FLOWERS

bloom will perform. One dry summer can blunt a flower’s reproductive momentum for years, Johnson said, while consistent wet winters will ensure growth is steady.

According to June 29 data from the U.S. Drought Monitor nearly all of Colorado, including the entirety of the High Country, is considered drought-free.

“If we keep this (precipitation) pattern where we have a really wet summer … you might expect next year’s flowers to really benefit from this winter and spring, there’s sort of a temporal delay there,” he said.

Unlike the annual flowers seen in California, Nevada and Utah, Colorado’s wildflowers are mostly perennials.

The key difference, according to Johnson, is that annuals only grow for one season before producing a large amount of seeds while perennials regrow every spring.