The native plants listed here have all been grown successfully in gardens here that were watered only 5 to 7 times per year. We amend our rocky soils when planting. Gardens vary in amounts and timing of sun exposure. Our definition of ‘native’ is broad, and includes plants from our specific locale, the state of Colorado, and the arid, temperate steppe, foothill, montane and alpine regions of the Rocky Mountain states and the southwest.
Achillea lanulosa (Achillea millefolium var. lanulosa) (Yarrow)
Agave parryi neomexicana (New Mexico Century Plant)
Amelanchier alnifolia (Serviceberry)
Amorpha canescens (Leadplant)
Amorpha fruticosa (False Indigo)
Amorpha nana (Dwarf Leadplant)
Amsonia jonesii (Jones’ Bluestar)
Andropogon gerardii ‘Pawnee’ (Pawnee Big Bluestem)
Andropogon saccharoides (Silver Beard Grass)
Aquilegia barnebyi (Barneby’s Columbine)
Aquilegia caerulea (Rocky Mt. Columbine)
Aquilegia chrysantha (Yellow Columbine)
Arenaria hookeri (Sandwort)
Argemone polyanthemos (Prickly Poppy)
Artemisia campestris (Wild Tarragon)
Artemisia filifolia (Sand Sage)
Artemisia frigida (Fringed Sage, Silver Sage )
Artemisia ludoviciana (Silver King Artemisia)
Artemisia nova (Black Sage)
Artemisia tridentata syn. Seriphidium tridentatum (Western Big Sage)
Artemisia tripartita(Cutleaf Big Sage)
Aster ericoides (Wreath Aster)
Aster fendleri ‘My Antonia’ (‘My Antonia’ Rock Aster)
Aster obligifolius (Aromatic Aster)
Aster sericeus (Silky Aster)
Atriplex canescens (Four-wing Saltbrush)
Atriplex confertifolia (Spring Saltbrush)
Baptisia australis minor (Dwarf False Blue Indigo)
Blepharoneuron tricholepis (Pine Dropseed)
Bouteloua curtipendula (Side Oats Grama)
Bouteloua gracilis (Blue Gramma)
Callirhoe involucrata (Wine Cups)
Calylophus serrulatus (Sundrops)
Ceanothus fendleri (Buckbrush)
Cerastium arvense (Field Mouse Ear)
Ceratoides lanata (Winterfat)
Cercocarpus intricatus (Dwarf Mountain Mahogany)
Cercocarpus ledifolius (Curl-leaf Mountain Mahogany)
Cercocarpus montana (Mountain Mahogany)
Chamaebataria millefolium (Fernbush)
Chilopsis linearis (Desert Willow)
Chrysothamnus nauseosus nauseosus (Dwarf Rabbitbrush)
Clematis ligusticifolia (Western Virgin’s Bower)
Coryphantha missouriensis
Crataegus douglasii (Douglas Hawthorn)
Cupressus arizonica (Arizona Cypress)
Cylindropuntia imbricata (Cholla, Candelabra Cactus)
Cylindropuntia whipplei (Whipple’s Cholla)
Datura wrightii (D. meteloides) (Sacred Datura)
Echinacea tennesseensis (Tennessee Coneflower)
Echinocereus caespitosus
Echinocereus reichenbachii (Lace Cactus)
Echinocereus triglochidiatus (Claret Cup Cactus)
Echinocereus viridiflorus
Eragrostis trichodes (Sand Love Grass)
Erigeron flagellaris (Whiplash Daisy)
Eriogonum heracleifolium
Eriogonum jamesii flavescens
Eriogonum niveum niveum
Eriogonum ovalifolium
Eriogonum umbellatum (Sulphur Flower)
Eriogonum umbellatum ‘Kannah Creek’
Eriogonum umbellatum subalpinum
Eriogonum wrightii wrightii (Wright’s Sulfur Flower)
Escobari vivapara
Fallugia paradoxa (Apache Plume)
Fendlera rupicola (Cliff Fendler Bush)
Forestiera neo-mexicana (New Mexican Privet)
Gaillardia aristata (Indian Blanket Flower)
Geranium fremontii (Fremont Geranium)
Geranium richardsonii (Richardson Geranium)
Gilia aggregata (Scarlet Gilia)
Gutierrezia sarothrae (Snake Weed)
Helianthus pumilus (Dwarf Sunflower)
Hesperaloe parviflora (Texas Red Yucca)
Humulus lupulus neomexicana (Wild Hop Vine)
Hymenoxys scaposa (Perky Sue)
Juniperus monosperma (Single-seed Juniper)
Juniperus scopulorum (Rocky Mt. Juniper)
Leucocrinum montanum (Sand Lily)
Liatris punctata (Gayfeather, Blazing Star)
Linum lewisii (Native Blue Flax)
Lithospermum multiflorum (Many-flowered Pucoon)
Lomatium orientale (Native Parsley)
Mahonia fremontii (Fremont’s Mahonia)
Mentzelia decapetala (Blazing Star)
Mirabilis multiflora (Desert Four-O’Clock)
Nolina microcarpa (Beargrass)
Oenothera caespitosa (Tufted Evening Primrose)
Oenothera howardii (Howard’s Evening Primrose)
Oenothera mac. Incana ‘Silver Blade’
Opuntia fragilis (Fragile Prickly Pear)
Opuntia polyacantha (Yellow Prickly Pear)
Oryzopsis hymenoides (Indian Rice Grass)
Oxytropis lambertii (Lambert’s Locoweed)
Panicum virgatum ‘Shenandoah’ (Red Switchgrass)
Pediocactus simpsonii (Mt. Ball Cactus)
Penstemon alamosensis
Penstemon ambiguous
Penstemon angustifolius
Penstemon arenicola
Penstemon barbatus ‘Coccineus’
Penstemon buckleyi
Penstemon cardinalis
Penstemon clutei
Penstemon cyananthus
Penstemon davidsonii
Penstemon gormanii gormanii
Penstemon grandiflorus
Penstemon havardii
Penstemon linarioides coloradoensis
Penstemon mensarum
Penstemon palmeri
Penstemon procerus
Penstemon pseudospectabilis
Penstemon rostriflorus (Bridges Penstemon)
Penstemon secundiflorus (Sidebells Penstemon)
Penstemon strictus (Rocky Mt. Penstemon)
Penstemon teucroides
Penstemon virens
Penstemon virgatus ssp. asa grayii
Pinus edulis (Pinyon Pine)
Pinus ponderosa (Ponderosa Pine)
Populus tremuloides (Quaking Aspen)
Prunus americanus (Wild Plum)
Prunus besseyi (Western Sand Cherry)
Prunus besseyi ‘Pawnee Buttes’ (Dwarf Sandcherry)
Prunus virginiana (Chokecherry)
Ptelea trifoliata (Wafer Ash, Hop Tree)
Quercus gambelii (Gambel Oak)
Quercus undulata (Wavy Leaf Oak)
Rhus trilobata (Lemonade Bush, Skunkbrush)
Ribes aureum (Golden Currant)
Ribes cereum (Wax Currant)
Ribes odoratum ‘Crandall’ (Crandall Clove Currant)
Rosa acicularis (Arctic Rose)
Rosa arkansana
Rosa woodsii (Woods Rose)
Schizachyrium scoparium ‘The Blues’ (Little Bluestem)
Sedum lanceolatum (Lanceleaf Stonecrop)
Senecio spartioides (Grassleaf Senecio)
Shepherdia argentea (Silver Buffaloberry)
Silene regia (Royal Catchfly)
Solidago nana (Dwarf Goldenrod)
Sorghastrum nutans (Indian Grass)
Sphaeralcea coccinea (Cowboy’s Delight; Scarlet Globemallow)
Sphaeralcea incana (Globe Mallow)
Sporobolus airoides (Alkali sacaton)
Sporobolus heterolepis (Prairie Dropseed)
Sporobolus wrightii (Wright’s Sacaton)
Tradescantia occidentalis (Western Spiderwort)
Yucca baccata (Banana Yucca)
Yucca glauca (Narrowleaf Soapweed)
Yucca harrimanii (Dollhouse Yucca)