by Ann at Go West Gardener | Updated: May 8, 2023 | Gardening Tips and Tricks
Trimming off the dead blooms from your flowers can make them look even prettier.
It’s like giving them a fresh, new haircut!
But when you remove the dead blooms, should you pluck them by hand or with a tool?
I got this question and wanted to chat about it here.
For many flowers, using your fingers to remove the dead blooms is fine.
Once you get the hang of trimming off the dead blooms on your flowers (known as “deadheading”), you’ll be casually passing by your flowerpot with a cup of coffee in hand, and those dried-up flowers will be calling to you.
It’s hard to resist the urge to stop and pinch them off with your fingers.
Tip: It helps if you have longer fingernails, and you aren’t wearing gloves.
But, as I’ve learned the hard way…
Pinching off dead flowers with your fingers has its drawbacks.
- You may accidentally break off parts of the plant you didn’t intend to. And for me, it always seems to be a really pretty flower that’s about to open or a whole stem with new buds. (Ack!!!)
- It’s hard to be 100% accurate where you’re pinching a plant with your fingers. The stems don’t always break off cleanly or where you wanted. You can end up with some cuts that aren’t great for the plant and leave dead, stick-like stems. Not exactly the look we’re going for!
- Your hands can get sticky, depending on the plant. (I’m looking at you, petunias.)
- Some flower stems are just too thick to pinch with your fingers.
So, instead, consider using floral snips or hand pruners.
I use floral snips most of the time.
Floral snips are a small pair of scissors for trimming plants.
Tip! I leave my floral snips in an inconspicuous spot outside my door, so I can quickly pick them up when I walk outside. This helps me resist the urge to trim dead blooms with my fingers.
It also helps me trim dead blooms as I see them, rather than waiting until the plant is full of them.
(Translation: Keep those colorful blooms going!)
Floral snips are awesome because you can be VERY accurate in where you’re making a snip.
In the photo below, check out the precision you have when trimming off a petunia bloom.
Plus, if you want, you can wear gloves to keep your hands clean.
Floral snips work really well on flowers with thin stems, which are probably most of the flowers in your containers and many of the flowers in your garden.
But learn from my mistakes!
Don’t use your floral snips to cut thick-stalked plants.
You can accidentally squeeze the plant stems (not good) and really dull your snips.
Also, this may go without saying, but keep your floral snips for trimming plants.
My husband likes to borrow my floral snips for impromptu sprinkler projects, like cutting lines of tubing. The snips are never the same afterwards.
Moral of the story:
Hide the floral snips from your industrious Honey. 🙂
If you’re cutting a thicker-stemmed plant like a rose stem or a “cut flower”…
I suggest using hand pruners.
Hand pruners are a sturdier and bigger tool.
“Cut flowers” are the flowers you see in bouquets. Often times, they have thicker stems.
When choosing hand pruners, make sure the metal blades cross beside each other, rather than meeting at a center point.
This gives them extra strength for cutting.
It also ensures you won’t break or squeeze your flower stalks.
Where to find floral snips & hand pruners (new or used)
You can find new floral snips and hand pruners at your local garden center.
In the spring and early summer, you’ll often see them at places like Costco too.
If you prefer used garden tools, check out estate sales or websites like NextDoor, Craig’s List or OfferUp.
When you get used garden tools, clean them with soap and water and a disinfectant when you bring them home. This will help you lower the risk of spreading weeds or diseases to your plants.
I like the Fiskars brand for floral snips and hand pruners.
I’m not an affiliate for them. I’m just sharing their name for your convenience.
Related topics that may interest you:
by Ann at Go West Gardener | Updated: Mar 7, 2025 | Best Flowers for Colorado, Utah & Similar States, Waterwise Gardening in the Intermountain West
Looking for waterwise plants? You don’t have to plant cacti or turn your yard into a desert! There are lots of beautiful, low water plants for Colorado, Utah, Idaho and the semi-arid West. They just may not be the flowers and shrubs you know from other regions of the country.
If you’d like to learn about waterwise plants for Colorado or a similar western state, here are 7 of my fave websites + books. All of these resources have photos of waterwise plants, so it’s easier to picture what the plants will look like.
PlantSelect.org
Image credit: PlantSelect.org | Find a Plant page
Plant Select tests and introduces waterwise plants inspired by the Rocky Mountain region. They’re a non-profit collaboration between Colorado State University, Denver Botanic Gardens and the western green industry.
Their website has several helpful tools. One is a Plant Finder tool (above). You can search for waterwise plants based on various criteria, including how big the plants will get. On other web pages, you can look up where plants are from (their native origins) and how much irrigation they need, if any.
This is a good website to dig into!
ConservationGardenPark.org
Image credit: ConservationGardenPark.org | Find Waterwise Plants page
Conservation Garden Park is a waterwise demonstration park in northern Utah. Utah residents can visit it to see examples of beautiful landscapes that are low maintenance and low water. And yay for us, Conservation Garden Park has created a big database that showcases the plants in their landscapes.
Utah faces many of the same gardening challenges we have in Colorado: heat, low moisture, tricky soils, etc. This is a great website to explore if you want to learn about waterwise plants.
One of my favorite things about this website is that they include photos of the plants through all the seasons—not just summer. This can be helpful if you want your yard to look good in the fall, winter and spring too!
WaterwisePlants.org
Image credit: Colorado Springs Utilities (WaterwisePlants.org) | Find a Plant page
Colorado Springs Utilities has created waterwise demonstration landscapes that are open to the public. Similar to Conservation Garden Park above, they have a website that showcases the plants in their demonstration landscapes. You can search for waterwise plants using different criteria. Here are a few of their website features I find helpful:
- You can search for plants by height. I like this feature when looking for shrubs. It’s a good way to make sure you aren’t picking a plant that will outgrow your space.
- They have “performance” notes for each plant. Be sure to look at those! They contain practical tips. For example, I was looking at a native grass called Prairie Dropseed. They noted that Prairie Dropseed has performed very well in their landscapes. However, it’s a favorite among rabbits. So, if you have rabbits, plan accordingly or skip this grass. (Helpful!)
HighCountryGardens.com
Image credit: HighCountryGardens.com | Plant Finder page
High Country Gardens is an online retailer of sustainable and waterwise plants. Many of their plants are well suited for Colorado and the semi-arid West. They have a Plant Finder tool that can help you discover plants you like, including categories called “Colorado Plants,” “High Elevation Plants” and “Western Plants.”
When I visit their website, I often use their search bar at the top of their website. I use it to look up specific waterwise plants.
If you’re a visual person, their website has great plant photos.
“Waterwise Plants for Sustainable Gardens” (Book)
This is one of my go-to books for waterwise plants in Colorado and the semi-arid West. It’s filled with photos and helpful tips that can be used whether you’re a beginner, intermediate or advanced gardener.
Pro tip: This book contains waterwise plants for different part of the West, including the West Coast. As you go through the book, make sure the flowers you like match your plant hardiness zone. A plant hardiness zone tells you whether a plant is likely to survive the coldest winter temperatures that are expected in your area. Some of the plants in the book are better suited for parts of the West with warmer winters.
“Pretty Tough Plants” (Book)
In addition to having a website, Plant Select has a great book called “Pretty Tough Plants.” I refer to this book all the time. It’s another book that is user-friendly for gardeners of different levels. This book is no longer in print, so if you can find a copy on Amazon, snag it!
Native Plant Society Websites
Native plants are plants that have evolved naturally in a region. (The European settlers didn’t introduce them.) Native plants provide great habitats and food sources for birds, insects and wildlife. Many western native plants can tolerate drought and/or don’t need much water. (Though, not all!)
To find native plants for your state, here is a list of native plant societies for the intermountain region. Many have plant databases on their websites:
I hope these websites and books help you learn about waterwise plants, so you can create big beauty for less effort. And cheers to using less water!
Related tips that may interest you:
by Ann at Go West Gardener | Updated: Mar 7, 2025 | Best Flowers for Colorado, Utah & Similar States, In-ground garden, Western Container Gardening With Flowers
Are you feeling adventurous this spring? Want to add a splash of color to your flowerpots?
Get to know pansies — a type of viola! These early spring flowers can add a BIG pop of color to your Colorado garden, especially if you’re ready to kiss winter goodbye.
You may be thinking, “Wait, can I plant flowers in pots in March? It seems a little early.”
You can plant pansies in March, April and May in most of Colorado, even though we can still get snow and yo-yo temperature swings. (Weird, right?)
If you live someplace else in the West, your timing may vary just a little, but timing aside, all these tips apply.
Pansies can handle cool temperatures.
Pansies are in their happy place when temperatures are in the 40s to 60s, and they’re surprisingly tolerant of our wacky spring weather.
Typically, March and April are good times to start planting pansies at our lower elevations in Colorado.
In my garden in the Front Range, I find that late March is often an ideal time to plant pansies. We’re usually past all those arctic temps. (More on this below!)
If you live in the mountains, I may wait a bit longer, depending on how cold your temperatures are and how much snow you have.
What growing conditions do pansies like?
Pansies grow well in dirt (or “soil” in garden lingo) that drains well and is rich in nutrients.
Many of us don’t have rich, well-draining soils in the intermountain west. But no worries! You can plant your pansies in pots with a good potting soil.
Western states (like Colorado) get intense sunlight, so it helps to plant your pansies someplace that faces east, whether it’s a patio, front porch or garden. These spots get morning sunlight, which isn’t as hard on pansies as afternoon sunlight.
If you’re planting pansies in afternoon sunlight, you may want to find a spot that gets “dappled” light (sunlight through tree branches) or a little shade (like a western-facing porch that gets some cover).
Can you plant your pansies directly in a west-facing or south-facing spot?
Sure!
Just know that as soon as temperatures heat up, your pansies may start looking stressed. You’d likely get a little more mileage out of them in an east-facing garden.
What kind of care do pansies need?
Pansies benefit from “deadheading” (trimming off dead blooms) and fertilizing. This keeps them looking good.
Look for a mild flower fertilizer with a 5-10-5 ratio. Those are the numbers you’ll see on the container. This ratio helps support root growth and encourage new flower blooms.
What to do when you bring your pansies home
It’s tempting to plant your pansies right away.
You got them to enjoy them, right?
But chances are they’ve been growing in a cozy, warm greenhouse. They’ve been living large in spa-like conditions, and they’re tender. Gradually exposing them to outdoor conditions can help them toughen up. In garden lingo, this is known as “hardening” your plants.
Otherwise, they may struggle.
You can find out how to harden pansies here.
Pansies can handle cold temps, but they DO have their limits.
Pansies that are healthy and have been planted a while can usually handle quick dips into the teens and single digits.
But newly-planted pansies can be more sensitive.
After a warm, sunny day in Colorado in the early spring, it’s easy to forget how cold it can get at night, so watch those nighttime temps.
While newly-planted pansies can usually tolerate a light frost, it helps to protect them (keep them warm) if your temperatures are going to drop below freezing.
You can find 6 ways to protect your flowers from frosts and freezes here.
PRO TIP: Keep your eye on the temps BEFORE you plant your pansies. If the weather forecast shows multiple days when temperatures are going to dip well below freezing, just hold off on planting them until you get through that cold spell.
Pansies don’t like hot weather.
Let’s say you live someplace with blazing hot summers, like our lower elevations in Colorado and Utah.
When temperatures start to rise, it’s a good idea to replace your pansies with flowers that are happier in the heat. Think of this like changing out your wardrobe from your spring clothes to your summer clothes.
For example, when summer arrives, I replace the pansies in my western-facing flowerpots with flowers that can handle the hot afternoon sun.
Do you have to replace your pansies?
Nope … but they’ll probably stop blooming in the heat, and they may look stressed.
Translation: They won’t look very good!
Pansies are treated as “annuals” in states like Colorado.
This means you’ll enjoy them for one growing season, but it’s unlikely they’ll return next year.
Related topics that may interest you:
by Ann at Go West Gardener | Updated: Mar 7, 2025 | Gardening Tips and Tricks, Western Container Gardening With Flowers
I’ve been feeling conflicted about sharing this week’s gardening tip.
I firmly believe that you do not need a lot of stuff to be a successful gardener.
When I moved into my home, I was fortunate to inherit a few, basic gardening supplies from the previous owner. She was downsizing to a townhouse and was ready to say goodbye to her small collection of shears and shovels. I still happily use most of her tools and supplies today.
But every now and then, I’ll reach a point during the gardening season when I think:
“It sure would be nice to have…” a cute (but affordable) flowerpot, hail netting, etc.
What I’ve discovered is:
Some garden supplies can be surprisingly hard to find when you need them during the garden season.
Others are time-sensitive.
So, in this week’s tip, I want to share a few items that are helpful to track down NOW, rather than waiting until summer.
Do you prefer to find used garden supplies rather than new ones? Awesome! I’ve included “reuse” ideas too.
Packets of flower seeds
If you’ve played with the idea of planting flower seeds this year, now’s a good time to shop for them. For just a few bucks, you can grow really pretty flowers in your garden from a packet of seeds. And there are many flower seeds that you can spread directly in the ground — like the colorful Cosmos flowers below.
No fancy growing equipment needed!
What’s the catch?
Your timing matters. Your flowers are more likely to bloom when you want them to bloom — like in July and August instead of October! — when you follow the recommended timing for planting your seeds.
Often times, these seeds need to be planted 2 to 4 weeks before your “average last frost date.”
What’s an “average last frost date?” What does that mean? It means this is the point when there’s now less than 50% of a chance of getting a frost. You can search online to find the average last frost date for your area.
In Denver, our average last frost date is in early May. If we need to plant 2 to 4 weeks before this date, it’s best to plant these seeds in early- to mid-April.
Other seeds need to be planted even earlier.
You can find flower seed packets at local, independent garden centers. You also can buy seeds directly from seed companies like Botanical Interests. They’re a Colorado company. (This is not an affiliate link. I’m just sharing it for your convenience.)
Look at the back of the seed packets — or read the online descriptions — to find out when you should plant your seeds for the best results.
Affordable flowerpots
I’ve come to appreciate that flowerpots are like a nice pair of shoes or a stylish piece of jewelry. They can really elevate the look of a container garden.
They also can be surprisingly expensive.
If you’d like pretty flowerpots without the shock-inducing price, now’s a great time to look for flowerpots at stores like HomeGoods (TJ Maxx) and even Costco.
If you prefer to re-use rather than buying new:
- Look for used flowerpots on Next Door, OfferUp and Craig’s List.
- Check out estate sales. They’re another good place to find outdoor treasures like flowerpots and garden tools.
Pro tip! When choosing a flowerpot, look for pots that have hole(s) in the bottom. A flowerpot without a hole is like a bathtub without a drain. You’ll save yourself extra steps later when you buy a pot that already has a hole in it.
Hail netting
I know this is a weird one for March. But while we’ve been shoveling snow, scrappy gardeners have been proactively searching the Internet or visiting local garden centers for supplies like hail netting (also called, “anti-hail netting”).
This is one of those items that when we roll into thunderstorm season, the demand is so high, it’s usually sold out.
Translation: When you need it, you can’t get it.
By the way, there are plenty of things you can use in your home to protect your flowers from hail. I have a friend who uses shower curtain liners to help protect her flowers from hail. You can get creative.
So please know, you do not need to buy hail netting.
With that said, now’s the time to look for hail netting if a hailstorm trashed your flowers last year and you want to up your hail protection game. Sometimes, you can find hail netting at your local, independent garden centers. You also can find it online from garden supply companies and Amazon.
Related topics that may interest you:
by Ann at Go West Gardener | Updated: Mar 7, 2025 | Flower Garden Basics, In-ground garden, Western Container Gardening With Flowers
As you start to learn more about gardening, you’ll likely find yourself playing a game of, “garden lingo bingo.”
And you will definitely see the garden terms, “annual” and perennial,” somewhere on your bingo card.
In this week’s tip, you’ll get the scoop on:
- What’s an annual vs a perennial
- A helpful trick so you can EASILY remember which is which
- Important differences between annuals vs perennials — and why those differences matter for your western garden
- Garden center tips so you can know how annuals and perennials are typically arranged at the store
What’s an annual vs a perennial?
If you find the word “annual” confusing, you are NOT alone!
In my opinion, the word “annual” is one of the most confusing gardening terms because of how we use “annual” in casual conversation:
“Hey, we’re hosting our annual summer barbecue. Come on over!
In day-to-day conversation, we use it to mean, “recurring.”
But that’s not what annual means in gardening. Here’s how gardeners think about it:
An annual flower plant grows for one season.
Then it’s done.
One and done.
Technically, a true annual flower goes through its entire life cycle within one year (from seed, to baby plant, to flowering, to end of life).
But gardeners are practical people.
They use the word, “annual,” to describe any plants that only last one year where you live. This includes flowers that could come back next year in some parts of the country, but these plants can’t survive our winters.
To keep it simple, just remember it all comes back to:
One and done.
In contrast, a perennial flower plant comes back year after year.
Some perennials live a LONG time.
My mom has perennials growing in her back yard that are more than 45 years old! I have perennials in my Colorado garden that have returned for 15+ years.
Other perennials have shorter lifespans of about 3-5 years. For example, many Penstemon plants (pictured below) tend to be shorter lived perennials in the West.
Here’s an easy trick to remember annuals vs perennials.
Annual = A single year.
Perennial = Plenty of years to come.
So, let’s chat about key differences between annuals vs perennials… and why they matter for your western flower garden.
Keep in mind that Mama Nature makes her own rules, so there are always exceptions. 🙂
How long until your annuals and perennials are full size
Annuals grow quickly, typically reaching their full size in one season.
Perennials, on the other hand, can take up to 3 years to reach their full size.
When you buy your cute, little perennial at the store, remember that it’s likely going to grow taller and wider. Look at the plant tags (tucked in the containers) to see how big your flowers will grow and how much room they’ll need when they’re full size. This can help you avoid planting your flowers too close together.
When you first plant your perennials, your garden may not look as lush and full as your neighbors’ gardens.
Don’t worry! This is normal. You haven’t done anything wrong.
Your garden will grow. It just may take a few years. While your plants are growing, you can tuck flowerpots of annuals into your garden for more color.
What to expect from the blooms of annuals vs perennials
Annuals often give you big, showy color that goes on for a long time.
Typically, though, they don’t keep the same flower blooms for the entire summer. Instead, annuals push up flower blooms, those blooms die, and then new blooms come in. To help this process along, you may need to remove the blooms that have died. (In gardening lingo, this is known as “deadheading.”)
Perennials vary in how much color they give you. Most bloom for a much shorter amount of time, often just a few weeks. When temperatures are hot, flower blooms don’t last as long.
Where you grow annuals and perennials (typically)
You can grow annuals in containers, window boxes and in the ground.
In Colorado, we often get hail during the summer, so I prefer to grow annuals in containers, rather than in the ground. Annuals often need more water than the waterwise plants in my garden. Plus, I find it’s easier to move and protect my flowerpots when hailstorms are in the forecast.
Perennials are typically grown in the ground.
But can you grow perennials in containers? Yes, absolutely!
Just keep in mind that they’ll likely bloom for a shorter amount of time. Perennials also are less likely to come back next year if they aren’t planted in the ground. (Near the end of the growing season, it helps to take them out of your containers and plant them in the ground.)
Watering needs for your annuals vs perennials
Many annuals need quite a bit of water. (There are exceptions.)
Perennials, on the other hand, vary in their watering needs.
If you’ve moved to a western state like Colorado or Utah from another part of the country, you may discover that the perennials you planted elsewhere need A LOT more water here.
Rather than trying to plant flowers from other regions, a different option is to look for perennials that have adapted to our semi-arid growing conditions in the West. These “waterwise” perennials often thrive with very little watering once they’re established.
Read: Less work for you + happy plants!
How to find annuals vs perennials at your garden center
Many local garden centers will arrange annuals together and perennials together to help you keep them straight.
If you walk into a garden center and it feels overwhelming at first, you’ve got this! Remember that you can head for the annual section or the perennial section.
And if you notice one section of the garden center is WAAAAAY more colorful than others (like in the photo below), that is probably the annual section. Annuals give you big, showy color.
Sometimes, there aren’t signs, but people are happy to point you in the right direction.
So, don’t hesitate to ask!
(If you’re buying flowers at home improvement stores, they’re more likely to mix annuals and perennials together.)
Related tips that may interest you:
by Ann at Go West Gardener | Updated: Feb 19, 2024 | Gardening for Pollinators, Gardening Tips and Tricks
Our perma-piles of snow are finally melting in Colorado. The sun is shining its warm rays. Birds are singing. And Costco has started assembling its spring pergola displays. Spring is starting to feel like it’s within reach, even if it’s still a ways off.
It’s enough to make you want to skip through the aisles of Costco.
(Go ahead. We won’t judge.)
So, on these warm winter days…
Should you start cutting back your garden in Colorado and similar states?
It’s tempting to want to start cleaning up your western garden for the new season—you know, raking leaves out of your flower beds, cutting back perennials.
But good news, there’s still time to relax. It’s best to hold off on these tasks for now. Yep, step outside and simply enjoy the sunshine instead.
Why wait on garden clean-up?
1) You’re giving your plants extra protection.
When you leave plant stems standing all winter, you’re giving some plants a better chance of returning in the spring, saving you money and effort.
It makes the plants hardier in the cold. This includes beautiful plants that hummingbirds love like western salvias, hyssops (Agastache) and hummingbird trumpet.
2) You’re helping nesting pollinators.
Some pollinators, like Monarch butterflies, head south for the winter like happy retirees. But many beneficial insects (or their babies) overwinter in your garden and don’t emerge until April or May. Some nestle down in leaf debris. Some lay eggs or create cocoon-like structures on the dormant stems of your perennials and shrubs. Many overwinter in hollow plant stems or in holes in the ground.
Your garden is a lil’ Airbnb!
3) You’re feeding the birds.
Local and migrating birds will feed on dried seeds from your plants. In January, I noticed 15 robins in my backyard (it was a robin convention!), along with juncos, woodpeckers and a few mystery cuties. Hopefully, you’re enjoying birds in your yard too.
Cheers to nature right outside your door!
Related topics that may interest you:
by Ann at Go West Gardener | Updated: Jan 9, 2025 | Garden design Ideas, Gardening Tips and Tricks, In-ground garden, Waterwise Gardening in the Intermountain West
You may be in the heart of winter, but that doesn’t mean your garden has to look boring!
Chances are, when you’re out walking your dog or getting a little fresh air, you’ve noticed a neighbor’s home that catches your eye.
You know the one.
It’s the house or apartment complex where you can’t help but stop and look. Their landscaping looks soooo good in the fall and winter.
Heck, even your dog wants to stop and take a look. (Or, at least take a lil’ sniff.)
If you want a pretty winter garden too….
One of the easiest ways to make your garden look good in the winter is to plant ornamental grasses.
Ornamental grasses add a “wow” factor to winter gardens.
Their feathery plumes or seed heads will glow in the winter light. When the wind blows, you’ll get a wonderful flowing motion and a whispering sound. And they can add structure and height to your garden.
In garden lingo, this is known as creating “winter interest.” Even though it’s winter, you still have plants that look pretty.
Best of all, ornamental grasses are easy to grow.
Here are helpful things to know about ornamental grasses:
1) Ornamental grasses tend to be low maintenance.
You’ll likely cut them back once a year, but that’s about it. You don’t have to fuss over them.
2) Grasses tend to bounce back well from our tough weather: gusty winds, hail, surprise snowstorms… Gotta love the intermountain west!
3) They tend to grow well in our poor western soils, so they’re less work.
4) Many grasses are “deer resistant.”
You shouldn’t have to worry about your grasses disappearing thanks to your neighborhood Bambi.
5) Some grasses don’t need much water, which is awesome if you live in a semi-arid climate like Colorado or Utah.
PRO TIP: Some grasses DO need regular watering, so don’t assume your grass is “drought tolerant.” Do a little research first or ask when you buy it.
6) There are lots of interesting grasses to choose from!
You can find the perfect look: from round, mounded grasses, to narrow, column-like grasses. They come in all sizes and a range of colors.
You can see examples in the fall garden below:
While you don’t plant grasses in the winter, our coldest months are a great time to take photos of grasses you like.
When you’re out walking your dog or dashing to the grocery store, pull out your phone and snap a pic if you see grasses you think are pretty in the winter. Create a folder on your phone called “Garden Inspiration.” Add your pics to that folder.(If you have a million photos on your phone like me, this makes it easy to find your photos when you head to the garden center.)
It’s 100% okay if you don’t know what the grasses are!
Check out this post for 6 popular western grasses and what they look like in the winter. Hopefully, this will make it easier to figure out which ones you like.
Plus, you can take your photos with you when you buy flowers in the spring. The employees at local, independently-owned garden centers are usually happy to help you identify plants.
One more tip to make your garden look good in the winter…
I used to cut down the ornamental grasses in my garden in the fall. I wanted my winter garden to look tidy.
But I’ve come to appreciate how pretty plants can look when they’re left standing over the winter. Often times, this can help them survive the winter better too. And it can create a little habitat for wildlife, like migrating birds.
So, if you already have ornamental grasses and you’ve been cutting them down in the fall, no worries! But next year, skip the chopped look below.
Leave your grasses standing through the winter.
If you have a grass that needs to be trimmed back, prune it in the spring when you start seeing new growth coming up. It’s an easy way to make your winter garden look prettier. Plus, it’s good for the health of your garden and for pollinators too.
Related tips that may interest you:
by Ann at Go West Gardener | Updated: Jan 9, 2025 | Flower Garden Basics, Gardening Tips and Tricks
– 20 degrees below zero… -50 degrees below zero… -70 degrees below zero …
Yikes.
Every few years, we see some big wind chill numbers across parts of the Rocky Mountain region and high plains during winter, including in Colorado and Wyoming.
With these arctic blasts, it’s natural to wonder:
“Will wind chill kill the plants in my garden?”
The short answer is no.
Wind chill affects humans, not plants. The temperatures that affect your plants are the actual lows, not the wind chill temperatures.
Do you have snow in the forecast? Snow acts like insulation. It can serve as an insulating blanket on the ground, helping protect your plants’ roots from really cold temperatures.
Mid-winter is a better time for cold blasts than spring or fall. No one wants arctic temperatures, but if we’re going to get them, it’s better for our plants to get them in the heart of winter. Most perennials (and shrubs and trees) are in their hardened winter mode by now. Extreme lows can be much more destructive to plants in the spring or fall.
Many plants are “cold hardy” and can tolerate frigid dips.
It will be a wait-and-see game when spring and summer come around to find out if and how plants are affected by this winter’s arctic blast. In the spring, I’ll keep my eye on my “marginally hardy” perennials and newer plants that are still developing their root systems.
But if you hear weather forecasters toss around epic wind chill numbers, don’t let the wind chill numbers alarm you for your garden.
To learn more…
Related topics that may interest you:
by Ann at Go West Gardener | Updated: Jan 9, 2025 | Best Flowers for Colorado, Utah & Similar States, Garden design Ideas, In-ground garden, Waterwise Gardening in the Intermountain West
Put your hand up if want a pretty winter garden!
Ornamental grasses can make your winter garden look good. They add visual interest to your winter landscape (aka, “winter interest”), and they’re easy to grow.
But how are you supposed to know which grasses to pick? A lot of grasses look similar, right?
In today’s tip, I want to give you a peek at 6 popular ornamental grasses — and what they look like in winter gardens in the semi-arid West. That way, you can start figuring out which ones you like.
Please note, if the conditions are right, some grasses will spread their seeds like a fairy godmother tossing pixie dust. So, there are parts of the country where some of these grasses may be considered invasive. When you buy grasses, ask the store whether they’re allowed where you live.
Blue Grama Grass (Bouteloua gracilis)
These ornamental grasses have horizontal seed heads that look like eyelashes. Aren’t they so cool?
Blue grama grass tends to hold up very well to winter snowstorms.
Blue grama is the state grass of Colorado. It’s native to many states, and it’s drought tolerant. It happily grows in areas that get just 10 to 15 inches of annual rainfall. So, along the Front Range of Colorado, it shouldn’t need much supplemental watering, if any.
Blue grama grasses could be a great fit for you if:
- You have a dry, sunny spot in your landscape that doesn’t get much moisture
(like a hot, western-facing or southern-facing section of your yard) - You’re planning a low-water landscape (aka, a waterwise garden)
- You’re known to forget to water (no judgment!)
- You want to plant a native grass.
Water this grass well the first season. This helps it get established in your garden.
After that, it shouldn’t require much attention from you.
Pro tip: If your garden gets regular moisture or has a wetter area, blue grama grass may not be the right ornamental grass for you. My understanding is moisture can turn it into a happy seed spreader.
Little Bluestem Grass (Schizachyrium scoparium)
Typically, little bluestem grass grows in an upright shape. This makes it ideal for a variety of smaller settings, like compact gardens.
It doesn’t need much water to thrive, and it can handle clay soils (dirt) like a champ.
Little bluestem has a bluish-green color in the summer. But in the fall and winter, it can turn a reddish-bronze color and get airy seed heads. The winter color will vary slightly by the type of little bluestem you choose. (Some popular selections include: ‘Standing Ovation,’ ‘Blaze’ and ‘Prairie Blues.’)
This lovely grass is native to the majority of the United States, including Colorado, Utah, Wyoming and Idaho.
Switch Grass (Panicum virgatum)
Switch grass may not be the showiest grass for a winter garden. However, it can be really pretty in the summer and fall, so I couldn’t resist including it on this list. It’s also a native grass to Colorado.
Generally, switch grasses tend to prefer more moisture.
If you’d like a more drought-resistant type, look for the switch grass known as ‘Shenandoah.’ In the fall, its leaf blades turn burgundy. It gets delicate, pink seed heads in the fall. They lose their color in the winter, but they still have a lovely airiness to them.
Maiden Grass (Miscanthus sinensis)
In my opinion, maiden grass is one of the showiest winter grasses. It also likes more water. So, if you live in Colorado, Utah or another part of the semi-arid West, look for spots in your landscape that get more moisture, like near a downspout or in a low area where water gathers.
Maiden grasses often have soft, feathery plumes. In the winter, their plumes look like fluffy feathers spilling out of a pillow. They glow in the winter sun.
Some varieties of maiden grass can grow up to 5 to 6 feet tall and nearly as wide, so plan accordingly when you’re deciding where to plant this grass.
Want a similar size grass that uses less water?
If you’re thinking, “Ooooh, I like this size of maiden grass, but I want an ornamental grass that doesn’t need as much water,” check out giant sacaton grass (Sporobolus wrightii) instead. Giant sacaton is about the same size as maiden grass (it’s big!), but it thrives with very little moisture.
Plus, giant sacaton grass is a regional native. This grass is native to states like Texas, New Mexico, Arizona, Utah and California.
Feather Reed Grass (Calamagrostis)
Feather reed grass is another grass that glows in a winter garden.
There is one type of feather reed grass — known as ‘Karl Foerster’ (pictured above) — that is very popular. You’ll see it in a lot of landscaping around homes and shopping centers.
Feather reed grass grows in an upright direction (like a column), making it a good grass for a smaller garden or a garden with limited space. It’s also very pretty against a darker background, like an evergreen tree or a stained fence.
If you like the look of feather reed grass but you want one that’s more unique, look for Korean feather reed grass instead. The seed plumes are soft and pretty. Korean feather reed grass can grow in partly shady conditions too. In winter, the one drawback to Korean feather reed grass is that it doesn’t stand up as well to heavy snows as some other grasses.
Hardy Pampas Grass (Erianthus ravennae)
Hardy pampas grass is a big guy! It can grow 10-12 feet tall and 4-6 feet wide. To show you how tall it can grow, I asked my pawtner-in-crime to join me in the photo below. She wasn’t as excited about the photo opp as I was.
Pampas grass is an interesting grass to consider if you have:
- A big yard that could use a focal point
- A deep garden that could use some height in the back
- An area of your yard where you want to draw your eyes away from something (like an electrical pole)
If you like the look of this ornamental grass but it’s too big for your garden, there are smaller versions of pampas grass too.
Where to learn more about ornamental grasses
The Colorado State University Extension has a helpful fact sheet on ornamental grasses (PDF), including how big different grasses grow, how much water they prefer (dry vs regular irrigation), and how high they can go in elevation.
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