Bearberry Manzanita (pictured here) is an outstanding selection of a native broadleaf evergreen shrub. Needs good drainage, and prefers afternoon shade. 10-18″ high x 26-60″ wide. Deer resistant, provides winter interest, supports pollinators. Up to 8125′. From Plant Select.
- Arctostaphylos x coloradoensis ‘Chieftain’ adda a beautiful structural element to landscapes and introduce a more natural look to our man-made urban environments. Plant them around large pine trees, over retaining walls and as foundation plantings around homes and businesses. The green, rounded leaves last all year, including through the winter! These shrubs grow to a mature height of around two feet tall.
Perfect Houseplants for Valentine’s Day!
Who doesn’t love houseplants? Here a few that make perfect gifts.
Ceropegia woodii ‘Variegata’ (Variegated String of Hearts). The heart shaped leaves boast greens, creams, and blushy pinks. While this plant may look delicate, it’s hardy, needing bright indirect light, and little water. Let it dry out completely between waterings. This variegated version of the “String of Hearts” vine displays beautifully cascading in a hanging basket. Its petite heart-shaped leaves boast greens, creams, and blush pinks, along with small mauve pipe-shaped flowers. While this wonderful Valentine’s day gift looks delicate, the care is quite easy. It requires bright indirect light and because String of Hearts is a succulent, let it dry out completely between waterings, generally about 2-3 weeks during the growing season and every 4 weeks during the dormant season. Make sure the pot has plenty of drainage so the roots don’t rot.
Stromanthe ‘Triostar’ (Triostar Stromanthe). This striking tropical plant’s long leaves are green and cream, with magenta undersides. The leaves change position throughout the day. They prefer to have more consistent water, generally water thoroughly when the top inch or two of soil is dry. An occasional misting benefits this plant as it helps mimics its natural jungle-like habitat.
Ficus ‘Ruby’ (Ruby Rubber Tree). This pink-tinged variety of the standard Rubber Tree adds an interesting splash of color to any space. They typically grow with multiple stems each with multi-colored leathery leaves, with the newest growth showing the most intense red/pink coloring. The Ruby Rubber Tree prefers bright indirect light with moderate moisture. Generally, they prefer a thorough watering when the top 2 inches of soil is dry.Roses that Thrive!
Roses primarily symbolize love, passion, admiration, and beauty, with specific meanings varying by color and culture. At Harlequin’s we take pride in our excellent selection as well as the confidence that you will take home a healthy and robust rose for your garden. We currently have a spectacular selection in a rainbow of colors. Listed by Name, Height, Color, and Fragrance.
AC Navy Lady– 2-3′, Dark red, Light
Autumn Sunblaze– 1-2′, Orange blend, None
Awakening– 10’+, Light Pink, Moderate
Whiskbroom Parsley
Whiskbroom Parsley
In spite of the drought, rambles in local open space parks reveal the early signs of spring. Now showing at a park near you, a conspicuous star is Whiskbroom Parsley (Harbouria trachypleura), a genus with just a single species. Native to Colorado, Wyoming and New Mexico, we’ve encountered it from the lower foothills to subalpine locations, on dry, sunny, rocky slopes, but it is even more at home in moist meadows, grasslands and under trees.
Many ‘wild parsley’ species are highly toxic, but this one is edible and was commonly used in culinary and medicinal ways by native Americans. The very fine, bright green dill-like foliage is surprising for a dryland plant, and the umbels (heads) of tiny, bright yellow flowers are an important nectar source for many native pollinators and beneficial insects. This plant is not in commerce, as it spends years developing its deep soil-stabilizing taproot before producing much top-growth, let alone flowering. Enjoy it in the wild!
Dahlias for Color and Beauty!
Hapet Daydream Dahlia
Colorado gardens provide just the right amount of heat and sun that our locally-sourced dahlias need for spectacular summer shows. Our selection of tubers is especially strong this year!
Choose from: Bracken Palomino, Brookside Snowball, Hapet Daydream (pictured above), Kara Sangria, Mondriaan, MM Buttercream, Mikayla Miranda, PG Woodhouse, Robann Creamsicle, Tanita, Orange Symphony.
Descriptions:
Bracken Palamino -Large 6-8″ Orange Sherbet blooms. 5′ tall.
Brookside Snowball – 4″ pure White blooms, 4′ tall.
Hapet Daydream – 3-4″ wide ball form, blend of Pink, Yellow and White.
Kara Sangria – Brilliant combination of Salmon, Pink and vibrant Yellow in a cactus form, 4′ tall.
Houseplants for Winter Health!
Snake Plant, Sansevieria spp.
When the world outside turns dormant, houseplants become essential indoor companions Bringing greenery into your home during the winter offers several science-backed benefits:
- Natural Humidifiers: Central heating systems can drop indoor humidity to as low as 10%. Plants like ferns release moisture through transpiration, which helps combat dry skin, sore throats, and respiratory irritation.
- Mental Health Support: The presence of greenery is a powerful antidote to “winter blues”. Tending to plants serves as a mindful ritual that reduces cortisol levels.
- Improved Air Quality: Since windows stay shut in the winter, indoor air pollutants can accumulate. Hardier winter-friendly plants like Snake Plant (pictured here) and ZZ Plant help filter out common toxins while replenishing oxygen levels.
- Enhanced Focus: Studies suggest that being around indoor plants can boost concentration and memory retention by up to 20%!
This week we have a wonderful selection. Here are a few of our favorites:
Protecting Trees and Shrubs in Winter
Another January day in the 50s? The buds are swelling, crocus are blooming. Only one other recorded winter was this warm and dry. Will these extreme conditions be harmful to our trees and shrubs? We don’t need to panic; our care can help.
Trees and shrubs do have energy reserves; they have evolved to be capable of living through difficult conditions. Many shrubs need less water and can regrow from their roots. It is normal for buds to be swelling somewhat in January. Trees and shrubs are making leaf buds all winter so that when the day length and warmth of spring arrive, the leaves can unfurl and start photosynthesizing. And if temperatures drop dramatically or suddenly and kill buds, a healthy tree has “back-up” buds and enough energy to develop a new set of buds. However, multiple successive seasons of stressful conditions can cause serious damage or death. Here’s how we can help trees get through difficult times:
Rising Grocery Costs Got you Down? Plant These Veggies for Storage, and Savings
Grocery prices are projected to rise even more this summer. You can save, by planting your own veggies for storage. These delicious, hardy varieties are some of the longest-storing, and can be enjoyed for most of the winter, and even into spring.
Potatoes: While all the potatoes we offer (usually available in March) are delicious and hardy, these are the best ‘keepers’: HARVEST MOON -85-100 days. Round tuber with purple skin and deep yellow flesh. Firm texture after cooking, with a nutty taste. Good for roasting, baking, soups, and chips; NICOLA – 85 – 105 days. Early. Thin skinned, yellow inside and out. Good for winter storage; SANGRE – 80-90 days. Midseason. Beautiful red skinned variety with shallow eyes and medium-sized oblong tubers. Originally released by Colorado State University in 1982, Sangre ranks high in taste tests with creamy white flesh that is especially delicious boiled or baked.
Take your Gardening to the Next Level with Essential Self-Care Practices!
The benefits of gardening on mental and physical well-being are renowned. But here across the Front Range gardening isn’t just laying around in the hammock! (although there is that, too.) For gardening to truly increase your quality of life, a bit of pre-season preparation pays off.
Skin Care: Stock your cabinet with special skin-saving products now. Our continued dedication and commitment to sustainability extends to what you put onto your body. This season, our excellent selection of body care products that are completely non-toxic and chemical-free. We offer our favorite small-batch, local artisan-crafted products including soaps, lotions, specialty herbal salves, facial toner, lip balms, and our exclusive, famous Dr. Brawner’s Aftershave! [Read More]
May Day Week Celebration and Sale!
At Harlequin’s Gardens, we love to celebrate May Day. It is an ancient festival welcoming Spring and celebrating the beauty, fertility, and abundance of the earth.
At our May Day Festivals, we bring you beautiful, authentic music and dance that you’re unlikely to hear elsewhere, all from top-notch, talented local players including the Maroon Bells Morris Dancer, Benjamin J. Allen, Nicolette Andres, and Tea at Six!
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Celebrate Earth Day and Arbor Day, by Mikl Brawner
Officially, Earth Day is April 22nd and Arbor Day is April 24th, but since the Earth is our Mother, on whom we depend for our Life, we must protect and support her every day. And Trees are our lungs, providing oxygen, our shelter from heat, and primary support for soil biology, so we need to plant them and continue to care for them. Progress may be slow, but humans are evolving to see individual trees and individual people as partners in communities.
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Harlequin’s is Like a Farm. by Mikl Brawner
Update: Our GoFundMe appeal has brought in important support for Harlequin’s Gardens, and we deeply appreciate your generosity. We are a little over half-way to our goal of $35,000. We are working to make this a successful year in spite of challenges. Harlequin’s Gardens is not just a store; we are a lot like a farm. We grow thousands of plants with challenges of supply, heat, cold, drought and wind, not to mention rising costs. [Read More]
Celebrate the Good! by Mikl Brawner
Welcome to a Glorious Early Spring. It’s warm; everything is growing and there are masses of blossoms and fragrance. Please, do enjoy. Our tax dollars are funding wars our Congress did not approve and more than a majority do not want. This is not representative government. What can we do? We have to celebrate The Good, even while enduring the unbearable. We can grow healthy food and both eat it and share it.
We See it Blooming! by Mikl Brawner
Thank you for the donations coming in to our GoFundMe appeal; it is so important now, and we are so grateful. You are confirming that the values we represent and work for every day are important to you. You recognize what the community would be missing without Harlequin’s Gardens. Of course we already know this. We would not be here without your support. We started promoting and selling native and water-wise plants 35 years ago.
Cheerful Spring! by Mikl Brawner
How are we supposed to live our normal lives, going to the grocery store, preparing our garden, when our own government is causing so much death and suffering? It is obvious that our lives will also suffer as a result. We cannot ignore this and we can do little about it right now. Yet we cannot freeze up; we have to go forward. We can support change and we can radiate love and kindness in our lives. Being in Nature and gardening has always been healing for people in painful circumstances. Caring for our children, our loved-ones, our neighbors, our pets and plants, is life-affirming and good medicine. In spite of everything, Life is good. And when we support Life, we are sharing in genuine goodness, and it feels good.
Seeds to Sow Now, Soils and More, by Eve Reshetnik Brawner
Now that we’ve arrived in early March, seed-planting time is here! We’ve got a great selection of vegetable, herb, flower, cover crop and native grass seeds, plus the durable tools, seed-starting and potting soils, perlite, and all the other seed-starting supplies you need. And we have the mild temperatures that make gardening easy; now we just need to add soil fertility amendments and water!
Seed-Starting Supplies and Seeds are In!
You may have heard about bio-regional seed and plant adaptation, and you’ll be hearing a lot more about it in the future! This movement, led across the Front Range by MASA Seed Foundation, supports gardening with seeds and starts that have been grown and carefully selected for multiple years in our Boulder County environment. Plants from these seeds have adapted to our specific, challenging growing conditions, and they thrive vigorously here.
They are demonstrably better able to handle heat and drought, and still perform. They’ll increase your gardening success!
Harlequin’s Gardens now carries an expanded selection of MASA seeds, and we plan, in a few months, to bring you vegetable starts grown by MASA from their bio-regionally-adapted seeds! Our favorites include:
Carrots: Kuroda Orange and Purple Dragon. These germinate quickly and successfully, unlike seeds from wetter places. And they’re delicious!
Our Favorite Ergonomic Tools to Make Gardening Easier!
Mikl highly recommends these excellent weeding and planting tools, and staff concurs – these tools outlast all others!
This week we are highlighting Wilcox Tools: Iowa-made, stainless steel trowels and weeders; it won’t bend or rust, made to last a life-time, with a life-time guarantee. They are sharp, so they can cut through hard Colorado soils and dig around rocks. And they are economical.
The 10” trowel is Mikl’s favorite weeder for getting very close to a plant with the least root disturbance; our sharpest digger, won’t bend; great design[Read More]
Eve’s Downsizing Garage Sale of Treasures!
Sat./Sun. Nov. 8 & 9
9:30am to 3:00 pm
Not to be Missed!
Find artisan jewelry, stylish shoes, clothing and accessories, local artisan and other special art and craft pieces, antiques, linens, kitchen stuff, CDs, books.
You never know what you’ll discover from Eve’s personal collection! Eve has spent her life as a treasure hunter, seeking beauty, quality, authenticity and value, in every realm, from experiences to plants to art to earrings! Bring your friends!
CASH ONLY![Read More]
Planting Seeds, by Eve Reshetnik Brawner
I confess. I am definitely a plant hoarder. Every year, I amass a formidable collection of plant starts, and then spend evenings through the season walking arou
Welcome to Harlequin’s Gardens 34th year! As gardeners, we demonstrate that we are optimists. We dedicate time, money, effort and hope in the belief that this will result in at least some measure of successful growth. We can never expect that everything will go as we hoped and planned, but at the very least, we will have learned something. The more we know going into the gardening season, the more our optimism will ‘bear fruit’.
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October is my time to Plant, by Eve Reshetnik Brawner
I confess. I am definitely a plant hoarder. Every year, I amass a formidable collection of plant starts, and then spend evenings through the season walking around my garden, little pots in hand, trying to find a few square inches where I can fit them in. Then I make tags and put them in the spots I’ve found (or created by taking some other plant out). If the critters don’t pull them out, most of those tags wait months for the magical moment when the weather is mild enough for me to plant them – October at last![Read More]
October is for Sowing Seeds!
All summer and fall, Mikl and I have been collecting seeds from our own gardens and from wildlands where we have collecting permits, and at this point, most of that collecting is done. After spending last Sunday cataloging our seed collections, I’m delighted to report that so far, we have collected at least 85 species, most of them local natives. We can’t sell you the seeds we collect (the USDA won’t allow it), and besides, we need them for growing our plants for you. But we have excellent wildflower seed mixes from BBB Seeds in Boulder.
Get Ready to Plant the Best Garlic!
I’ve been shopping at my local Farmers Market on Saturday mornings, and have been really impressed with some of the gorgeous, large vegetables some of my favorite farms have grown this year. Most notable were the huge fennel bulbs and the stunning, large, firm heads of purple radicchio. But the garlic bulbs I found at the market have been, to be blunt, puny. And most are sold without variety names. Some were not properly cured. Small bulbs with small cloves are just fine for use in the kitchen for the next 3 to 5 months, but they are not suitable for planting. Curing Winter Squash for Storage
Butternut Squash
We’ve tried a number of ways to store squash, and we’ve been informed over the years by our friends at Seed Savers. If you’ve been canning, chopping and freezing, and cooking things down into sauce this harvest season, you’ll love the ease of storing winter squash whole.
First, be sure the squash are ripe. Each variety differs regarding color and sheen as indicators of ripeness, but as a rule we harvest when the thick stem connecting the fruit to the vine has dried. Cut the stem, leaving at least 1″ and up to 3″ of the stem attached. Be sure to harvest before the first hard frost – if you can’t harvest until after a frost, don’t try to cure and store the squash. Rather, either dice and freeze for later, or bake or make soup and freeze that for later.
Curing is a process that sets up the squash for several months’ of storage by allowing the skin, or shell, to harden. After harvest, elevate the squash off the ground, keeping room between fruits for air to circulate, and leave in a bright, sunny space that isn’t warm or hot for approximately two weeks. You’ll know when they are cured when they pass the ‘fingernail test’ – press your fingernail gently into the shell, and if the skin bruises or breaks, it’s not cured yet! A fully cured squash won’t even dent.
Storage instructions do sound a bit like the porridge in the Goldilocks story – the place you store the squash can’t be too hot or too cold. It needs to be just right! That means not colder than 50 degrees and not warmer than about 65 degrees. The warmer the temperature, the sooner you’ll need to use the squash. Find a cool spot in a closet, the back of a cupboard, a basement, or a garage (if it is temperature controlled). Wrap each squash in paper or straw and place in a box or on a shelf, leaving room for airflow. The paper or straw protects the squash and absorbs any moisture. If the squash does freeze, keep it frozen until you’re ready to use it. Inspect once a week, and use any damaged squash first. Here’s advice from Seed Savers:
- “Any damaged squash should be used as soon as possible.
- Delicatas, Acorns, and Buttercups should be used within a month or two.
- Hubbards, Pie squash, and pumpkins can last up to four months.
- Butternuts last the longest in storage and can take you right into spring.”
And if you don’t have the appropriate space, you can always preserve your squash by dicing and freezing the flesh.
Seed Saving – Seeds last up to a year in your squash – so whenever you use your squash you can scrape out the seeds, rinse and dry, and plant in the spring. Just be aware that squash is a notorious cross-pollinator, and if you grew several kinds you will not necessarily grow a fruit exactly like the one you harvested!
And yes, pumpkins ARE winter squashes. Save them using these same instructions.