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Red birds in a tree Native plants usually summon up images of wispy, finely textured grasses or suchlike--hardly a glamorous novelty like red birds in a tree ( Scrophularia macrantha). This gorgeous

Hydrangea quercifolia This time of year I am amazed to see spectacular mounds of Hydrangea 'Annabelle' glowing around the metro area. That is one cultivar that has certainly made its mark, although

Winecups in Watersmart Garden Strolling around York Street gardens this time of year, you are apt to see a bright rose red plant that resembles a geranium in many gardens. It is apt to be winecups (

Claret cup cactus Earlier this year, the Colorado Legislature passed a bill designating Echinocereus triglochidiatus the official state cactus of Colorado. I'm one of those people who'd find it hard

Purple Mountain sun daisy at City and County Building For over a decade the Master Gardeners of Denver and I maintained a low water garden in front of the City and County Building in the Civic Center

Corydalis nobilis Fumewort may happen to be the accepted common name, but most of us prefer to call them by their Latin name: Corydalis. Some put the accent on the antipenult, others on the penult

Pasqueflower There are pasqueflowers throughout Denver Botanic Gardens this week--especially in the rock garden. I have observed many interesting phenomena in my long career at Denver Botanic Gardens

By Colleen Smith, Guest Blogger Colleen Smith writes and gardens in Denver. She’s the author of Glass Halo and Laid-Back Skier. We humans are no more exempt than the bees and butterflies and

The "Green Roof" or eco roof concept has become a billion dollar industry in Europe, where storm water abatement and water quality are top drawer concerns. With the catastrophic flooding of last

Containers in front of Marnie's Pavilion How does one encapsulate a cultural facility's entire year, when you consider that there are dozens of gardens that are transforming ongoingly from spring

Fraxinus americana 'Autumn Purple' (White Ash) "Disaster in slow motion" is a phrase that has been applied to many phenomena including global warming, the collapse of biodiversity, chronic drought

Young Siberian larch ( Larix sibirica) You have probably walked by this willowy sapling many times--although I suspect if it were not in fall color, you would have walked by it barely noticing it