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We think of passion flowers as something exotic, tropical and certainly not something you can grow in Colorado. Fiddlesticks! There is a garden in Littleton where passion flowers are practically a

I think sometimes we Americans take cuccooning a bit too far! You have to call friends ahead of time before you visit nowadays (was I the only one whose family would "drop in" on friends growing up?)

Denver Botanic Gardens is home to over 300 taxa (which includes hybrids and cultivars) of about 69 species of Iris. This diversity is distributed throughout the Gardens, though a majority is displayed

The green roof at Denver Botanic Gardens opened in November 2007. Within a year and a half, this garden has established very well creating a green space where once was a regular cemented roof

John Temple’s column in the Rocky Mountain News today, ‘Simple moments, rich rewards’ was very inspiring. Not just because I work at Denver Botanic Gardens, but also because the article hits it in the

Wonder enlarges the heart. When you wonder, you are drawn out of yourself. ~ John O’Donohue ~ Occasionally, someone will call Denver Botanic Gardens in autumn or winter and ask if there is anything to

Is it a coincidence that Walt Whitman named his revolutionary collection of poetry "Leaves of Grass"? Grass is the dominant vegetation in our region, and ornamental grasses have revolutionized

Early this spring around mid-March, the native Plains Garden at Denver Botanic Gardens underwent a simulated version of a vital ecological process of the shortgrass prairie -- FIRE. Fire is important

This is a question I get asked quite frequently. To me as a horticulturist and a plant lover, it is a very complex question to answer. It is like asking a mom to choose her favorite child. Each plant

Just an update: I thought it was finishing (first photo above), this green-blossomed liana of a legume shows that it has the long haul in mind. I've discovered that there are several more inflorescences on the jade vine (Strongylodon macrobotrys) and that you might be able to see it bloom either upstairs or down in the Conservatory. The staff and volunteers at the Information Desk assure me they have people come and ask about the "green flowers" or "every-nine-years vine," so I know people are interested. Just to clarify, it took nine years of growing before it bloomed. Will it bloom next year? We have to wait and see.

The jade vine is in full bloom! There are two long, hanging columns of flowers right now, with a few more to go. Green flowers have the reputation of being subtle, but this is really wild! I was up on the mezzanine, and a cluster of garden visitors was exclaiming over it. We agreed that describing them as "green just doesn't really cover it." It is really a tribute to the Conservatory team's perserverence that we have a blooming Strongylodon macrobotrys to show Denver.

If you are looking for something amazing to do at the Gardens right now, visit our Cloud Forest Tree exhibit at the west end of the Boettcher Memorial Tropical Conservatory. The Cloud Forest Tree and