Red birds in a tree</p> Native plants usually summon up images of wispy, finely textured grasses or suchlike--hardly a glamorous novelty like red birds in a tree (Scrophularia macrantha</em>). This gorgeous native perennial is prospering in gardens across America and beyond, but is restricted in nature to just a few montane sky islands in southern New Mexico.</p> It was on Cooke's Peak, exactly twenty years ago this month that Allan R. Taylor and I had obtained the permission of landowners to drive up Cooke's Peak in Luna County to visit the famous grove of Arizona Cypress that grows there (the northernmost, and most cold hardy of its kind as it turns out). I noticed a penstemon-like plant that didn't look quite right in a few spots among the cypresses and collected a single capsule that was beginning to ripen. All Scrophularia macrantha</em> in cultivation across the world are probably descended from the seeds in that capsule plucked twenty years ago (a testament if we needed any of the power of horticulture to propagate rare plants).</p> Redbirds on a median strip!</p> Here you can see an especially showy specimen of this species growing on a median strip in Lakewood, where Greg Foreman transformed the idea of what could or couldn't be grown in public places. I nearly had an accident when I saw this enormous clump--almost six feet tall and even more across! In nature, most seemed to be only a few feet tall, as they are in many gardens. They start to bloom in late spring, and many still have flowers in autumn. Friends have commented that this is the ultimate hummingbird magnet.</p> Ever since this was first promoted by High Country Gardens</a> (where David Salman gave it its wonderful moniker) and later picked as a Plant Select</a> choice, hummingbirds have flocked to this gorgeous native in gardens across the West. In fact, I suspect that this and the many other red flowered agastaches, salvias and penstemons promulgated by Plant Select may be responsible for the dramatic increase of hummingbirds in residence in our lowland cities over the past two decades. When I was a kid, you never saw hummers in town except in spring and fall--Plant Select has provided a banquet that keeps many of them in town--and provides a haven for them in dry years when nectar in the high country is hard to come by.</p> There are hundreds of Scrophularia</em>s in Eurasia as well as North America--most of them brown or green in color. This is unquestionably the showiest. Fortunately, it still resides in its own family (Scrophulariaceae) whereas penstemons, paintbrushes, veronicas and many more former "Scrophs" have been put in the Plantain family. I don't believe the hummingbirds care, however!</p>
Hydrangea quercifolia</em></p> This time of year I am amazed to see spectacular mounds of Hydrangea</em> 'Annabelle' glowing around the metro area. That is one cultivar that has certainly made its mark, although one doesn't see quite as many of them as you would in a more humid part of the country. I've noticed a few other sorts here and there--including small plants of the blue species (I think the jury is still out on these when it comes to our climate however.). There is one particularly striking hydrangea that has really proven its mettle for many, many years at Denver Botanic Gardens. The Oakleaf Hydrangea (according to the USDA)</a> is restricted to just the eight southeastern-most states, and yet the plants shown above have persisted in a dense stand of English Ivy alongside Denver Botanic Gardens' Waring House for nearly 30 years.</p> Blossoms of the typical wild form</p> The common wild form has long, graceful flowers that form a bit of a cone shape up to a foot long. Like others in the genus, the fresh flowers are white, but age a lovely soft green. If you cut them and hang them in a cool dry spot, they can make wonderful dry flowers for the winter too!</p> Hydrangea quercifolia</em> 'Snowflake'</p> Growing alongside the typical form is a more compact flowered and smaller leaved cultivar that looks a bit more like the Eurasian species. It seems to have fared just as well over the decades, and makes for a nice contrast. All forms of this wonderful shrub turn glorious orange and pink in the fall, reminiscent of their native cousin Jamesia americana,</em> that grows everywhere in our mountains (the only member of the family that does).</p> Both cultivars together</p> Here you can see both cultivars growing alongside one another more clearly. Surely, if they can grow well in this most challenging spot, nearly swamped with thirsty ivy, imagine what it might do in a well prepared spot in your garden with some compost and TLC? We have another handful of cultivars of this wonderful plant elsewhere on our grounds--but not enough! Come to think of it, I have a perfect spot in my garden for one... I better go out and get it before you beat me to the punch!</p>
Winecups in Watersmart Garden</p> Strolling around York Street gardens this time of year, you are apt to see a bright rose red plant that resembles a geranium in many gardens. It is apt to be winecups (Callirhoe involucrata</em>), a favorite of many staff and keen gardeners in the area. Not a geranium at all, this is in the Mallow family, and another common name is "Poppy Mallow", although it's no more a poppy than it is a geranium. It is a native plant found sparingly on the Great Plains east of Denver, more commonly in the Midwestern prairies. It is a stellar garden plant that will survive with no supplemental irrigation once established...I see it occasionally as I drive around Denver--but not nearly enough!</p> Winecups in Highlands</p> Here is an amazing planting I found yesterday in Highlands neighborhood--easily ten feet across, completely filling one of those triangular hellstrip corners that are so often weed infested and neglected-looking (making neighborhoods look like slums). Here is a great alternative--a rock, a bit of Russian sage (Perovskia</em>) and an exuberant mass of winecups blooming for months on end--all with no supplemental water!</p> A closer look</p> This mass is growing in part shade--and the mound is almost two feet tallk, as opposed to the first picture in this series taken at Denver Botanic Gardens, in full sun--well less than a foot tall. It does need some room to ramble--but almost everyone has a spot where this can flourish.</p> Callirhoe involucrata v. tenuissima</em> Not everyone likes the hot magenta of the typical form of this species: there is a lighter, more pink form of winecups that is found originally in Mexico--sometimes classed as var. tenuissima. It does have even more finely divided foliage and a neater habit and the flowers often have a striking white eye--here seen growing in the Rock Alpine Garden as it transitions to the Gates Garden in the west. I am especially fond of this form, first introduced to cultivation by Yucca-do a few decades ago.</p> Closeup of tenuissima</em>.</p> You can see if you compare this with the next that var. tenuissima</em> is quite different in effect. Come to think of it, I think I need both in my garden! And I wish we'd see it a lot more everywhere in town: one of the toughest and most beautiful native perennials!</p> Closeup of var. involucrata</em></p> Here is a closeup of the typical form for comparison with the one above--both are really stunning! For sale in better Garden Centers (forget the Box Stores when it comes to native plants)..can be planted any time--just make sure it doesn't dry out in the height of the summer until established!</p>
Claret cup cactus</p> Earlier this year, the Colorado Legislature passed a bill designating</a> Echinocereus triglochidiatus</em> the official state cactus of Colorado. I'm one of those people who'd find it hard to settle on a single taxon as a favorite--especially in such a splendiferous and exquisite group as our native cacti...although we fellows (or at least those of us who aren't color blind) are known to love bright red flowers. And few flowers are as outrageously, emphaticalloy red as the claret cups. Of course, "claret cup" covers a number of species--and Colorado has at least four distinct taxa grouped under at least two specific epithets. Most of these are blooming right now at lower elevations throughout the state.</p> Last weekend three staff from Denver Botanic Gardens took a whirlwind trip to the San Luis valley to explore a unique habitat that contains some strange, and possibly novel taxa. The next morning we began our trek homeward, but took a side trip through a corner of the San Luis hills, a little studied corner of the state comprised of volcanic rock. As soon as we got out of the vehicle we were greeted with the bright red beacons of these amazing flowers.</p> Claret cup in habitat</p> This form has traditionally been considered a race of Echinocereus triglochidiatus</em>, the classic "claret cup", although some botanists have classed it as its own species: E. gonacanthus</em> because of its robust stems and coarse spines. Certain plants are so photogenic that no matter how many pictures you already have, you invariably take more! Such is the case with claret cups--I must have dozens of perfectly good pictures already, but who could resist these prickly mounds studded with such Christmassy red flowers? And the tufted, silvery artemisias that grow with them make such a wonderful setting, as do the thickly lichened stones.</p> Echinocereus gonacanthus</p> On such an intensely sunny day, you have to use every trick in the book to try and capture these gorgeous plants in their awe-inspiring setting.</p> Hunger cactus on the ridge</p> Claret cups were not the only cactus here--we found several other species, including this spectacular prickly pear that grew on the most windswept sites. It was heavily budded. I imagine by mid-week this will be a blaze of color!</p> And even more Hunger cactus</p> This picture better shows how thickly these grew. They undoubtedly would key out to be Opuntia polyacantha</em>--the commonest prickly pear in the state--although I find it is extremely polymorphic in its habit. I loved these high alitude specimens with such long, white spines!</p> Yucca angustissima?</p> The third remarkable succulent that abounded in these hills was a miniature yucca in peak bloom. The foliage was only a foot or less in length, and the flower stalks were under two feet tall. This formed incredibly dense colonies that must be impenetrable which we observed on the steep east facing slope of the mountain--really quite different from Yucca glauca</em> around Denver.</p> Red tepaled yucca</p> Some of the yuccas had quite dark reddish coloration on the back of their tepals--a wonderful trait to possess in a garden plant. And I know at least one local nurseryman who is propagating this very strain.</p> Dwarf huccas with Cuchulain</p> Ooops! Sorry--that's not Cuchulain! But his avatar on our staff, Mike Bone, curator of steppe collections and master propagator!</p> Penstemon auriberbis</em></p> A few hours later, as we headed towards the Wet Mountain valley, we saw wonderful displays of wildflowers including this bright penstemon that is almost restricted to Southeastern Colorado prairies.</p> The Research Department, who organized this trip, have to take advantage of the summer months of growing season to do their work monitoring and studying our native flora. We were lucky to join them on this productive jaunt. This year promises to be an "Year of wonders", and I have borrowed two verses from Dryden's "Annus Mirabilis" that resonate:</p> "In this deep quiet, from what source unknown</p> Those seeds of fire their fatal birth disclose"</p>
'Tis the season for holiday baking and stove top simmers that fill the home with the rich and cozy smells of allspice, vanilla, ginger, cinnamon, cardamom, clove and citrus. All of these wonderful flavors and aromas come from plants! The Boettcher Memorial Tropical Conservatory is home to a few that you can see during your next visit.</p> Vanilla</strong></p> Did you know vanilla is a member of the orchid family? While our Vanilla imperialis </em>produce pretty flowers, they rarely (if ever) produce fruit (vanilla pods) because in the wild, the flower must be pollinated by a specific bee native to South America (Melipona</em>) or hummingbirds within the first day of blooming. After the flower is fertilized, a vanilla pod will begin to grow. The photo featured in the photo gallery below was taken in our Tropical Conservatory and shows where flowers were and where the pods would develop if pollination occurred. Vanilla is the second-most expensive spice after saffron because the fruit production is very labor-intensive. You can find this plant on south wall of the Tropical Conservatory across from the bridge near west entrance.</p> Cardamom</strong></p> The Tropical Conservatory features the E</em>lettaria cardamomum </em>(Ceylon cardamom), a member of the Zingiberaceae or ginger family. Cardamom species are native to India, Bhutan, Indonesia and Nepal. Our plant is currently not producing fruit, but you can see its large, long leaves just south of the west entrance to the Tropical Conservatory. Similar to vanilla, the seed pods are where the flavor and fragrance exist. Cardamom is the world's third-most expensive spice.</p> Allspice</strong></p> Unlike vanilla and cardamom, the leaves of allspice also contain fragrance, but the dried berries are used for seasoning. The name "allspice" was coined as early as 1621 by the English, who thought it combined the flavor of cinnamon, nutmeg, and cloves. The plants are native to southern Mexico and Central America. Our allspice has a zesty twist! It is Pimenta dioica </em>Lemon Scented Form. The leaves smell very much like lemon balm while the berries still produce the spicy flavor we love. You can see our allspice tree on the north side of the west Tropical Conservatory entrance.</p> The Tropical Conservatory also features several ginger varieties, however none are edible.</p> And of course, chocolate is a favorite treat this time of year. You can find our cacao trees on the south side of the Tropical Conservatory near the east entrance. Look up to see the pods!</p> Here is a simple simmer pot recipe to fill your home with holiday fragrance:</p> 5 cups of water Orange peels 3 cinnamon sticks 3 star anise 1 teaspoon-sized knob of fresh ginger 1 teaspoon cardamom pods 1 teaspoon whole cloves 1 teaspoon allspice berries</p> Combine all ingredients in a saucepan and heat over low heat until simmering. I have kept this going for a few hours, adding additional water when needed. You can also throw everything in the crockpot and set it on low with the top off.</p>
Where do plants go when they die at the Gardens? Most, as you might expect, go to the compost pile, but a select few get a lucky break: a chance to be displayed again.</p> Each fall, armfuls of cuttings are hung and dried in our tool room for winter arrangements. These are what we call “everlasting plants,” varieties that stay crisp and colorful long “since sunshine fed them, or the showers,” as English author Walter Thornbury so sweetly put it.</p> Only the most resilient plant stems, flowers and seed pods make the cut. They not only have to hold their form or color for months after they’re pulled, but they have to take a good battering from the weather.</p> This year, we take you on a tour of more than two dozen winter outdoor containers, from classic elegant designs of cut evergreens, grasses and dried flowers to quirky new displays that depart from the traditional bouquet.</p> We start at the parking garage by the York Street pedestrian crossway, where grasses take center billing in two lively bouquets that move at the touch of breeze. Plumes of pampas grass (Cortaderia selloana</em>) tower above the rose-pink blades of little bluestem grass (Schizachyrium scoparium</em>) and wheat-like flowers of Karl Foerster feather reed grass (Calamagrostis</em> x acutiflora </em>‘Karl Foerster’). Lacy umbels of Joe Pye weed (Eutrochium purpureum</em>) and balls of dried hydrangea Annabelle (Hydrangea arborescens</em>) add a playful contrast, while slender stems of Japanese rose (Kerria japonica</em>) give the bouquet a zing of spring green.</p> </p> Crossing York to the front of the Bonfils-Stanton Visitor Center, red twig dogwood shrubs (Cornus sericea</em>) frame the front doors, their limbs angled skyward in grand gestures of hello. Among these living bushes are some of the largest and toughest flowers you can dry, each held high on stems of wood and wire -- giant sea holly (Eryngium giganteum</em>) sprayed white, hydrangea Annabelle tinted chartreuse, moon carrot (Seseli gummiferum</em>) colored red and -- the Cinderella of the bunch -- teasel (Dipsacus</em>), sprayed green.</p> </p> Passing through the Visitor Center and into the Welcome Garden, two large branches arc around the video screen, their bark lightly glazed in glitter. Dozens of ornaments made almost entirely from plants dangle from nooks in the branches, while bundles of dried flowers define tips of the branches with punches of red, green and white. Do you recognize the painted pods of evening primrose (Oenothera macrocarpa</em>)? Or the maple seeds wired into flowers? What about the seed shell from false indigo (Baptisia australis</em>) that’s become the face of a dancing sprite?</p> </p> Turn to your left and you’ll find two garden trellises at the bottom of the stairs that long to be holiday trees. Each is entwined in false spirea (Sorbaria sorbifolia</em>) stems and adorned with reddened stonecrop (Sedum</em> sp.), white statice (Limonium sinuatum</em>) and the dried fruits of teasel sprayed chartreuse. Pine cone ornaments and miniature wreaths of dogwood hang from horizontal wires and cuttings from spruce branches add softness to the display.</p> </p> Next, take a stroll down O’Fallon Perennial Walk to the Romantic Gardens, where the tradition of outdoor arrangements at the Gardens was born. Here, more than a dozen urns arranged by Denver Botanic Gardens Guild volunteers are scattered in beds and gazebos. Evergreen boughs, dogwood stems, hydrangea blossoms and branches of rose hips combine with classic elegance. Scattered among them are wands of pussy willow, ripe with catkins - a whimsical nod to spring - and dried cuttings of dusty miller (Jacobaea</em>), that lend a frosty contrast to deep green needles. Dried flowers, from statice (Limonium</em>) to yarrow (Achillea</em>), punctuate the bouquets with color.</p> </p> Straight ahead in the Ellipse, oversized pine cones and diminutive plants transform urns at the entry into magical little gardens. The cones sit on their ends at playful angles, while red pansies shimmer in the sunlight. Boughs of juniper, speckled with icy-blue berries, and Hens and Chicks (Sempervivum</em>) peek out at the edges. Nearby, perched on a stone railing in front of Waring House, are four more adorable urns. Each contains a single large pine cone nesting among holly grape (Mahonia haematocarpa</em>), rose-colored barberry (Berberis</em>) and yellow-green arborvitae (Thuja occidentalis</em>).</p> </p> Taking a turn west, head down the path past the Herb Garden to the Fountain Beds and Ornamental Grasses Garden, where two little Colorado spruce (Picea pungens</em>) pay tribute to my favorite Christmas book, Mr. Willowby’s Christmas Tree</em>, about a tree cut down to its tiniest and trimmed by woodland creatures. Each is wrapped in a garland of red strawflowers (Xerochrysum bracteatum</em>) and topped with a large seed head of white-washed dill (Anethum graveolens</em>). Bells in acorn shells add jingle, while bleached pine cones lend a frosty touch and sprigs of hawthorn berries, a bit of merriment. This one also includes umbels of moon carrot posing as giant snowflakes.</p> </p>
</p> The world is changing. </strong> Merriam-Webster defines the word baseline</em> as a starting point. This is a very simple yet hopeful concept in a world that is changing so quickly. It suggests a chance to plant our feet, catch our breath, and start the work of conserving biodiversity so that future generations can experience an enriching natural world.</p> As more of us do take the time to plant our feet and look around at the places we love, we see vast changes. Thousands of new houses dot the horizon along open space trails where we walk in the evenings. Vast swathes of beetle-killed pine trees blanket the High Country where we ski and hike. These kinds of change are easy to see. We know they mark a departure from some initial condition under which plant and animal diversity was more intact.</p> But not all changes are so clear-cut. Many processes that alter biodiversity unfold slowly over time, in a way that is difficult to track unless there is a clear starting point for comparison. Biologists use these clear starting points, or baseline data</strong>, to explore some of the most critical questions of our time.</p> It may come as a surprise that natural history collections, including the plant and fungal specimens housed in the herbaria at Denver Botanic Gardens, are in fact treasure troves of baseline data. Our plant collections date back decades and even centuries, serving as a lens through which to view the historical distribution of plants in our region.</p> Building on the efforts of past collectors, a primary goal of the Research & Conservation Department at the Gardens is to make thoughtful and targeted collections of contemporary plant communities throughout the state. The collections we make today serve as data that will be used by researchers one, ten or even 100 years from now to answer questions we have not dreamed of yet. With their scientific value in mind, we link each specimen with detailed information that anchors it in time and space.</p> This past summer we worked with two private landowners, Chris and Jaclynn Peterson, who have the same forward-thinking vision for their land as we have for our plant collections. The Petersons own 200 acres of montane habitat in Douglas County that will be protected from development in perpetuity. This protected status makes the property a valuable place to do research, because it can be monitored over time without the threat of development.</p> The property is extremely varied and therefore provides habitat for many plants and animals. Its topography ranges from rugged, exposed slopes with boulder outcrops that support dryland plants like yucca and cacti, to several year-round springs that bubble beneath shady canopies of Douglas fir, aspen, alder and hazelnut. The temperature and light conditions vary so widely that our staff and volunteers spent field days dashing from sun to shade, ranging high and low across exposed and protected habitats like thermoregulating lizards! Given these marked environmental differences, a main goal of our survey was to characterize the plant communities that occur across the property – that is, to document the valuable biodiversity this protected land harbors.</p> The collections we made on the Peterson’s land this year – all 1,050 of them – provide a snapshot of which plants are growing, and where, under present-day conditions. We systematically sampled across different slopes, aspects, and elevations, and in upland and wetland locations. Specimens collected in this way have great scientific value as a strategically constructed, permanent record of plant diversity across an underlying ecological template of hill and valley and spring.</p> This baseline assessment can be revisited in the future to determine whether and how the plant communities have changed. For example, the cooler, wetter areas of the property act as refugia habitat for species like pin cherry (Prunus pensylvanica</em>), which typically occurs at higher latitudes in Canada and New England. Will the pin cherry persist over the next 100 years as temperature and precipitation patterns change along the Front Range? We now have a starting point for answering that question.</p>
</p> Each year, we enhance the winter wonderland of Blossoms of Light with more lights, new colors and innovative features. But there’s a lot more to the event than just the lights! After two record-breaking years of attendance, we spent the better part of this year making changes to the event that will improve our visitor experience for all.</p> More Time in the Lights!</strong> This year, the Gardens will close each day at 4 p.m., which will allow us to open the doors to Blossoms of Light at 5 p.m. – half an hour earlier than last year.</p> More Restrooms </strong> In addition to those in the Boettcher Memorial Center and Marnie’s Pavilion, the restrooms at The Hive Garden Bistro are now available all year long.</p> Early Exit Points</strong> Because the Blossoms of Light path is one-way, departing the event early has been a bit of a challenge. This year, we’ve added three early-exit opportunities to guests who need to leave the path for any reason.</p> Ticketing Changes </strong> Limited tickets each night will help us avoid over-crowding. While this does mean that our visitors will need to plan a little farther in advance, it should make even our busiest evenings feel less crowded. In addition, door pricing offers visitors an extra incentive for purchasing in advance – tickets are $5 less than if you purchase at the door the night you attend!</p> Skip the Parking Hassle</strong> We’ve partnered with Lyft to offer Blossoms of Light visitors two different discounts. New users save $5 off their first three rides with code GARDENS17. Existing users save 20 percent on a single ride to or from the Gardens with code BOL2017. And don’t forget: the Gardens is easily accessible by two RTD bus lines, has several Car2Go spots (for the smaller smart fortwo cars) and has a B-Cycle station just outside the main entrance.</p> Got a Question? Drop us a line!</strong> Send us an email at info@botanicgardens.org</a> or call us 720-865-3500 if you have any questions about the event or your tickets.</p> Blossoms of Light is open 5-9 p.m. every night from November 24 - January 1. Advance reservations are highly recommended: purchase in advance for the best price and to ensure admittance on your desired date. Get your tickets today!</a></em></p>
It is hard to believe that the summer months are already behind us! With the arrival of fall, our water garden team begins the work of preparing our pond plantings for the winter months. Throughout October, staff and volunteers were found winterizing each of the following aquatic plant groups.</p> Hardy Waterlilies</strong></h3> The majority of the waterlilies (Nymphaea</em> hybrids) grown and displayed at the Gardens are winter hardy, meaning they will survive the cold winter temperatures and will grow as perennials here in Denver. These plants are left in their containers and the foliage is cut back in late October. They will go into dormancy with new growth appearing the following spring. As long as the root systems of hardy waterlilies do not freeze solid or dry out, most do very well over the colder months and actually benefit from these months of dormancy.</p> Tropical Waterlilies</strong></h3> Just as the annuals throughout the gardens are removed each fall, so are the tropical waterlilies found throughout our water gardens. Each plant is pulled out of the water and removed from its container. The soil is then searched for tubers and these are washed, labeled and stored in bags of water in a fridge maintained at 55°F. The plants are then composted, unless the hybrid is more rare, in which case it is brought into the aquatics greenhouse and placed in a heated tub of water to grow throughout the winter months.</p> Hardy Marginal Plants</strong></h3> The term “marginal,” when used in water gardening, refers to plants found growing along the margins of a pond. These plants are also referred to as “emergent” with their foliage growing above the water line. Hardy marginal aquatic plants in our collection include Lotus (Nelumbo</em> hybrids), pickerel plant (Pontederia cordata</em>), cattail (Typha</em> species), lizard’s tail (Saururus cernuus</em>), powdery thalia (Thalia dealbata</em>), aquatic iris (Iris virginica</em>, I</em>. versicolor</em>, I</em>. pseudacorus</em>, and I</em>. louisiana</em>) and sweetflag (Acorus calamus</em>).</p> To prepare our hardy marginal plants for the winter months, the foliage is cut back to just above the water line in mid- to late October. This is to prevent water from entering the plants’ root systems through the freshly cut stems, which could cause them to rot. The plants go into winter dormancy and will put up new growth the following spring. Our lotus plants are also screened with heavy black plastic netting in the fall to prevent Canada geese from eating the tubers, which they will do with gusto each spring if they can gain access to the containers!</p> Tropical Marginal Plants</strong></h3> Tropical marginal plants in our collection include cannas, taro (Colocasia</em>), red-stemmed thalia (Thalia geniculata </em>forma rheumoides</em>), Egyptian papyrus (Cyperus papyrus</em>), dwarf papyrus (Cyperus prolifer</em>) and Aztec arrowhead (Sagittaria montevidensis</em>).</p> At least one large plant of each tropical marginal hybrid is saved in our aquatics greenhouse. These will be divided the following spring and divisions will be potted up for that year’s displays as well as the spring plant sale.</p> Other Floating-Leaved Aquatic Plants</strong></h3> Aquatic plants in our collection which don’t fit into the above categories include floating-leaved species such as water hawthorn (Aponogeton distachyos</em>), mosaic plant (Ludwigia sedioides</em>) and Water Snowflakes (Nymphoides</em> species). Water hawthorn is hardy here in Denver and is left out in the ponds year-round. It tends to go dormant in the hottest months of the year and looks its best in the fall and spring, when it produces white, vanilla-scented blooms that float on the water’s surface.</p> Mosaic plant is a tropical floating-leaved plant native to South America. It is grown in a heated tub in our greenhouse year-round and cuttings are taken in early summer for our displays. Therefore, the plants on display are simply composted in the fall.</p> Finally, water snowflakes vary in hardiness depending on the species. Most species grown here at the Gardens are brought indoor for the winter months. It should be noted that we do not grow or display Nymphoides peltata</em> in the water gardens due its inclusion on the Colorado noxious weed list and its tendency to root into the containers of plants growing nearby.</p> Floating Plants</strong></h3> One floating plant species (an aquatic plant that floats on the water’s surface with its root system trailing freely in the water below) is included in our collection: water lettuce (Pistia stratiotes</em>). This tropical species resembles a floating head of lettuce and is displayed each summer in small pools or water bowls throughout the gardens. It is composted each fall with a few plants saved in heated tubs in our aquatics greenhouse.</p> As the autumn colors fade, replaced by a snowy white landscape, our hardy plants will slumber peacefully outdoors while our tropicals cozy up to life in the greenhouse. Stay tuned for a final seasonal blog post about the water gardens during the winter months.</p>
. . . and extreme ecological importance in high-elevation wetlands.</p>It’s likely that at some point, you have been out for a stroll and admired a pretty grass fanning gently in the wind…or maybe it was a sedge? Or a rush? It’s also likely that to solve this puzzle you looked musingly to the sky and recited to yourself: sedges have edges, rushes are round, grasses have knees that bend to the ground</strong>. And voila! You were botanizing, if only for a second, as you made your way in nature.</p>While the first and fundamental step of botanizing is naming what plant you have, the next is understanding how it shapes the ecosystem in which it occurs. With sedges, many of us know about the useful diagnostic clue of the angular stem. But less well known is that sedges of the genus Carex </em>comprise one of the largest plant groups in the world, with more than 2,000 species occurring worldwide. Many sedges have expansive circumboreal distributions spanning from Russia, to the Great Lakes, to Canada.</p>Carex </em>is also the largest genus of plants in Colorado, containing over 100 species. While sedges may not be showy, they are ecological superstars, forming the botanical backbone of one the state’s most important habitat types, the wetland. There are many types of wetlands including marshes, riparian corridors along creeks and streams and peatlands such as bogs and fens. Such habitats are oases in our otherwise semi-arid region, supporting a high diversity of plants and animals, many of which do not occur outside of their wetland refugia.</p>Importantly, wetlands cover only 3-6 percent of Earth’s land area, and they are increasingly threatened by land use change, invasive species, and altered temperature and precipitation regimes. Our hope of dynamically managing wetlands under future conditions rests upon knowing which species occur in the here and now, under contemporary conditions.</p>To contribute to this effort, a crew of staff and volunteers from the Gardens’ Research & Conservation Department made plant collections (to be curated for decades to come in our herbarium) at a high-elevation fen in Gilpin County, CO. From above, the fen glitters like a bright jewel, with a lush carpet of lime-green sedges punctuated by sun-lit pools of water.</p>Take flight over the fen yourself! </a>The abundant sedges, along with water-loving wildflowers like grass of Parnassus (Parnassia palustris</em>) and elephant’s head (Pedicularis groenlandica</em>), root themselves into deep, peaty substrates that take thousands of years to accumulate. (The slow work of peat formation makes fens extremely hard to restore and much of our team worked from the upland sidelines during collection.) </p>While some sedges grow in drier habitats, they often prefer or are restricted to wetlands. Because of this affinity, sedges speak volumes about wetland type and health. For example, “obligate wetland” species are just that—obligated to grow in wetlands—so their presence helps to define wetland boundaries and suggests a relatively intact hydrologic regime.</p>Our survey of the Gilpin County fen turned up 11 species of Carex,</em> five of which are obligate to wetlands and four of which highly prefer them (these being “facultative wetland” species). The presence of another beautiful sedge, Eriophorum angustifolium</em>, told tale of the ecological integrity of the fen. This species, sometimes called cottongrass for its fluffy shock of snow-white seed heads, is dependent on relatively pristine wetland habitat to survive. We were happy to include it on our plant list of 160 species found at the site this year!</p>In closing, let’s return to the first and fundamental step of botanizing: naming what you have. Sedges are an extremely difficult group to get to know. Sedges having edges is the tip of the diagnostic iceberg (with even this well-known ID hack having many exceptions), and taxonomically defining this one slice of the botanical menagerie is a feat. Luckily for folks who botanize in Colorado, Dr. Janet Wingate has just made the world of sedges more accessible with her illustrated publication titled Sedges of Colorado</em>. Check it out and make room for it in your backpack on your next hike!</p>
