Try these tough, low-maintenance plants for a beautiful, easy garden in the Mountain West region.
Try these tough, low-maintenance plants for a beautiful, easy garden.
It has an extended season of interest thanks to its graceful seed heads that remain showy through early summer.
Allow it to reseed and it will establish a small (non-aggressive) colony in yourgarden.
It bears loads of neon-purple flowers through the summer.
After it’s done blooming, enjoy the gray-green pads.
Fragrant white flowers appear in summer and add to the plant’s appearance.
Bonus: It does well in light shade and is rabbit resistant, too!
For the best color, look for a new selection named ‘Siskiyou Blue’.
It’s a favorite of migrating monarch butterflies, and a durable perennial to boot.
Liatris is an extra-tough plant that tolerates a wide range of soil conditions.
For a stellar combination, plant it withbutterfly weed(Asclepias tuberosa).
We also love the Indian paintbrush’s long bloom seasonflowers appear from late spring until frost.
Pair it with blue ornamental grasses such as blue grama or blue fescue for a stunning combination.
It’s perfect for the front of the border or scrambling over a rock wall.
Butterfly weed’s electric-orange flowers are butterfly magnets.
And it may even attract monarch butterfly caterpillars that will happily munch on the foliage.
Note:This long-lived plant can take a few years to get establishedso be patient with it.
Name:Asclepias tuberosa
Zones:4-10
Goldenrod
Native goldenrod is a perfect perennial forfallgardens.
Many fine species come from the Great Plains and a number of named selections are derived from them.
For extra variety, look for selections with red, apricot, salmon, or magenta blooms.
(But happily, not deer or rabbits!
They avoid it because of its aromatic foliage.)
Then infall, the blades turn a gorgeous shade of purple-bronze and continue to look good all winter.
Name:Schizachyrium scoparium
Compass Plant
Trycompass plantfor a dramatic presence in the summer garden.
Yellow, sunflower-shaped blooms sit atop towering, 9-foot stems.
This top-notch plant bears pink flowers in mid-summer.
The bloom color is enhanced by the dark, raspberry-red cones at the center of each bloom.
Note:Like many coneflowers, it will self-seed and produce a nice colony in your landscape.
Enjoy this plant’s dramatic texture in rock gardens and other well-drained spots.
Hedgehog cactus offers extra appeal in early spring when it unveils its iridescent green flowers.
Name:Echinocereus viridiflorus
Growing Conditions:Full sun, dry soils
Size:To 9 inches tall
