Western Gardening Blog

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

The latest flower tips

Pansies: A Colorful Flower for Your Spring Flowerpots in Colorado

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...

PODCAST: Find Your Confidence With Flowerpot Gardening

Wondering how to get started with flowerpot gardening? Pop in your ear buds, find a comfy spot and listen to this 30-minute episode of the @liveblissedout podcast! I was honored to be a guest and chat about flowerpot gardening in Colorado, Utah and the West. Click the...

“Why Should I Plant Flower Pots This Summer?”

If you’re wondering, "Why should I plant flower pots this summer?", here are 8 reasons to dig into this awesome hobby this year. #1: Planting flowers reduces stress and makes you feel better. Studies show that getting out in nature calms us and makes us feel better....

3 Garden Supplies to Shop for in March (Yep, March!)

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...

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...

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...

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...

3 Misconceptions About When to Buy and Plant Flowers That Can Lead to Dead Plants (Ack!)

So, you’re dashing into Costco, and what grabs your eye? Colorful, happy flowers just waiting for you to give them a new home, like a litter of fluffy puppies. Eeek! You can’t help but walk over and take a closer look. After a long, drab winter, the flowers look so...

VIDEO: 4 Proven Tips to Pick Flowers for Planters (That Last!)

So, you walk into your local garden center ... You're all ready to pick 3-5 flowers for your planters, but suddenly, you see HUNDREDS of flower choices. You're looking at row, after row, after row of flowers. How are you supposed to know which flowers to pick?? No...

“Help! I Can’t Find the Flowers I Want at the Store”

Have you ever had trouble finding the flowers you want at the store? You aren't alone! Figuring out which flowers to plant and tracking them down in a garden center can get overwhelming quickly. And if even if you don't feel overwhelmed, it can be frustrating to want...

“How Do I Attract Bees and Butterflies to My Garden?”

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...

Why Bees and Butterflies Are Like Puppies and Kittens

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...