Denver Botanic Gardens in 2011

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This is my 32 year working at one of America’s larger public gardens, a bit far from most of you on “Growsonyou”, but I thought you might be intrigued to see that gardening (and British style gardening at that) is alive and well on the steppes of America.

There are 40 or fifty gardens at our principal York Street site in the middle of Denver (approximately 23 acres). We are beginning to develop a 750 acre site 18 miles southwest in the suburbs which is Denver Botanic Gardens at Chatfield: it has its own charms, but does not have the intensive plantsmanship of York Street yet..I will begin with our All American Test garden (planted in summer to the best annuals, but it’s pansies and bulbs in winter and spring):

The next garden is a glimpse of our newest 3 acre Children’s Garden, much of it planted as “green roof” over our new parking structure. Alpines love the light soil we used here…

The grass garden is filled with Eremurus in late spring, since the grasses take a while to grow up and show off:

Each year we feature a noted sculptor: last year we had 23 monumental Henry Moores from Britain. This year we feature Alan Hauser, an Apache sculptor from New Mexico: the “rainmaker” was featured prominently on our high point..and it did rain copiously after it was brought. (New Mexico is in severe drought, incidentally: I think they want him back)…

The long border is filled with small bulbs in spring before the perennials climb up to glorious heights:

The Rock Alpine Garden is a signature garden in Denver: it is maintained superbly by Mike Kintgen: it contains thousands of species of choice plants: Here is an overview of the meadow in Camassia time.

Brooms and Glauciums make quite a spectacle in front of what used to be an alpine house, now a succulent house.

Helianthemums are at home in Denver, just as they are in Britain. Notice one of six Agaves that bloomed this year is starting its spike.

We have the only garden I know if featuring cold hardy South Africans outside of the subtropics in America: here the raised bed with ice plants is beginning to blaze in May:

We also have an area featuring native plants in containers: “Wildflower treasures”: notice the more abstract Hauser sculpture in the middle of this bed.

A closeup of a trough filled with New Mexican hedgehog cacti (Echinocereus fendleri_). The yellow is threadleaf coreopsis (Thelesperma filifolium_), a local native.
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A closeup of our Pikes Peak trough with Telesonix jamesii_, the rare purple saxifrage endemic at tree line on that mountain.
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The Plains Garden is a faithful recreation of the habitat the existed prior to urbanization of our area.

Our brand new Orchid Pavilion greatly expands our tropical collections (mostly housed in our landmark Conservatory)

I finish with our watersmart garden, where the best Mediterranean perennials are combined with our western dryland natives and South Africans to create a stunning year around border with little supplemental water (a trick in our climate of only 15" average precipitation a year)…

I’m afraid I haven’t shown you our herb, Japanese, Chinese, rose, water or iris/daylily gardens, nor our desert gardens nor a good deal more: You shall just have to visit!

• 18 Aug, 2011
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