The Native Artemisias
There are several native artemisias that are naturally well-adapted to our soils and climate, drought-tolerant, and useful in our landscapes. These silver-leafed shrubs make great contrasts with green foliage and great foils for flowers of any color. They are now classified under three genuses: Seriphidium, Oligosporas and Artemisia.[Read More]
To Plant to Fertilize
(Just this PDF – should we turn it into a regular page?)
Xeriscaping with Natives
What group of plants has the longest proven record of success in Colorado for enduring the radical ups and downs of our weather, including droughts? Our native plants, of course. And if we give them similar conditions to what they have in nature, they will succeed with little care. Here are a few of my favorite native plants that have thrived in my xeriscape garden for the past 10-15 years.
Liatris punctata, the Dotted Gayfeather stores its energy in a thick taproot that helps it produce flowers even after a dry summer. The tufts of rough, narrow leaves are little-noticed until they shoot up their thin flower spikes to 10”-16”, and burst into bloom with lavender-violet “feathers” in August or September. They are especially dramatic in groups of four to ten plants, and they can continue to bloom for a month or more. Liatris punctata is native to the foothills and plains of Boulder County, and unlike cultivated varieties, needs no supplemental water once established.[Read More]