by Ann at Go West Gardener | Updated: Jan 28, 2026 | Best Flowers for Colorado, Utah & Similar States, Gardening for Pollinators, In-ground garden, Waterwise Gardening in the Intermountain West
Want to add a splash of color to a late-summer garden?
Dig into some of the best flowers for late summer in Colorado—whether you live in Denver, Colorado Springs, Grand Junction or another Colorado town!
These late-summer flowers bloom in August, September and some into October. They’re ideal if you’d like to:
- Add beautiful color and texture that will have neighbors taking notice.
- Attract pollinators to your garden, like hummingbirds and bees.
- Reduce the amount you have to water. (Yay for less work—and less water! They’re all drought tolerant plants.)
These plants are perennials, so they should return for multiple years. They prefer sunny spots that get 6+ hours of sunlight per day.
If you live at a higher elevation in Colorado (or a similar western state), your growing season may not be long and warm enough for these late-summer and early-fall flowers. But good news, you can find a list of flowers for mountain gardens from the Colorado State University Extension.
Let’s jump in!
The best flowers for late summer in Colorado include…
Sunset Hyssop
Agastache rupestris
Hummingbirds adore Sunset Hyssop. This late summer flower is Grand Central Station for hummingbirds. You may notice butterflies, bees and sphinx moths visiting it too. And bonus, this plant is typically deer and rabbit resistant, meaning Bambi will likely visit your neighbors’ gardens first.
Sunset Hyssop is one of the more reliable hyssops in Colorado when it’s planted in sunny, well-drained locations. Translation: It has a good track record of returning when other hyssops may not! Its salmon-orange flowers tend to be the showiest in August, but you should see blooms into fall.
Sunset Hyssop is native to the mountains of the Southwest. Zones 5-10.
Not familiar with “zones?” Learn what a hardiness zone is and how to find your zone here.
Dakota Sunshine Maximilian’s Sunflower
Helianthus maximiliani ‘Dakota Sunshine’
If you like sunflowers or you simply like daisy-like flowers, this may be one of the best flowers for late summer in your garden! Dakota Sunshine gets spires of showy yellow blooms that grow up tall stems. It’s a drought-tolerant perennial that can reach 5’ to 6’ tall, so it’s ideal for adding height to the back of a garden. Native to the prairies, Dakota Sunshine blooms in August into early September. It’s a favorite of bees when it’s blooming. When it goes to seed later in the fall, the seedheads attract birds. Zones 3-8.
If you’d like a version of this plant that blooms in the fall, look for Maximilian Sunflower. It grows even taller—often 6′ to 8′ in height—and typically blooms in September and October in western states like Colorado.
I found Dakota Sunshine at High Country Gardens. You also may be able to find these plants at local, independent garden centers.
Autumn Joy Sedum
Sedum spectabile ‘Autumn Joy’
So many reasons to love Autumn Joy Sedum, so little time! This perennial has beautiful pink flowers that appear in late summer and last into fall. Honeybees love the flowers.
Autumn Joy has thick leaves that add great structure and textural contrast to a garden. It tends to be a longer-lived perennial, coming back for many years. It adapts well to our tricky Colorado weather and soils (dirt). And during the winter, its seed heads can catch snow, adding interest to your winter garden too. Zones 4-11.
Meadow Blazing Star Liatris (aka, Rocky Mountain Gayfeather)
Liatris ligulistylus
When I’m strolling through the Denver Botanic Gardens in August and September, this is the plant I usually hear people asking about. It’s an attention getter.
Blazing Star Liatris sends up vertical shoots of rosy-purple flowers that look like fuzzy buttons. The narrow, vertical shape of this plant offers a nice contrast to round-shaped plants in late summer gardens. And its flowers are extremely attractive to adult butterflies, including Monarchs. In my garden, Blazing Star Liatris also attracts native bees—particularly bumblebees.
If you see the words, Liatris punctata (Dotted Blazing Star) or Liatris ligulistylus (Meadow Blazing Star), on the plant tag, your plant is native to Colorado and the Central Plains. Zones 4-9 and 3-8.
If you see Liatris spicata (Dense Blazing Star) on the plant tag, it’s native to the eastern United States. It tends to prefer more moisture.
Goldenrod
Solidago
Many Goldenrods put on a show with their vibrant, golden flowers in late summer and early fall. There are many species of Goldenrod that are native to different parts of North America, and you can find them in a variety of heights. Look for Goldenrods that bloom in August and September.
Goldenrod flowers are extremely attractive to a wide variety of pollinators, including bees and butterflies. In my garden, tiny native bees love these plants. Zones 4-8.
Goldenrod has been blamed for seasonal allergies like hay fever, but this is a garden myth that has been disproven. The allergy-causing culprits are typically wind-pollinated plants like ragweed, which happen to bloom at the same time.
Little Bluestem Grass
Schizachyrium scoparium
Ornamental grasses are in their glory in late summer and early fall. One of my faves is Little Bluestem.
It has a column-like shape rather than a round, mounded shape, so it fits in well in small urban gardens, as well as spacious western landscapes.
Native to Colorado (and the prairies of much of the United States), many varieties of this blue-green grass turn a red color in the fall, making it a wonderful accent to other plants. During winter, it can take on a bronze hue with light seed heads, so it can add colorful interest to your winter garden too. Zones 3-8.
Ruby Muhly Grass
Muhlenbergia reverchonii
If you’re looking for a late summer flower that’s a showstopper for your Colorado garden, check out Ruby Muhly Grass. It has airy, pink seed heads that dance in the wind and catch the late summer light. It’s ethereal! And it’s another ornamental grass that looks beautiful in the fall and through the winter.
Ruby Muhly Grass grows in a mounded shape, up to a few feet wide.
If you live in the Denver area, you can see beautiful examples of Ruby Muhly Grass at the Denver Botanic Gardens. Zones 5-10.
Blue Mist Spirea
Caryopteris x clandonensis
Blue Mist Spirea is an easy-to-grow shrub that’s covered with blue flowers in late summer. It often blooms for up to 8 weeks during August and September. This shrub is a pollinator MAGNET! It attracts a variety of bees and butterflies in late summer—when many other shrubs and perennials are done blooming. And bonus, deer and rabbits tend to skip it.
Use Blue Mist Spirea to add structural interest to your garden, as a border plant or in a hedge. It grows to about 3 to 4’ wide and tall. Zones 5-8.
Dwarf Rabbitbrush (aka, Baby Blue Rabbitbrush)
Ericameria (Chrysothamnus) nauseosus var. nauseosus
Dwarf rabbitbrush offers vibrant, late summer flowers that attract native bees and butterflies.
As the name suggests, dwarf rabbitbrush is a mini version of rabbitbrush. It grows up to 2′ tall and 3′ wide. It’s native to Colorado’s Front Range. It has dense, silver-blue foliage and keeps its shape well. It lights up with golden flowers in late summer and fall in Colorado, often from September to November.
Rabbitbrush can spread its seeds like a fairy godmother tossing pixie dust, so be prepared to pull some seedlings. This shrub benefits from a light shearing in the late fall or early spring to increase next season’s flowers. Zones 4-9.
Related topics that may interest you:
by Ann at Go West Gardener | Updated: Mar 20, 2026 | Best Flowers for Colorado, Utah & Similar States, Gardening for Pollinators, In-ground garden, Waterwise Gardening in the Intermountain West
During the spring of 2020, my husband and I re-worked part of our yard with new garden beds. (Any other weekend warriors out there?)
I wanted to include drought-tolerant red flowers that would grow well in Colorado’s poor soils and hot, dry climate.
And that’s when I fell in love with a flower called Red Birds in a Tree… and so did our local hummingbirds!
Hummingbirds LOVE this flower.
My husband walks inside every morning after walking the dog and announces, “The hummingbirds are outside. Again.”
Here are 5 reasons to consider adding Red Birds in a Tree to your western garden:
Photo courtesy of Plant Select
1) Unique flowers
The flowers on this plant look like little pinkish-red birds sitting on tree branches.
Aren’t they so cute?
This flower plant isn’t the showiest one I have in my garden, but it’s the one that my neighbors always ask about.
It’s an attention-getter because it’s unusual.
2) Long-lasting color
Red Birds in a Tree is a perennial (a flower that returns each year).
Most perennials bloom for a short window of time — sometimes only a few weeks!
But not this one.
This plant blooms for a LONG time.
Over the last two summers, this flower has started blooming in my Denver garden in late June. Once it starts flowering, it keeps going and going. I’ve had blooms into early October. I get the showiest color in the first 4-6 weeks of blooming.
Are you familiar with plant hardiness zones? They tell you whether a plant is likely to survive the coldest winter temperatures that are expected where you live. Red Birds in a Tree is ideal for gardens in plant hardiness zones 4-9.
3) It’s very drought tolerant
When you first plant Red Birds in a Tree, you’ll want to water it consistently while it’s a young plant. But once it gets established in your garden, this plant is VERY drought tolerant.
You can even grow this plant in xeric gardens. Xeric gardens get their water from Mama Nature, and that’s about it. There’s almost no supplemental irrigation. Do you have a spot in your yard that doesn’t get irrigation from a sprinkler system? Red Birds in a Tree could be a great plant for that area.
Red Birds in a Tree can handle up to moderate irrigation too.
But my understanding is, if this plant gets more frequent watering and your dirt is “loam” (meaning you have well-balanced soil), this plant may not live for as many years.
Photo courtesy of Plant Select
4) It’s easy going
Red Birds in a Tree grows well in all kinds of sunlight. It isn’t picky. You can put it in sunny spots or in partly shady spots. Personally, I’ve had more success with it in afternoon sunshine.
This plant also grows in different types of soils (the dirt in your garden). This is a good thing because western soils can be a pain in the booty.
This flower plant is adaptable.
And it’s good for elevations up to about 8125 feet.
5) It’s a western regional native
Red Birds in a Tree is native to the mountain slopes of New Mexico, and it’s on the flight path of migrating hummingbirds. If you want to buy regionally native plants, add this one to your list.
Where to buy Red Birds in a Tree
Red Birds in a Tree is a Plant Select plant. Plant Select is a western plant introduction program. It introduces smart and sustainable plants inspired by the Rocky Mountain region. (It’s a non-profit collaboration between Colorado State University, Denver Botanic Gardens and the western green industry.)
You should be able to find this plant at local, independent garden centers that carry the Plant Select brand.
You also can google, “Red Birds in a Tree,” to find online retailers.
Just so you have it, the botanical name is Scrophularia macrantha.
(Try saying that 3 times quickly. Ha!)
Please visit the Plant Select website if you’d like more details about Red Birds in a Tree.
Related topics that may interest you:
by Ann at Go West Gardener | Updated: Jun 20, 2025 | Best Flowers for Colorado, Utah & Similar States, Gardening for Pollinators, In-ground garden, Waterwise Gardening in the Intermountain West
Would you like a long-blooming perennial…
… that attracts butterflies and interesting moths, gives you color all summer AND is drought tolerant?
Yes, pleasssssse!
I can’t wait to introduce you to Jupiter’s Beard (aka, Red Valerian). Its botanical name is Centranthus ruber.
If you want months of color, I think it’s one of the best flowers for Colorado, Utah and similar western states. It’s one of my favorite perennials. (Perennials are the flowers that come back year after year.)
Here are a few reasons to add Jupiter’s Beard to your garden.
This flower plant is:
- Easy to grow
- Colorful and showy
- Drought tolerant (you don’t have to water it much once it gets established in your garden—awesome for semi-arid states like Colorado and Utah)
- Tolerant of hail (it bounces back quickly from light hailstorms)
- Resistant to nibbling deer and rabbits (they tend to skip it for munching)
Plus, it’s a MAGNET for butterflies and interesting moths.
I constantly find myself heading back into my house to get my camera because there’s a new butterfly dancing across its flowers.
“Oh, hey there, Swallowtail butterfly!”
The Monarch butterfly in the photo below visited my Jupiter’s Beard plant in October.
(Yep, flowers and butterflies well into October!!)
And its color goes on, and on, and on …
When you’re planning a perennial garden, I think one of the biggest challenges can be finding flowers that give you showy color for a long time. Most perennials only bloom for a few weeks, and then they’re done for the season.
The beauty of Jupiter’s Beard is that it will keep pushing out new flower blooms over the whole summer.
The only catch is that you need to keep up with trimming off the faded blooms, so new buds can grow in.
And if you don’t trim off the dead blooms?
Well, this happy-go-lucky plant will send its seeds EVERYWHERE.
It’s like a birthday card with glitter on it. No many how many times you vacuum, you keep finding more glitter.
Friends, the seeds on this plant are like glitter.
So, put Jupiter’s Beard in a spot you want to fill in with more flowers OR be diligent about trimming off the dead blooms.
You can find Jupiter’s Beard with red, pink or white flowers.
The red variety is more of a dark pink than a true red, but it’s still very pretty.
Jupiter’s Beard is happiest when it gets a lot of sunshine (6+ hours/day).
It grows well up to elevations of about 9,000 feet.
And if you’re familiar with plant hardiness zones (which tell you whether a plant is likely to survive winter temperatures in your area), Jupiter’s Beard typically grows well in gardens in zones 4-9.
Do you live outside the intermountain west?
If you live in another region of the country, ask at your local garden center whether Jupiter’s Beard can be grown where you live.
Jupiter’s Beard can spread aggressively in maritime regions (like the West Coast), so there are places where it isn’t allowed.
Related tips that may interest you:
by Ann at Go West Gardener | Updated: Mar 20, 2026 | Garden design Ideas, Gardening Tips and Tricks, Western Container Gardening With Flowers
Looking for a design tip to make your flowerpots look prettier this summer?
Combine flowers of different heights!
Planting flowers of different heights can help you create a lot of visual interest.
Think of a city skyline or a beautiful mountain range. There are different layers that make things interesting, right?
The same is true for the flowers in your flowerpots.
In gardening lingo, this design concept is known as thrillers, fillers and spillers.
- Thrillers are your tall flowers.
- Fillers are your mid-size flowers.
- Spillers are your flowers that spill out of the flower pot.
if you find these words hard to remember or confusing, then…
Think about this flowerpot design tip in western terms.
You want your flowerpots to have mountains, foothills and waterfalls.
Your mountains are your tall flowers that add height and a strong focal point to your flowerpots.
For example, you could use a tall ornamental grass or a gorgeous red canna lily, like the one pictured below. (Just like the mighty peaks in a mountain range, these tall flowers are your thrillers.)
Your foothills are your mid-size flowers that add interesting textures or pops of color, like the yellow Marguerite daisies below. (These flowers fill your flowerpots.)
And your waterfalls are your flowers that spill out of your flowerpots and cascade down the sides, like the light-green licorice plant and lime-green sweet potato vine in the photo below. (These flowers are your spillers.)
When you go to the garden center, how do you know whether a flower will make a good mountain, foothill or waterfall?
1. Notice which direction the plant is growing.
Even in the garden center, you can usually tell whether a flower is growing upright or growing down.
If you hold up a plant that seems to be trailing from its container, it could be a great flower to spill from your flowerpots like a waterfall. The pink petunias below are a good example.
2. Look at the plant tag to check your flower’s final height.
Often times, the size of the flower in the garden center is only a fraction of how big that flower will grow by the end of the summer.
For example, a flower that’s about 8” tall in the garden center may grow several feet tall over the summer!
When you pick up flowers at the garden center, check their plant tags to see how tall they’ll grow.
If you pick up a flower that grows 14” to 36” tall, it could make a great mountain.
Flowers that aren’t quite as tall — 6” to 14” in height — can make great foothills.
Keep in mind, the height suggestions above are just that: Suggestions! Gardening is personal, so you can do whatever looks good to you.
For this flowerpot design tip to work, do you have to include mountains, foothills AND waterfalls?
This is a matter of personal preference.
Personally, I love all three together.
But you can definitely go with just two.
The flowerpots below are hanging in my neighbor’s yard. The pots are small, so she just used foothills and waterfalls. She didn’t have enough room for all three.
And the flowerpot below is really big, but the gardener made a strong statement with just mountains and foothills.
If you liked this flowerpot design tip, you may also like:
by Ann at Go West Gardener | Updated: Mar 20, 2026 | Flower Garden Basics
When I was first learning how to garden…
I used to think that 32 degrees was the temperature I needed to keep an eye on for my flower plants.
32 degrees is when water freezes, so that must be the point when my flowers will freeze too, right?
But over time, I’ve learned:
There are levels of frost and freezing that affect plants in different ways.
32 degrees isn’t the magic number for all plants.
(Because Mama Nature makes her own rules, y’all!)
So, in this article, I want to share tips I wish I had understood sooner, so you’re a step ahead as a gardener. As our temperatures dip in states like Colorado and Utah, I hope this article helps you understand:
- What’s going on with the annuals and perennials in your garden
- Which flowers you may want to cover and protect (if you want them to last longer)
- Why the heck some of your plants still look good — while others may be a mushy mess!
In gardeners’ terms, annuals are flowers that live for a single year, but don’t return. Perennials are flowers that come back for multiple years.
Here’s a quick summary:
Between 36 and 29 degrees, your most vulnerable flowers are your “tender annuals.”
Tender annuals are your one-season flowers that like warm air and warm soil to grow. They like having “warm feet,” meaning they want their roots to be comfortably warm. These are the guys you definitely want to cover if you want them to last longer. (You can see examples further down this post.)
When you reach 28 degrees or below, more of your flowers will be affected.
Keep in mind, there are always exceptions with Mother Nature. I’ve shared some of them down at the end of this post. Nonetheless, this will give you a good overview.
Let’s start with frost because it often shows up first.
Frost
When temperatures reach 36 degrees (or below) AND the moisture conditions are right
Frost is a thin layer of water vapor that turns into ice on the surface of your plants. When ice forms on the surface of your plants, the water inside your plants can freeze too, causing the cells to rupture and lose all their water.
And this can damage or kill your plants.
If the moisture conditions are right for frost, you can get it when temperatures reach 36 degrees or below.
As I mentioned earlier, between 36 and 29 degrees, frost often has the biggest effect on your tender annuals.
Have you ever had a friend visit from a city like San Diego? When our temperatures are 50 degrees, you’re thinking about wearing shorts… but your friend wants to put on a parka. Your friend from San Diego is like your tender flowers. These plants do not adjust well to the cold.
These flowers are happiest when temperatures are warmer. They’re VERY sensitive to frosts and cold temperatures.
Light freeze
Between 32 and 29 degrees
You know the tender annuals we’ve been talking about? The temperatures in a light freeze will likely kill them. A light freeze takes place between 32 and 29 degrees. If you’re catching your local weather report, you’ll hear your weather forecasters call this a “freeze warning.”
What are examples of tender flowers? You may recognize some of the annuals below.
In my garden, sweet potato vine (pictured above) is ALWAYS the first plant to get nipped.
A light freeze also can damage how your hardier flowers look. Usually, though, it’s just cosmetic damage.
Hard freeze (National Weather Service language)
Between 28 and 25 degrees
A hard freeze should severely damage or kill most of your annual flowers — even your hardier flowers that are happier in chillier temps.
Master gardeners sometimes call this a “moderate freeze.” However, I’ve used the hard freeze language from the National Weather Service here because it’s what you’ll see on a weather app or hear on a forecast. When the weather forecasters say, “There’s a hard freeze warning tonight,” they’re talking about the threshold of 28 degrees or below.
It’s going to be destructive to your annuals if you don’t protect them.
This is the temperature zone where you may start noticing damage to some of your perennials too. For example, you may notice their leaves turning a dark color or becoming a little gooey.
Hard, severe or killing freeze
24 degrees (or colder)
This freeze will likely cause widespread damage to the exposed flowers, leaves and stems on many perennials. (It can depend on how protected your flowers are in your yard, and it also depends on the type of plant.)
This is also the freeze that kills most remaining annuals.
There are exceptions. Pansies and violets, for example, are tenacious little flowers that can survive these freezing temperatures. At lower (warmer) elevations in Colorado, you may see them planted in the fall for spring blooming.
Some exceptions to these guidelines!
Remember, Mama Nature makes her own rules.
Here are exceptions that are relevant if you’re gardening in Colorado, Utah or similar western states:
- If you have young or newly planted flowers, they’re more vulnerable to freezing (and dying) than your plants that have well-established roots.
- If we experience a really big temperature swing, your plants are more vulnerable to damage or death from freezes. In the Front Range of Colorado, we can get 50- to 60-degree temperature swings in the fall and spring. In the fall, this is confusing for our plants (especially our trees). They don’t have time to naturally prepare for hibernation mode, known as “dormancy.” And in the spring, they’ve often started to wake up from dormancy when we get these cold temperature swings.
- If you have flower buds that are opening in the spring, I’ve found they’re more vulnerable to getting dinged by freezes than leaves. The freezes likely won’t kill your plants. You just may not get flowers that year.
- If you’re growing flowers in a protected area of your yard (like along a south-facing fence that’s shielded from the wind), your plants may stay warmer when temperatures drop. I often have flowers that freeze in my front yard, while those same flowers are wide awake and happy in the backyard, which is more protected.
- There are some perennials (plants that come back) that are evergreen. They keep the color in their leaves all winter. You may not notice freeze damage on those plants.
The dates for the first fall frost
We have such varied elevations and conditions in Colorado and Utah, it depends on where you live.
The Front Range of Colorado usually gets its first frost in early- to mid-October. But hey, it’s Colorado. We also can get it in early September. (I’m looking at you, 2020.)
And if you live at a higher elevation, your garden may be at risk for frost year-round.
How to find the spring and fall frost dates in your area
In the fall, if you’d like to find the “average first frost date” for your area, I suggest googling:
- Average first fall frost in {your city}
In the spring, you may want to search for the “average last frost date”:
- Average last spring frost in {your city}
Just a final bit of garden lingo… The “average last frost date” means you’ve reached the point when it’s now less than 50 percent likely you’ll get a frost after this date.
Related topics that may interest you:
by Ann at Go West Gardener | Updated: Jan 28, 2026 | Gardening Tips and Tricks, In-ground garden, Waterwise Gardening in the Intermountain West
Winter is a marathon for our plants in Colorado.
It’s an endurance test, and it can take its toll on our landscapes. Typically:
- Most of us don’t get a lot of precipitation during winter in Colorado.
- We get drying winds that pull the moisture out of plants.
- We also get wild temperature swings above and below freezing — like animated 7-year-olds riding up and down on a seesaw.
All of this is tough on our plants.
And it’s especially tough in our gardens that face south or west. These plants get warm afternoon sunshine, and then the temperatures drop at night. As the ground freezes and thaws, it creates cracks in the soil, creating little Grand Canyons. This can push our plants’ roots up. Now our plants’ roots are more vulnerable to getting cold and drying out.
And winter can go on, and on, and on…
Our Colorado gardens have to put up with a lot!
So, if you’re wondering, “Should I water my Colorado garden in the fall and winter?”
Yes, it can be a good idea for many plants if you’re having a dry fall or winter. If you’re going through a prolonged dry period, hook up a hose and give your plant babies a deep watering, so their roots stay hydrated and healthy.
Read on for specific watering tips!
During a dry autumn and winter…
Water 1-2 times per month if:
- It’s been windy.
- Daytime temperatures have been mild (warmer than usual). Or:
- You’ve gotten less than 1″ of moisture from rain or snow.
Just as a point of reference, 1″ of rainfall usually works out to to about 12-13″ of snow. So, a dusting of snow — or even a couple of inches — doesn’t add a lot of water for your plants!
Make sure:
- Temperatures are above 40 degrees.
- The ground isn’t covered with snow.
- You water in the middle of the day when it’s warm. Mid-day watering is ideal in the fall and winter, so foliage can dry before nightfall and water can soak into the ground.
Pro tip: Make a note on your calendar or on your phone when you water. It can help you keep track.
What plants should you water in your Colorado garden?
New plants tend to be more vulnerable to winter stress. However, even waterwise perennials that have been growing in your garden for a number of years can experience winter dieback during drought. (Perennials are your plants that come back each year.)
If you’re pressed for time, focus your watering efforts on your:
- Trees and shrubs, especially those you planted within the last 2-3 years
- Trees and shrubs that keep their needles or leaves over winter
- Any perennials you planted in the fall
- Any perennial gardens that face south, west or are exposed to wind
There are exceptions on what to water.
Because Mama Nature makes her own rules, y’all!
Xeric plants (those that need VERY little supplemental water) that have been growing in your garden for a season or two likely don’t need any irrigation from you.
Many parts of Colorado are in a “rain shadow.”
In the Front Range of Colorado, we live in a rain shadow of the mountains. Weather systems lose their moisture on the windward sides and tops of mountains. This casts a shadow of dryness — aka, a rain shadow — onto the Front Range.
The same thing can happen on the Western Slope. If you live in western Colorado, you can get a rain shadow effect from Utah.
So, if you haven’t gotten much moisture, temperatures have been mild, or it’s been windy in your garden this fall or winter, pull out the hose to water.
If you’d like specific watering tips…
The Colorado State University Extension has more details on fall and winter watering, including how to water your trees.
And for related topics, check out:
by Ann at Go West Gardener | Updated: Feb 5, 2026 | Gardening for Pollinators, Gardening Tips and Tricks
10 tips to create a pollinator garden in Colorado, Utah and similar states
Do you want to attract bees and butterflies to your garden? Me too!
These wonderful pollinators need just a few, basic survival elements:
- Food (from nectar-rich flowers)
- Water sources
- Cover (shelter)
- Places to raise and feed their young
- Protection from pesticides
Here are 10 tips to create a pollinator garden that not only attracts bees and butterflies, but also offers an environment where they can thrive.
1) Plant a variety of flowers that bloom at different times—from spring to fall.
That way, you’ll give your bees and butterflies a constant source of food and shelter.
Typically, pollinators can find food sources during the summer. (It’s easy to find flowers that bloom in June and July!) So, if you’re prioritizing, focus on adding flowers, flowering shrubs or flowering trees that bloom in the spring, late summer or fall. This is when food can be scarce for bees.
At the end of this article, you’ll find good plant lists for butterflies and bees.
2) Include native plants in your garden, when possible.
There are approximately 1000 native bee species in Colorado and close to 1000 native bee species in Utah.
Native bees tend to like native plants.
Native plants have been around for a long time—since before Europeans settled in North America. They’re “ecologically adapted” to your area, just like your native bees are. They’ve evolved together. These plants are very appealing to pollinators, especially bees and butterflies that have had their habitat destroyed by urban development.
Some bees will only gather nectar and pollen from specific native plants—like Rabbitbrush (Chrysothamnus nauseosa), Globe Mallow (Sphaeralcea munroana) or Sunflowers (Helianthus).
Butterflies can prefer specific plants too.
For example, Monarch butterflies will only use Milkweed plant as a “host” for their young. And other butterflies have their own preferences for plants to host their babies.
Despite their growing popularity, native plants can be tricky to find at some garden centers.
The best places to look for them are typically: local, independent garden centers, online retailers and native seed companies.
3) Plant flowers with different bloom shapes, sizes and heights.
If you want to attract bees and butterflies to your garden, make sure you have variety in your flowers!
Butterflies:
Butterflies tend to like coneflower-shaped flower heads and ice cream-shaped flower heads.
Butterflies won’t climb into a flower. Instead, they prefer flowers where they can perch with a 360-degree view—ideally, in an open spot with a lot of sunlight.
Bees:
Bees’ favorite flower colors are blue, yellow, bright white or ultra-violet. They’re drawn to nectar-rich flowers with an easy-to-access supply of nectar and pollen.
As my ecology instructor used to say, bees like flowers “with landing platforms.” They also like tubular flowers.
Single-bloom flowers are best.
Avoid “double-bloom flowers” (aka, double flowers). What the heck is a double-bloom flower? It’s a flower with extra flower petals. Here are examples with Zinnias and Dahlias:
Double-bloom flowers may look beautiful, but they make it harder for bees to get to the nectar and pollen. (And sometimes, these flowers don’t even have nectar and pollen!)
As far as flower size goes, there is no one-size-fits-all for bees. It depends on the bee. Some larger, native bees prefer larger flower heads. Other bees are drawn to very small flower heads.
Again, variety is key!
4) Plant flowers in groups (clumps of 3+ flowers), rather than individual plants.
For one thing, this can look natural and attractive.
But it also can be helpful for bees like honeybees. They like to gather nectar and pollen from the same flowers at one time. When you plant in groups, you’re more likely to attract honeybees—and keep them happy. You’ll help them focus their energy on gathering food.
5) Include a shallow water source in your garden.
Bees need water.
To give your bees a safe place to drink:
- Create a shallow pool with an old plate, flowerpot saucer, upside-down frisbee or shallow bird bath.
- Place objects—like pebbles, rocks and twigs—in the water, so your pollinators have a place to stand without drowning.
Bees also will drink water from your sprinkler heads or your drip system heads.
So, what about butterflies?
Adult butterflies like sweet liquids. They’re drawn to nectar, rotting fruit and other sweet liquids.
Male butterflies do like shallow mud puddles, though. While the reason isn’t fully known, it’s believed that dissolved minerals in the water may be good for butterflies.
Caterpillars primarily get their liquids from the plants they feed upon.
6) Make sure you have a sunny area that’s protected from the wind.
In western states like Colorado and Utah, we can get wind gusts that make it feel like our houses are coming apart at the seams!
Adult butterflies like to feed in sunny spots that are open… but also protected from the wind. So, if you can create a wind break in your garden, that’s ideal for your pollinators, particularly your butterflies.
7) Cut your flower garden back in the spring, rather than in the fall.
If possible, this means leaving some natural debris—like fallen leaves and plant stems—in your flower garden over winter.
Around 70% of Colorado’s native bees nest in the ground, and the other 30% nest in cavities, like hollow plant stems. When you wait until spring to trim back your flower garden, you provide good, undisturbed nesting grounds for bees.
You keep their nests safe and protected.
I know we’re chatting about bees and butterflies in this article, but it’s worth noting that your winter garden also can be a big hit with birds. Dried flower heads offer good food sources for them. And they can take shelter in your garden.
8) Gives bees shelter in your soil (dirt).
Did you know that 90% of native bees are solitary bees? They live alone, rather than in a colony.
And as I mentioned earlier, most native bees nest in the ground. To create a bee-friendly environment in your soil:
- Avoid using landscape fabrics. They keep bees from being able to tunnel into the ground.
- Avoid thick mulch in select places in your garden. Mulch is a material you put on top of your soil—like bark or wood chips. It offers a lot of benefits for plants, but deep layers of mulch can make it difficult for bees to nest in the ground. You may want to selectively choose a few spots where you use a thin layer of mulch or no mulch at all.
- Avoid tilling. Tilling is when you extensively turn your soil over until it’s all broken up. There was a time when tilling was a popular garden practice. However, it’s fallen out of favor in home gardens because it can create soil structure problems and destroy beneficial organisms. (It messes up the health of your soil, which can lead to problems in your plants.) In this case, avoid tilling because it can destroy your bees’ nests and/or kill bees or their young.
- Avoid using overhead sprinklers during the day. Instead, use drip irrigation (small irrigation lines that run to the plants). This way, the mama bee will be able to find her nest after a day of foraging. Overhead sprinklers can accidentally destroy the entrances with mud when the bees are away, says the Utah State University Extension.
9) Don’t use pesticides in your landscape.
If you want to attract bees and butterflies to your garden, avoid using chemicals to treat your lawn or plants.
And yep, this means you wouldn’t use pesticides for:
- Treating the weeds in your lawn or garden
- Fertilizing your lawn or your garden plants
- Battling Japanese beetles
The chemicals can transfer to bees and other pollinators when they land on the plants or feed from them.
(If you have no other alternative, use the mildest treatment you can. And spray when bees and butterflies are less active, like at dusk. Don’t spray during the day when pollinators are gathering food!)
10) Buy from bee-safe garden centers and growers.
Many plants sold at garden centers have been treated with “neonicotinoids”—a type of pesticide—early in their life cycle. This pesticide use is very common.
This pesticide is toxic to insects, including bees. It can stay inside plant tissues for a long time, leading to problems for pollinators that visit those plants, from impairment to death.
Some garden centers have pledged not to sell plants that have been grown with these chemicals. Here’s where to buy plants that are safe for bees in Colorado and the West.
Want more info on how to attract bees and butterflies?
Check out these resources:
Related topics that may interest you:
by Ann at Go West Gardener | Updated: Jan 28, 2026 | Gardening for Pollinators, Gardening Tips and Tricks
I originally published this article in 2022. Enjoy!
Have you ever gotten a puppy or kitten?
Chances are, you did a few things to get your home ready:
Bought special food… Stocked up on toys… Rolled up rugs… Shut bathroom doors, so Buddy (or Mittens) didn’t turn your toilet paper rolls into New Year’s Eve confetti…
The point is, you made a few, small tweaks, so your home was safe and welcoming for your furry friend.
The same is true for pollinators.
You can make your garden MUCH more welcoming for bees and butterflies with just a few, small tweaks.
For example:
- Plant flowers that bloom in the early spring and fall, as well as the summer. You’ll give pollinators nectar and pollen when it’s hard to find.
- Wait to clean up your garden until the spring—yep, put your feet back and relax in the fall. You’ll give your pollinators a safe place to spend the winter.
- Skip using landscape fabrics (aka, weed barriers). They make it hard for bees to nest in the ground. Not to mention, they break down over time, and weed seeds can still get in.
Here are 10 simple ways to make your garden a 5-star destination for bees and butterflies.
Of course, even if you’re diligent, puppies and kittens can leave their mark on your home.
Many of us have chew marks on a coffee table or scratch marks on a sofa to prove it.
Or both.
(Ahem.)
The idea of having a perfect home goes out the window with furry friends.
It helps to have similar expectations with pollinators.
If you want to create a garden where they can thrive (and we’re on Team You if you do!), then know that they may leave their mark.
For example, some bees—known as leafcutter bees—will cut round holes in plant leaves. They use these leaf parts to make little nurseries for their baby bees. The holes typically don’t harm your plants. They’re just cosmetic.
Butterflies have babies—caterpillars—that may chow down on certain plants like hungry-hungry hippos.
Yep, whether you’re welcoming a puppy or kitten… or a bee or a butterfly… there’s often a wee bit of chaos that comes with it.
So, why not let go of flower garden perfection?
Embrace the perfectly imperfect.
And pat yourself on the back that you’re creating an amazing home for pollinators.
Related topics that my interest you:
by Ann at Go West Gardener | Updated: Sep 12, 2025 | Flower Garden Basics, Gardening Tips and Tricks, Western Container Gardening With Flowers
You know you’ve entered the “joys of western gardening club” when…
It feels like summer one day… and the next day you’re bracing yourself for frosts, freezes and snow.
(I’m not crying. I have something in my eye.)
If you’d like your summer annuals — your one-season flowers — to stay alive, it’s helpful to find ways to protect them from Mother Nature’s cold snaps.
So, in this article, you’ll find 6 ways to help protect your tender flowers from frosts and freezes.
You’ll also find a tip to help protect your trees and shrubs, which can be vulnerable to sudden cold spells too.
Protecting your sensitive plants is about finding ways to keep them warm.
When you see your neighbors frantically covering their tender flowers, what they’re trying to do is keep their plants warm.
If you can keep your plants just 5 degrees warmer than the cold conditions around them, it often can make a big difference for your plants.
As you look for ways to protect your flowers, ask yourself:
“Is what I’m doing going to help generate or retain heat around my plants?”
If it’s not, skip it and look for another option.
Here are 6 ways to keep your flowers warm:
1) Thoroughly water the dirt (aka, “soil”) around your flowers.
If watering feels counter-intuitive when we’re talking about freezing temperatures, I’m with you.
But watering your soil before a freeze can actually help warm your plants. And remember, heat is the goal here.
Damp soil can keep the surface air around your flowers up to 5 degrees warmer than surrounding temperatures.
Why?
Because moist soil retains heat better than dry soil. It can warm up during the day and help offer heat at night.
Pro tip: It helps to water during the day. That way, the soil has time to warm up, and any water that splashes on your plants has time to dry before temperatures drop. (Wet leaves, flowers and stems freeze more quickly than dry ones.) When you’re done watering, be sure to unscrew your hose, so you avoid any issues with pipes freezing and breaking. Because we’re trying to remove headaches, not create them, am I right?
2) Move your pots of flowers to a warmer, protected area.
I know some flowerpots are too heavy to move, but move what you can.
A mudroom or an attached garage can work well as a temporary holding space when temperatures dip.
If you can’t bring your containers inside, even moving them to a dry, covered area on a porch or deck may help.
I would try to put your containers right next to your home out of the wind. Look for a spot where the walls may radiate some heat. Depending on how cold it’s going to get, you also may want to add on tip #3 below.
Keep in mind, warm air rises and cold air sinks, so avoid moving your pots to the low spots in your yard.
3) Build a “tent” around your flowers.
This one sounds a little complicated, but let’s keep it simple.
Here’s all you’re trying to do. You’re covering your flowers with a cloth fabric to keep the heat in, but you’re staking the fabric up (the best you can) so it doesn’t touch your plants.
The photo above may look like at an attempt at a spooky Halloween display, but it’s actually an impromptu tent for my cosmos flowers.
To create a tent, you can use:
- For your frame: Metal rods, tomato cages, lawn furniture, shepherd’s hooks for hanging flower pots, etc. Get creative!
- For your cover: Woven cloth fabrics like old bed sheets, pillow cases, towels, a lightweight picnic blanket… basically, the items you want to donate from your linen closet. You also can use “garden fabrics,” like a commercial-grade landscape fabric or heavier types of “floating row covers” (which are fabrics used in vegetable gardening). I would look for these garden fabrics at local, independent garden centers and online.
- For your clips: You can use safety pins, binder clips from your office, plastic clips, etc.
If you want to keep it really simple, I’ve given you a pre-made tent option at the end of this section.
So, why does using cloth fabric matter?
It all comes back to heat. Woven cloth fabrics offer better insulation than plastic materials. They don’t conduct the cold like plastic does.
Ideally, you want to extend the tent all the way to the ground.
I’d extend your tent all the way to the ground (even over a flowerpot), so you can capture the heat from the ground. Pin or clip the fabric together to keep cold air out and warm air in.
If you have gaps in your tent, you’re losing heat.
If possible, try not to let the fabric touch a plant:
- This helps keep the warm air circulating around your entire plant.
- And in some cases, if wet fabric touches your plant, you may accidentally cause the damage you’re trying to prevent.
If this sounds like too much work, there are pre-made frost protection tents for your plants.
You can see an example in the photo below.
Search online for phrases like:
- “Plant protection tents” or
- “Pop-up plant protectors”
These tents quickly pop up. They’re easy to use. And because they flatten up when you’re done, they’re easy to store.
4) Avoid using plastic sheets to cover your plants, unless you have no other option.
Why?
Because plastic doesn’t have the insulating properties of woven fabric. Plus, if plastic is touching your plants, it can conduct the cold and contribute to the damage you’re trying to prevent.
But if you don’t have other options, make it work, baby! It can be better than nothing. Just prop it up, so it doesn’t touch your plants.
5) Place empty containers over tender plants to trap warmth from the ground around your plants.
You can use boxes, buckets, recycling bins, garbage cans, empty flowerpots and other containers. These devices can work well if you’re going to get snow because they’re unlikely to collapse under the weight.
Just remove these covers during the day when it warms up.
6) Get creative with ways to generate heat around your flowers.
You may see your neighbors filling milk jugs with hot water or placing warm bricks near their plants. Both options can create warmth in the shelters you’re placing around your plants. It’s like a little campfire for your plants.
All these methods should work well for BRIEF temperature dips.
But if you’re going to get an arctic blast (especially one that lasts a few days), you may need a stronger heat source.
Or, you may want to try doubling up on the methods above.
Do you have to do anything when a frost or freeze is in the forecast?
If you’re reading this article in the fall, nope, you don’t have to do anything.
You can sit back and see what Mother Nature throws at you, especially if you’re ready for your flower season to be over. But if you’d like your flowers to last a little longer, it helps to protect your plants.
In the spring, it’s a good idea protect your newly-purchased flowers, especially your summer annuals. These are your tender flowers that grow for one season only and don’t like frost.
That way, you don’t have to buy replacement flowers!
Let’s chat for a sec about your trees and shrubs.
At our lower elevations in states like Colorado, we can get big temperature swings that are really hard on our trees and shrubs.
When temperatures plummet in the fall, your trees and shrubs don’t get the chance to ease into dormancy.
These plants haven’t had a chance to gradually turn the water in their veins into “antifreeze” yet.
Even when we aren’t facing big temperature swings, our trees are often drought-stressed.
And “stressed” is not the way you want them entering winter!
It can help to give your trees and shrubs a deep, soaking water before a freeze too.
If you have a newly-planted tree or shrub, water the root ball area.
Otherwise, soak the ground around the outer circumference zone of your tree (out where the branches of leaves end), rather than soaking the trunk area.
This outer area is known as your tree’s “drip line,” and it’s where your tree’s roots are actively absorbing water.
Going from a beautiful garden to a freezing mess stinks, but it’s part of gardening life in western states like Colorado, Wyoming and Utah.
If you think it’s tough to be a gardener here, remember it’s even tougher to be a plant!
But you’ve got this!
If you want to protect your tender flowers and keep them alive, I hope these tips help you feel more confident in what you’re trying to do.
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