Western Gardening Blog

Inspiring western gardeners to grow beautiful flowers with less effort in Colorado, Utah & the intermountain west

The latest flower tips

5 Drought-Tolerant Spring Flowers for Sunny, Dry Gardens (You Plant in the Fall)

Most of these spring flowers are low maintenance too! Let’s say you want to add a splash of color to your spring garden, but you live someplace dry, like Colorado or Utah. It would be nice to find spring flowers that don’t need a lot of watering, right? (Less work for...

Flowerpot Clean-up Tips: What to Do With Your Flowerpots When Your Flowers Are Dead

Friends, the end of the flowerpot season is like the end of a dinner party. You've had an amazing evening of laughter, stories and delicious food. (“Oh my God, that was so good! I need that recipe!”) Your heart feels so full. And then... you walk into your kitchen....

6 Ways to Protect Your Flowers From Frosts and Freezes

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...

How Can You Tell If a Perennial Is ‘Marginally Cold Hardy?’

It was a winter week to make a gardener shudder. In February 2021, an arctic blast covered the western United States like a frosty ice pack from the kitchen freezer. Where I live in Colorado, the high temperature for several days was a not-so-balmy zero degrees. The...

5 Helpful Tips for Buying Spring Flowering Bulbs in the Fall

Let’s say you’d like to grow pretty spring flowers in your western garden, like tulips or daffodils. Awesome! These spring flowers grow from bulbs that you plant in the fall in Colorado, Utah and the West. Here are a few examples of spring flowering bulbs: In this...

9 of the Best Flowers for Late Summer in Colorado

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...

“Can I Change the Flowers in My Flowerpots for Fall?”

I used to think that once you planted your flowerpots, that was it. Your flower babies were in there for the long haul. But I’ve come to appreciate that you can swap out the flowers in your pots. It's like changing your wardrobe for the seasons. If you want to change...

What Plant Hardiness Zone Is Colorado?

Colorado has 5 plant hardiness zones: 7, 6, 5, 4 and 3. If you're new to plant hardiness zones, they tell you whether your flower plants are likely to survive the coldest winter temperatures that are expected in your area and come back next year. (For the full scoop...

12 Waterwise, Blue Flowers: Perennials for Western Gardens

Confession: I love blue flowers. There’s something about them that makes my heart sing. In Colorado, Utah, and similar states, we’re lucky to have a variety of waterwise, blue flowers available to us as perennials (plants that return for multiple years). Here are 12...

Black-Eyed Susan (Rudbeckia): How to Tell a Biennial vs Perennial (Short-Lived vs Long-Lived Plant)

Black-eyed Susan (officially, Rudbeckia — Rude-bek-ee-uh) is an easy-to-grow flower that can add big color to your western garden, particularly in the late summer. But often, gardeners plant Black-Eyed Susan... and it doesn't come back If this happens to you, you may...

4 Tips to Make Your Spring Flowers Look Prettier: Spring Bulb Garden Design!

You want your spring flowers to look pretty, but what's the best way to design them? How do you make the biggest impact? Great questions! In this week's post, you'll find 4 simple tips for spring bulb garden design. Use these tips when you plant your bulbs in the...

Flowers That Can Struggle When Planted in the Fall (in Colorado, Wyoming & Similar States)

What NOT to Plant in Fall Gardens Early fall can be a good time to plant perennials in many places in the intermountain West. (Perennials are your flowers that return year after year.) But as I’ve learned the hard way in my Colorado garden… There are some flowers you...