Bring the beauty of the prairie home with sky-blue Lewis Flax, golden Prairie Coneflowers, purple Prairie Clover, and graceful Blue Grama Grass. These native flowering perennials and ornamental grass create a colorful, drought-tolerant garden, blooming from late spring through summer while attracting pollinators and adding texture into autumn.
Imagine following a winding stone path through a sea of sky-blue flowers, cheerful golden daisies, and soft purple flower spikes, with native grasses swaying in the breeze. Framed by rustic timber cabins and distant mountains, this colorful prairie-inspired garden proves that a water-wise landscape can be wonderfully lush and inviting.
Four North American natives create this lively display: Linum lewisii (Lewis Flax), Ratibida columnifera (Prairie Coneflower), Dalea purpurea (Purple Prairie Clover), and Bouteloua gracilis (Blue Grama Grass). Together, these flowering perennials and native grass combine brilliant summer color, delicate textures, and valuable resources for bees, butterflies, and other pollinators.
Main plants used: Linum lewisii, Ratibida columnifera, Dalea purpurea, and Bouteloua gracilis.
The beautiful contrast between blue and yellow gives this garden its cheerful personality. Linum lewisii produces delicate, five-petaled sky-blue flowers that seem to float above its slender foliage. Individual blooms are short-lived, but successive flowers create a lovely display from late spring into summer.
Ratibida columnifera brings warmth with distinctive golden-yellow petals surrounding tall, dark central cones. Blooming through summer and sometimes into fall, this hardy wildflower creates playful vertical accents among the softer flowers.
Between them, Dalea purpurea adds charming purple flower spikes that attract native bees and butterflies. Its fine foliage keeps the planting light and airy, while Bouteloua gracilis anchors the composition with blue-green grassy clumps and distinctive eyelash-like seedheads.
The winding sandstone path, low stone walls, scattered boulders, and rustic buildings give the garden structure without sacrificing its natural character. Repeating the four plants throughout the borders creates a harmonious landscape that looks beautiful from the path and surrounding homes.
Create a colorful, low-water prairie garden with sky-blue wildflowers, golden summer blooms, purple accents, and graceful native grasses arranged around a natural stone path.
Approximate visual proportions, not exact plant quantities.
Let the winding sandstone path guide visitors through the planting. Place Lewis Flax in generous drifts near the foreground and along the walkway, where its blue flowers can be admired up close. Position Prairie Coneflower in the middle and rear for golden height, then repeat Purple Prairie Clover between the larger flower groups. Use Blue Grama Grass along path edges, around boulders, and between plants to create rhythm and movement.
Lewis Flax begins flowering in late spring to early summer, followed by golden Prairie Coneflowers and purple Prairie Clover through summer. Blue Grama develops delicate seedheads in summer and warm straw-colored tones in fall. Leaving selected seedheads standing adds winter texture and provides resources for wildlife.
| Hardiness |
4 - 8 |
|---|---|
| Climate Zones | 2, 2A, 2B, 3, 3A, 3B, 10, 11 |
| Exposure | Full Sun |
| Season of Interest | Spring (Late), Summer (Early, Mid, Late), Fall |
| Maintenance | Low |
| Water Needs | Low |
| Soil Type | Loam, Sand |
| Soil pH | Alkaline, Neutral |
| Soil Drainage | Well-Drained |
| Characteristics | Showy |
| Native Plants | Arizona, Colorado, Kansas, Midwest, Minnesota, Montana, New Mexico, North Dakota, Oklahoma, Rocky Mountains, Southwest, Texas, United States, Wyoming |
| Tolerances | Drought, Dry Soil |
| Attracts | Butterflies, Birds |
| Landscaping Ideas | Beds And Borders |
| Garden Styles | Butterfly Garden, Informal and Cottage, Pollinator Garden |
| Hardiness |
4 - 8 |
|---|---|
| Climate Zones | 2, 2A, 2B, 3, 3A, 3B, 10, 11 |
| Exposure | Full Sun |
| Season of Interest | Spring (Late), Summer (Early, Mid, Late), Fall |
| Maintenance | Low |
| Water Needs | Low |
| Soil Type | Loam, Sand |
| Soil pH | Alkaline, Neutral |
| Soil Drainage | Well-Drained |
| Characteristics | Showy |
| Native Plants | Arizona, Colorado, Kansas, Midwest, Minnesota, Montana, New Mexico, North Dakota, Oklahoma, Rocky Mountains, Southwest, Texas, United States, Wyoming |
| Tolerances | Drought, Dry Soil |
| Attracts | Butterflies, Birds |
| Landscaping Ideas | Beds And Borders |
| Garden Styles | Butterfly Garden, Informal and Cottage, Pollinator Garden |
Recreate this garden. Specify the percentages you would like to have of each plant and input the dimensions of your garden space.We'll give you a shopping list so you know how many plants you need.
| Plant | Quantity | |
|---|---|---|
| Linum lewisii (Prairie Flax) | N/A | Buy Plants |
| Ratibida columnifera (Mexican Hat Plant) | N/A | Buy Plants |
| Dalea purpurea (Purple Prairie Clover) | N/A | Buy Plants |
| Bouteloua gracilis (Blue Grama) | N/A | Buy Plants |
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Create a membership account to save your garden designs and to view them on any device.
Becoming a contributing member of Gardenia is easy and can be done in just a few minutes. If you provide us with your name, email address and the payment of a modest $25 annual membership fee, you will become a full member, enabling you to design and save up to 25 of your garden design ideas.
Join now and start creating your dream garden!
