Native Plants / Colorado
Colorado
Colorado Native Plants
A plant is considered native if it has occurred naturally in a particular region or ecosystem without human introduction. There are many benefits to growing native plants. First, these plants are better adapted to soils, moisture, and weather than exotic plants that evolved in other parts of the world. They need fewer fertilizers, and pesticides or use less water. Second, they are unlikely to escape and become invasive, destroying natural habitats. Third, they support wildlife, providing shelter and food for native birds and insects, while exotic plants do not.
Abronia fragrans (Fragrant Sand Verbena)
Sweetly fragrant, Abronia fragrans (Fragrant Sand Verbena) is an upright or sprawling herbaceous perennial adorned with showy snowballs, 3 in. across (7 cm), packed with 25-70 funnel-shaped flowers. Blooming from spring through early fall, the vanilla scented flowers are usually white, but are sometimes green, lavender or pink.
Acer negundo (Box Elder)
Hardy and fast-growing, Acer negundo (Box Elder) is a suckering, vigorous, deciduous tree of upright habit with an irregular rounded canopy of widely spreading branches. The opposite, pinnately compound, light green leaves are composed of 3-7 leaflets, 6-15 in. long (15-37 cm), which turn a dull yellow in the fall.
Achillea millefolium (White Yarrow)
Achillea millefolium (White Yarrow) is a graceful perennial wildflower that produces an abundance of huge, flat clusters, 5 in. across (12 cm), packed with 20-25 creamy-white flowers.
Actaea rubra (Red Baneberry)
Perfect for shade gardens, Actaea rubra (Red Baneberry) is herbaceous perennial forming bushy clumps of finely divided, bright green foliage, enhanced by clusters of small fluffy white flowers in late spring and early summer. Borne on conspicuous red stems which rise above the foliage, they give way to pea-sized glossy scarlet berries in summer.
Adiantum aleuticum (Maidenhair Fern)
Incredibly attractive, Adiantum aleuticum (Maidenhair Fern) is a deciduous or semi-evergreen, perennial fern with graceful, bright green fronds which open like the fingers of a hand atop upright, shiny, purple-black wiry stems. Each finger is further divided into a series of triangular segments (pinnules).
Adiantum capillus-veneris (Southern Maidenhair Fern)
Adiantum capillus-veneris (Southern Maidenhair Fern) is a slowly spreading, semi-evergreen fern forming a mound of gently arching or pendant, twice divided, delicate fronds adorned with wiry, black stems.
Agastache foeniculum (Anise Hyssop)
Agastache foeniculum (Anise Hyssop) is an upright, clump-forming perennial with attractive spikes of small, tubular, lavender to purple flowers from early summer to early fall. Adding lovely vertical lines to the landscape, they are attractive to bees, hummingbirds, butterflies, and beneficial insects.
Agastache urticifolia (Nettleleaf Giant Hyssop)
Robust and long-lived, Agastache urticifolia (Nettleleaf Giant Hyssop) is a tall, herbaceous, strongly aromatic, perennial boasting dense flowering spikes, 6 in. long (15 cm), packed with tiny, white to rose or violet flowers with protruding stamens. Blooming in early to late summer, they are borne atop stout, square, glabrous leafy stems. They are a nectar source for many bees, moths, hummingbirds and butterflies, including monarch butterflies.
Allium cernuum (Lady's Leek)
Native to North America, Allium cernuum (Nodding Wild Allium) is a lovely, carefree, bulbous, herbaceous perennial with loose, nodding umbels of tiny bell-shaped, pink to lilac or even white flowers. Erect, each stem produces up to 30 flowers!
Allium schoenoprasum (Chives)
Cultivated for its culinary uses and ornamental garden appeal, Allium schoenoprasum (Chives) is a small bulbous perennial forming a dense clump of thin, narrowly cylindrical, grass-like, dark green leaves. Blooming in late spring to early summer, attractive, pale lavender, rounded umbels are borne on erect stems atop the foliage. Both flowers and leaves are edible.
Amelanchier alnifolia (Serviceberry)
Domesticated for fruit production, Amelanchier alnifolia (Serviceberry) is a deciduous, upright, suckering shrub with four seasons of interest. In mid-spring, compact clusters of fragrant, white flowers emerge just before the leaves.
Amelanchier utahensis (Utah Serviceberry)
A rewarding choice for any garden, Amelanchier utahensis (Utah Serviceberry) is a many-branched, deciduous shrub or small tree of rounded growth habit with four seasons of interest. In spring, finely serrated, green leaves alternately line the young, reddish growth and the soft gray of the smooth, mature branches. Clusters of white, rose-like flowers, each with five widely-spaced narrow petals, cover the shrub from base to tip of each branch until early summer. The entire shrub is snowy white.
Amorpha canescens (Lead Plant)
Native to North America, Amorpha canescens (Lead Plant) is a lovely rounded deciduous shrub with small, grayish green, aromatic, feathery leaves and spikes of tiny, bluish-purple flowers with gold anthers. Blooming for 3 weeks in late spring to early summer, the flower spikes to 4 in. long (10 cm) are rich in nectar and attract bees, butterflies, moths and other beneficial insects.
Amorpha fruticosa (Indigo Bush)
Native to North America, Amorpha fruticosa (Indigo Bush) is a vigorous deciduous shrub of upright-spreading habit with bright green leaves composed of up to 35 spiny-tipped, oval leaflets. In late spring to early summer, showy racemes, up to 6 in. long (15 cm), of small, scented, purplish blue flowers with protruding stamens and orange-yellow anthers are on display.
Anaphalis margaritacea (Pearly Everlasting)
Ideal to complement colorful perennials in beds or borders, award-winner Pearly Everlasting (Anaphalis margaritacea) is a rewarding bushy perennial topped with bountiful clusters of long-lasting, buttonlike flowers which are perfect for dried floral arrangements.
