As we move from October to November, we see the end of many of our visitors’ favorite time of year at the Gardens. With fall color fading and Halloween displays ending, we see gardens and gardeners take a rest during this quieter season. I urge you to take some time to appreciate the change in the weather and season.</p> Within the Japanese language, the phrase “mono no aware” directly translates to “the feeling of things,” but has a deeper cultural meaning that my volunteers and I attempt to illustrate within 松風園 Shofu-en Japanese Garden. As opposed to the literal translation, the cultural translation that I have found used most often is “a sensitivity to ephemera.” To illustrate this idea, one might think of an individual crafting an ikebana arrangement, and the tendency of those in the art form to prefer the slightly opened bud to the twig in peak flower. </p> Traditions like momijigari (literally “red leaf hunting”) and the viewing of the short-lived cherry blossom flowers in spring are also based on this principle, and these plants are seen as more valuable for how short-lived their showy season is. Perhaps the most well-known example of this appreciation of transience is the traditional system of 72 kō</em> (候) or “micro seasons.” These seasons last an average of five days, and have distinct poetic descriptions such as “chrysanthemums bloom,” “crickets chirp by the door” or “maple leaves and ivy turn yellow.” This appreciation of change, though slightly melancholy, is something all plant-lovers can apply to any garden.</p> Starting from the Bill Hosokawa Bonsai Pavilion and Tea Garden, walk past the dry garden and through the main gate until you reach the connecting path. Looking southwest on a sunny day, the Cheesman Park pavilion and Mount Blue Sky can be seen.</li> Turning to the right and moving west, one can peek up under the canopy of two Amur maples (Acer tataricum</em>) and one Russian hawthorn (Crataegus ambigua</em>). Take a moment to look up from directly under these trees, appreciating the calligraphic structure of the maples and any remaining fruit on the hawthorn.</li> From here, move forward to our moon-viewing deck. Notice the stillness and reflection of the water and the tops of the needles of the ponderosa pines as they move in the wind, or perhaps look to the right to notice the remaining stems and seed heads of the lotus (Nelumbo</em>).</li> Directly behind this, there stands a large Ginkgo biloba</em>. Notice the characteristic golden leaves of this tree scattered about, and the way the veins of these leaves never intersect.</li> Moving to the west, take the stepping-stone path to the right. This space holds a large crabapple variety, Malus</em> × gloriosa</em> ‘Oekonomierat Echtermeyer’ with fruit that should be falling any day now. Notice the coarseness and sharp turns of the branches in this weeping tree.</li> Exiting the stepping-stone path, take a moment to appreciate the lines raked in the stone. Notice how they emulate ripples in water, and how they disappear as the wind blows and little feet explore the garden.</li> Moving west, walk through the gate and stop for a moment on the bridge to the east. Notice the brilliant white texture of these birch trees, and the water moving below.</li> Finally, enter the garden from the entrance across from the Laura Smith Porter Plains Garden. Listen to the sound of the water as it crashes down from the waterfall. Take a left and take a seat at the azumaya (gazebo). Notice the remaining petals on the chrysanthemums surrounding your seat and enjoy the rest of your autumn day in the Gardens.</li> </ul> </p> This article and photos were contributed by Henry Basile</strong>, assistant curator of the Japanese Garden. </em></p>
Have you heard about the Rocky Mountain Gardening Certificate Core Series? This is a comprehensive study of specific gardening practices for our unique Front Range region offered by the Gardens. Classes include soil preparation techniques, horticulture and basic plant science. It can be completed as a cohort in five months or by taking classes individually over a two-year period.</p> I was curious about what inspires people to take the Rocky Mountain Gardening certificate program, so I asked the latest cohort. Each had distinct reasons but similar passions and goals for investing the time and energy in completing the certificate in five months. The program is deeply rooted in fulfilling our mission to connect people with plants and promote the Gardens’ values. Recipients had this to say:</p> Diversity:</strong> “Weeding is a waste of time! I wanted to create a model low-maintenance urban garden with native trees and xeriscape and share the possibilities with neighbors and friends.”</li> Relevance:</strong> “I’ve always been amazed by the beautiful power of trees and never realized it could become a career path to nurture trees. Even though I’m a busy mom of four and help with the family business, the certificate course helped me realize a career goal. The instructors were great at answering questions.”</li> Sustainability:</strong> “The certificate course gave me a great toolbelt for working with native plants. It stimulated my interest in regenerative gardening practices.</li> Transformation:</strong> “I learned so much about the importance of soil and organic composting. I have a kitchen garden because cooking is my passion. I gained knowledge and confidence to figure out what has gone wrong and not give up with skills learned in the diagnosing problems classes.”</li> Stewardship:</strong> “I wanted to change my ‘do nothing but create water bills’ lawn and create a home space that showed stewardship of Earth values. I felt empowered to have discussions with my HOA and with yard experts after earning my certificate.”</li> And, with a vision for professional development:</strong> “I work with city residents who want to find cost-effective methods to improve their land. Now I feel confident that I can address their questions with reliable information and resources. People want to build ecosystems through smart gardening and now I know how to help them.”</li> </ul> The Rocky Mountain Gardening Certificate’s importance goes beyond knowledge and skills. Even though participants have individual goals, they are connected by a passion for the environment by wanting to support sustainable ecosystems and create healthy habitats. Find out more about the certificate</a>. </p>
Denver is located in a steppe ecosystem that is characterized by extremes: extreme cold, heat, drought, hail and wind. To be a plant that survives this environment is to be resilient, to bounce back after adversity and to adapt. We know plants can survive these conditions because we are surrounded by them when we step into our natural ecosystems in the plains and foothills, and increasingly when we step outside our front doors into our neighborhoods and parks. Plants have been surviving—and thriving—in steppe ecosystems for millennia, evolving in conditions like long droughts, harsh sunlight and strong winds to have adaptations such as deep roots, protective hairs and fine leaf textures. </p> Resilience Is Beautiful</h4> Resilient gardens are beautiful gardens, not just in their resilience, but in their aesthetics. With adaptation comes diversity in form, texture, color and bloom timing—key ingredients of designing an attractive garden. The Roads Water-Smart Garden and Nexus Garden exemplify how low-water, adapted plants from Colorado and similar steppe environments can be combined to create focal points, contrast, patterns, ongoing blooms and interesting winter structure that give year-round appeal alongside decades-long resilience in our Denver climate. </p> The Perfect Time to Plant</h4> You may be on the fence about planting a new garden or integrating water-smart plants. Now is an excellent time to invest in resilient plants adapted to harsh climate conditions. As you’ve likely learned, Denver Water has implemented Stage 1 drought restrictions for summer. In the coming decades, temperatures in Denver are expected to continue to increase while water availability becomes more sporadic; droughts are not new for Denver and are likely to become more frequent and severe. Embracing resilient plants in our gardens and landscapes prepares us for this future. Once established, resilient plants can withstand drought and extreme heat, reducing our water demands and building our own resilience to future watering restrictions.</p> Explore the Gardens’ water stewardship initiatives</a> for inspiration and shop Spring Plant Sale May 8 and 9</a> to add water-smart plants to your landscape.</p> This article was contributed by Manager of Sustainable Landscape Services Marissa Sterrett </strong>and volunteer Jaclyn Kachelmeyer</strong>.</em> </p>
Let’s celebrate Earth Day and our Front Range biodiversity by participating in the City Nature Challenge</a>! This is a yearly event for folks in cities all over the world to observe and document biodiversity in their own backyards. Any living organism is fair game for observation – plants, mammals, birds, insects, fish – they all contribute to the City Nature Challenge. To participate, make observations of any organism on iNaturalist during the observation phase. This is followed by an identification phase—where you can join a community of nerdy naturalists to identify the species observed. Learn more and find local bioblitzes</a> near you.</p> CITY NATURE CHALLENGE 2026</strong>Observations: </strong>April 24 – April 27Upload and Identification Phase:</strong> April 28 – May 10</p> For 2025’s global challenge, there were 3.3 million observations of almost 74,000 species made by 103,000 people from over 62 countries around the world. This brings the total number of observations made during the past 10 years to almost 13 million! </p> Meanwhile, in the Denver-Boulder metro area, more than 9,714 observations were submitted by 764 people of 1,260 species. We nearly doubled our number of observations and observers compared to 2024 and we broke our previous record in 2020 of ~7,000. This year, our most observed species was Chokecherry (Prunus virginiana</em>). Fun species observed included a silver fox</a>, Abert’s squirrel</a>, prairie violet</a>, beaver</a>, black-crowned night heron</a>, little brown bat</a>, American mink</a>, elk</a>, moose</a>, northern harrier</a> and black bear</a>. We even had 145 research-grade observations of 26 species</a> that are listed as rare, endangered or threatened by NatureServe or the U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service (over twice as many as last year). </p> It’s easy to participate – your iNaturalist observations will automatically be added to the City Nature Challenge 2026: Colorado Front Range</a> project if they are made during the challenge event and occur in the Front Range (see above link for map of included areas). Additionally, all plant and fungal observations will automatically be added to the Denver EcoFlora Project</a>. </p>
Local legends abound surrounding the history of Cheesman Park as an unkept and crumbling cemetery that was later transformed into the recreational area it is today. Before its green fields were dotted with volleyball nets and slacklines, this park was City Cemetery, Denver’s first large cemetery, established in 1859. Originally intended to be a scenic Victorian cemetery like those seen in Boston, New York and parts of Europe, this vision was never realized. Pressure to use the area in a way that would better appease its burgeoning affluent neighbors in Capitol Hill ultimately led to its transformation into a park. </p> Easier said than done. Thousands of occupants already resided underground in City Cemetery. Undertaker E. P. McGovern was contracted to relocate remains to Riverside Cemetery several miles away in early 1893. Paid by the coffin, McGovern soon saw a way to exploit the wording of his contract and unearthed remains were split between multiple child-sized coffins which were then hauled across town. The city discovered what was going on, halted McGovern’s work entirely and required that all remains either be relocated at their survivors’ expense within 90 days or remain onsite. </p> Imperfect maps identifying locations of remains, fear of diseases that could be spread by unearthing remains, and the inability of individuals to pay relocation costs for loved ones prevented work from being completed in time for the park’s opening.</p> It is estimated that 2,000 to 3,000 human remains still reside under Cheesman Park. </p> Adjacent to City Cemetery was Mount Calvary Cemetery—where Denver Botanic Gardens now exists. Owned by the Catholic Archdiocese of Denver, this cemetery was better maintained than neighboring City Cemetery but fell into disuse after Mount Olivet Cemetery was established in Wheat Ridge and became the only consecrated Catholic cemetery in the area. The abandoned Mount Calvary was used primarily as a playground for adventurous children until it was finally deeded to the City of Denver in 1950. </p> The relocation of remains from Mount Calvary to Mount Olivet was more organized and expedient than the transition from City Cemetery to Cheesman Park had been, but not without issues. Occasionally remains would be missing from where they were marked on the cemetery’s records, while others would be found during construction and maintenance where no burial had been recorded. </p> Denver Botanic Gardens was first partially and then completely relocated from its original home in City Park to the former site of Mount Calvary in the late 1950s and early 1960s, with the Boettcher Memorial Tropical Conservatory being formally dedicated in January of 1966. </p> Although considered by some to be less haunted than our larger neighbor, the Gardens still has its share of ghost stories and reported hauntings. </p> To learn more about the hauntings and history of Denver Botanic Gardens and Cheesman Park, browse these books at Helen Fowler Library: </p> The Ghosts of Denver: Capitol Hill by Phil Goodstein </a>Written by local historian and walking tour guide Phil Goodstein, this volume covers much of the history of Capitol Hill and Cheesman Park neighborhoods, including the haunted history of the park and its surroundings. </li> Cemetery to Conservatory by Louisa Ward Arps </a>A publication of Denver Botanic Gardens, this work covers the transition from the cemetery to its current use in detail, spanning the period from 1859 to 1980. </li> The Dead Below by Richard Estep </a>Follow Colorado author Richard Estep and his ghost hunting crew as they explore Waring House at Denver Botanic Gardens in search of evidence of the supernatural. </li> </ul> This post was contributed by On Call Librarian Sean Grimes</strong>. </em></p>
