Gardening

Save water, attract pollinators, and bring beauty to your neighborhood with this CASE-approved gardening guide.

Low-Water Plants

Grasses

  • "Beyond Blue" Blue Fescue (Festuca glauca): full sun; reaches 9 to 12 inches tall

  • Hardy Pampas Grass (Erianthus ravennae): full sun; reaches 8 to 10 feet tall; WILL SPREAD *Note: tags say to water regularly, but the ones we have planted that don't get water have done BETTER than the ones that do"

  • “Blonde Ambition" Blue Grama Grass (Bouteloua gracilis 'Blonde Ambition'): full sun; reaches 28 to 32 inches tall

Herbs

  • Lemon Balm (Melissa officinalis): sun or part sun; reaches 18 to 36 inches tall; WILL SPREAD

  • Peppermint: sun to part shade; reaches 12 to 36 inches tall; WILL SPREAD

  • "Betty Rollins" Oregano (Origanum vulgare): cultivar that is cold hardy and low-water, and more like a ground cover; best for fresh use. Full sun; reaches 6 to 8 inches tall

  • Wild bergamot (Monarda fistulosa): attracts butterflies and hummingbirds, but leaves also make a delicious tea. Sun or part sun; reaches 48 inches tall; WILL SPREAD

Flowers

  • Spring-blooming bulbs (Alliums, tulips, daffodils, iris, etc.) - these will get water from snowmelt so don't require any other H2O

  • European Pasque Flower (Pulsatilla vulgaris): one of the first flowers to bloom in spring! Sun to shade; reaches 6 to 12 inches tall

  • Basket of Gold (Aurinia saxatilis): sun; reaches 8 to 12 inches tall

  • "Allegro" Oriental Poppy (Papaver orientale 'Allegro'): Full sun; reaches 24 to 36 inches tall

  • Columbine (Aquilegia): Sun to light shade; reaches 1 to 3 feet tall

  • Prairie Smoke Avens (Geum triflorum): Sun to filtered shade; reaches 6 to 12 inches tall

  • "Hidcote" Lavender (Lavandula angustifolia): Sun; reaches 8 to 12 inches tall

  • Wild Blue Flax (Linum lewisii): Not perennial but will self-seed; reaches 1 to 3 feet tall; plant from seed

  • Crimson Scabious (Knautia macedonica): Full sun; reaches 18 to 24 inches tall

  • Prairie Winecups (Callirhoe involucrata): Full sun; reaches 6 to 12 inches tall but spreads wide; WILL SPREAD

  • "Big Blue" Sea Holly (Eryngium): Full sun; reaches 24 to 30 inches tall

  • Blue Buckle Penstemon (Penstemon virgatus 'Blue Buckle'): Sun; reaches 1 to 2 feet tall

  • California Poppies (Eschscholzia californica): Full sun; reaches 8 to 12 inches tall; plant via seeds

  • Salvia aka Meadow Sage (Salvia nemorosa): a few colors/varieties:

    • "Sensation White": White flowers; full sun; reaches 12 inches tall

    • "Violet Profusion": Purple flowers; full sun; reaches 14 to 16 inches tall

  • Russian sage (Perovskia atriplicifolia): Full sun; reaches 3 to 4 feet tall; fast-growing

  • Yarrow (Achillea): many colors/varieties:

    • "Moonshine": Yellow variety; full sun; reaches 18 to 24 inches tall

    • "Pink Grapefruit": Pink and white variety; full sun; reaches 29 inches tall

  • Missouri Evening Primrose (Oenothera macrocarpa): Full to part sun; reaches 10 inches tall but spreads wide

  • Hyssop (Agastache): Hummingbirds love these!! many colors/varieties:

    • "Sunset" (Agastache rupestris): Orange/pink variety; sun; reaches 2 to 3 feet tall

    • "Coronado" (Agastache aurantiaca Coronado): Orange variety; sun to filtered shade; reaches 15 to 18 inches tall

    • "Desert Solstice": Pink variety; full sun; reaches 32 to 36 inches tall

  • Coneflower (Echinacea): many colors/varieties:

    • "White Swan"(Echinacea purpurea 'White Swan'): white variety; full Sun; reaches 24 to 30 inches tall

    • "Double Scoop Raspberry" (Echinacea x hybrida): pink variety with double blooms on one flower head; full sun; reaches 28 to 30 inches tall

  • Stonecrop (Sedum): many colors/varieties

    • "Autumn Joy": Green stems with pink to reddish flowers; sun; reaches 18 to 24 inches tall

    • "Knight Rider": Dark reddish-purple/almost black; full sun; reaches 20 to 24 inches tall

    • "Frosty Morn": Light green stems with white accents and white flowers; full sun; reaches 12 to 18 inches tall

Accent Plants

  • Silver Mound (Artemesia schmiditiana): Sun or part sun; reaches 10 inches tall; low maintenance

  • Silver Brocade (Artemesia stelleriana): Full sun; reaches 10 inches tall; low maintenance

  • Blue Spruce Sedum (Sedum relflexum 'Blue Spruce'): Full sun; reaches 6 inches tall; low maintenance

Ground Covers

  • Turkish Speedwell (Veronica liwanensis): Full sun; blue flowers

  • Hens & Chicks (Sempervivum): Sun

Bushes/Shrubs

  • Rose of Sharon (Hibiscus syriacus): Full sun to part shade; not full xeric (meaning will need some water in full drought conditions) but will tolerate most conditions

  • Sem Ash Leaf Spirea (Sorbaria sorbifolia): Sun; reaches about 3 feet tall; WILL SPREAD

Where to Buy Plants

Garden in a Box

Tagawa Gardens

O'Toole's

Wilmore Nurseries

Resources

Garden in a Box: buy kits of native, low-water plants

PlantSelect: breeds/develops plants specifically for our region and sells them through local nurseries; sends monthly email with gardening info

CSU Extension

People and Pollinators Action Network

Building a Rain Garden in Colorado

Englewood Public Library: large collection of helpful gardening books (see below)

Books

Xeriscape Colorado: The Complete Guide by Connie Lockhart Ellefson and David Winger (2004, Westcliffe Publishers)

New Wild Garden: Natural-Style Planting and Practicalities by Ian Hodgson (2016, Frances Lincoln)

Under Western Skies: Visionary Gardens From the Rocky Mountains to the Pacific Coast by Jennifer Jewell (2021, Timber Press)

The Complete Guide to No-Dig Gardening by Charlie Nardozzi (2020, Cool Springs Press)

100 Plants to Feed the Monarch by The Xerces Society (2021, Storey Publishing LLC)

Gardening Your Front Yard: Projects and Ideas for Big and Small Spaces by Tara Nolan (2020, Cool Springs Press)

Garden Alchemy by Stephanie Rose (2020, Cool Springs Press)

The Pollinator Victory Garden by Kim Eierman (2020, Quarry Books)

Grow Your Soil! by Diane Miessler (2020, Storey Publishing LLC)

National Wildlife Federation Attracting Birds, Butterflies, and Other Backyard Wildlife by David Mizejewski (2019, Creative Homeowner)

100 Plants to Feed the Bees by The Xerces Society (2016, Storey Publishing LLC)

Winter Gardens: Reinventing the Season by Cedric Pollet (2016, Frances Lincoln)

Dead Snails Leave No Trails: Natural Pest Control for Home and Garden (Revised) by Loren Nancarrow and Janet Hogan Taylor (1996, Ten Speed Press)

Practical Organic Gardening: The No-Nonsense Guide to Growing Naturally by Mark Highland (2017, Cool Springs Press)

Success With Succulents by John Bagnasco and Robert Reidmuller, Jr. (2017, Cool Springs Press)

The Benevolent Bee by Stéphanie Bruneau (2017, Quarry Books)

The Water-Saving Garden by Pam Penick (2016, Ten Speed Press)

Lawn Gone!: Low-Maintenance, Sustainable, Attractive Alternatives for Your Yard by Pam Penick (2013, Ten Speed Press)

Colorado Gardener's Guide by John Crett (2001, Cool Springs Press)