VOICES Colorado natives: flowers and function in the home landscape

As a gardener in the urban Front Range, each season brings new challenges, or the same challenges just in a di erent order. Rabbits, salt, cold temperatures, hot temperatures, drought, foot tra c — sometimes the list seems never-ending. However, an almost foolproof way to ensure the success in the home garden is to look to our native plants for inspiration.

I spoke with some of my colleagues at Denver Botanic Gardens and we came up with three of our favorites to tackle tough conditions while delivering on ower power. ese plants are all native to Colorado and provide signi cant ecological bene t to our pollinators. ey are all adaptable to our urban soils and should only require supplemental water during the rst year of establishment.

GUEST COLUMN

Laura Swain

Chocolate flower (Berlandiera lyrata) is extra coldhardy member of the daisy family is a garden powerhouse. e bright yellow owers oat atop gray-green mounding foliage, and last from early spring to frost. e golden pinwheels surround dark red centers that are full of nectar — attracting both butter ies and occasional hummingbirds. As an added bonus, the foliage is said to have the aroma of chocolate. As things wind down in the fall, leave the last crop of ower stalks to enjoy the intricate cup-shaped seed heads, which are both beautiful and a functional food source for birds.

Ten-petal blazing star (Mentzelia decapetala)

A native, night-blooming, fragrant, drought-tolerant, pollinator magnet? Say no more! Ten-petal blazing star is a sta favorite around here — and for good reason. Although it is a biennial or short-lived perennial, once this plant is established in the garden, it will persist from seed for years to come. Sow seed directly into the garden and keep moist. It also germinates readily in pots, but transplant it into the garden early as it does develop a taproot. Mentzelia will quickly become a favorite as the striking white owers open each night, smelling sweetly of honey, only to close again before morning.

Kannah Creek Buckwheat (Eriogonum umbellatum var. aureum)

We love this little groundcover. Best suited for well-drained sites with little to no irrigation, sulphur ower buckwheat is incredibly durable, long-lived and great for weed suppression. In early spring, the lush mat of green foliage is topped with chartreuse pom poms that mature to deep orange. Flower stalks can be sheared after flower for a tidier appearance, or left through winter and sheared in March. In fall, the foliage ages to a deep burgundy and persists through the winter season.

Not sure how to add these to the landscape? Try pairing them with some of our native grasses like blue gramma (Bouteloua gracilis) and little bluestem (Schizachryum scoparium). Using groundcovers and grasses reduces the need for maintenance like weeding and mulching each season.