15 Top Native Plants of the Mountain West

Size: px

Start display at page:

Download "15 Top Native Plants of the Mountain West"

Alexina Carter
5 years ago
Views:

1 15 Top Native Plants of the Mountain West Try these tough, low-maintenance plants for a beautiful, easy garden. Pasqueflower One of the first flowers to wake up in the spring, pasqueflower bears lovely silvery foliage and cheery purple blooms. It has an extended season of interest thanks to its graceful seed heads that remain showy through early summer. Allow it to reseed and it will establish a small -- non-aggressive -- colony in your garden. Name: Pulsatilla patens Size: To 1 foot tall Zones: 4-9

Look for a selection called 'Stephanie'; this standout has a more compact habit and more intense color than the species.

2 Purple Prairie Clover Even though we rarely see it in gardens, we love this tough plant. It bears loads of neon-purple flowers through the summer. Look for a selection called 'Stephanie'; this standout has a more compact habit and more intense color than the species. Name: Dalea purpurea Size: inches tall Zones: 3-8 Prickly Pear Hardy, drought-tolerant prickly pear cactus rewards you in late spring with its striking pink or yellow flowers. A er it's done blooming, enjoy the gray-green pads. Name: Opuntia polyacantha

architectural texture. Fragrant white flowers appear in summer and add to the plant's appearance.

3 Growing Conditions: Full sun and well-drained to dry soil Size:To 15 inches tall Zones: 3-9 Yucca One of the few evergreen perennials for the North, yucca o ers beautiful blue-green foliage and striking architectural texture. Fragrant white flowers appear in summer and add to the plant's appearance. Bonus: It does well in light shade and is rabbit resistant, too! Name: Yucca glauca Size: To 5 feet tall Zones: 4-9 Idaho Fescue

4 Idaho Fescue Idaho fescue is the perfect grass for adding cool color to your landscape. While not as famous as its common cousin (blue fescue) the Idaho type has larger, longer leaf blades, giving it a more graceful e ect. For the best color, look for a new selection named 'Siskiyou Blue'. Name: Festuca idahoensis Size:To 18 inches tall Zones: 5-9 Liatris Add vertical drama to your garden in mid- to late summer with liatris. It's a favorite of migrating monarch butterflies, and a durable perennial to boot. Liatris is an extra-tough plant that tolerates a wide range of soil conditions. For a stellar combination, plant it with butterfly weed (Asclepias tuberosa). Name: Liatris pycnostachya Growing Conditions: Full sun, damp to dry soils Size: To 4 feet tall Zones: 3-9

Pair it with blue ornamental grasses such as blue grama or blue fescue for a stunning combination.

5 Indian Paintbrush Attract hummingbirds to your garden with this drought-tolerant perennial's brilliant vermillion flowers. We also love the Indian paintbrush's long bloom season -- flowers appear from late spring until frost. Pair it with blue ornamental grasses such as blue grama or blue fescue for a stunning combination. Name: Castilleja integra Size: To 3 feet tall Zones: 4-7 Poppy Mallow This incredible groundcover bears bright wine-red flowers all summer long. Poppy mallow is long lived, drought tolerant, and pest free. It's perfect for the front of the border or scrambling over a rock wall. Name: Callirhoe involucrata

Growing Conditions: Full sun and well-drained to dry soil Size: To 8 inches tall Zones: 4-8 Butterfly Weed Try this prairie plant and we bet it will soar to the top of your favorite-plants list.

6 Growing Conditions: Full sun and well-drained to dry soil Size: To 8 inches tall Zones: 4-8 Butterfly Weed Try this prairie plant and we bet it will soar to the top of your favorite-plants list. Butterfly weed's electricorange flowers are a butterfly magnet. And it may even attract monarch butterfly caterpillars that will happily munch on the foliage. Note: This long-lived plant can take a few years to get established -- so be patient with it. Name: Asclepias tuberosa Size: To 4 feet tall Zones: 4-10

Try 'Fireworks' for its excellent architecture, 'Laurin' for its compact habit, and 'Crown of Rays'

7 Goldenrod Native goldenrod is a perfect perennial for fall gardens. Many fine species come from the Great Plains and a number of named selections are derived from them. Try 'Fireworks' for its excellent architecture, 'Laurin' for its compact habit, and 'Crown of Rays' for its multitude of flowers in early fall. Name: Solidago selections Size: To 4 feet tall, depending on variety Zones: 4-8 Red Hyssop

Red Hyssop Anise-scented and easy-growing, red hyssop adds texture and a splash of silver to your garden. For extra variety, look for selections with red, apricot, salmon, or magenta blooms.

8 Red Hyssop Anise-scented and easy-growing, red hyssop adds texture and a splash of silver to your garden. For extra variety, look for selections with red, apricot, salmon, or magenta blooms. You're not the only one who will love this summer-blooming perennial; it's sure to attract hummingbirds and butterflies, too. (But happily, not deer or rabbits! They avoid it because of its aromatic foliage.) Name: Agastache rupestris Size:To 4 feet tall Zones: 4-9 Little Bluestem One of our all-time favorite grasses, we love little bluestem's bronze-kissed, blue-gray foliage through spring and summer. Then in fall, the blades turn a gorgeous shade of purple-bronze and continue to look good all winter. Name: Schizachyrium scoparium Size: To 3 feet tall Zones: 3-9

Name: Silphium laciniatum Size: To 9 feet tall Zones: 3-8 Pale Purple Coneflower There are a boatload of coneflower varieties on the market, but one great,

9 Compass Plant Try compass plant for a dramatic presence in the summer garden. Yellow, sunflower-shaped blooms sit atop towering, 9-foot stems. This incredibly drought-tolerant plant has earned its moniker because the plant aligns itself north to south to conserve water on hot summer days. Name: Silphium laciniatum Size: To 9 feet tall Zones: 3-8 Pale Purple Coneflower There are a boatload of coneflower varieties on the market, but one great, underused variety is pale purple coneflower. This top-notch plant bears pink flowers in mid-summer. The bloom color is enhanced by the dark, raspberry-red cones at the center of each bloom.

10 Note: Like many coneflowers, it will self-seed and produce a nice colony in your landscape. Name: Echinacea pallida Size: To 40 inches tall Zones: 3-10 Green-Flowered Hedgehog Cactus This plant has earned its fun moniker: It grows in tight, spiny green globes. Enjoy this plant's dramatic texture in rock gardens and other well-drained spots. Hedgehog cactus o ers extra appeal in early spring when it unveils its iridescent green flowers. Name: Echinocereus viridiflorus Growing Conditions: Full sun, dry soils Size: To 9 inches tall Zones: Copyright 2016, Meredith Corporation. All Rights Reserved.

2015 Plant Catalog--- Kalmia to Perennials

2015 Plant Catalog--- Kalmia to Perennials Kalmia Culture. Best grown in cool, moist, rich, acidic, humusy, well-drained soils in part shade. Mulch to retain moisture and keep root zones cool. Carol Bright