The Deer Creek Children’s Discovery and Play Area is not your typical playground. You will not find swings, slides or jungle gyms. However, you will be able to explore many opportunities to get creative, connect with plants and explore nature. Here are examples from just three principles observed in curating the Play Area:</p> Minimal and Intentional Maintenance:</strong></p> This garden toes the line between natural and curated. Shrubs and trees are pruned to varying degrees to maintain a balance of wild and accessible. </p> A trail cut through the Prunus virginiana</em>, or chokecherries, maintains the species' natural habit of spreading through suckers and forming dense thickets, while making it a more suitable area for play. </p> Ornamental shrubs planted in this garden regularly have lower limbs and branches pruned out. This practice encourages living screens to create hidden nooks and crannies while still keeping feet visible for supervised play. </p> “Play-friendly” Plant Choices:</strong></p> Plants in this garden are chosen to withstand proximity to play.</p> Kitchen herbs like Thymus </em>or Oregano </em>often become aggressive spreaders in the garden. However, for this setting, they are a great option. The ability to persist as an attractive and scented groundcover, regardless of the foot traffic, is an asset to the Play Area. Paired with brightly colored sedums, fine textured grasses and pops of flowering perennials, this small garden bed endures high activity while stimulating the senses. </p> Evolving Play and “Loose Parts”:</strong></p> Loose parts encourage creativity and imaginative play. Here, “loose parts” refer to natural materials, that are not part of a living plant. Materials can be moved and manipulated without any specific purpose. Examples of loose parts that you may find are:</p> Stumps or tree circles are perfect for sitting or stacking. Whenever a tree needs to be taken down onsite, parts are salvaged and added to the Play Area.</li> Small sticks, pinecones and acorn caps for building. While not all these materials occur naturally in the Play Area, they are often scattered in the chokecherry thicket by staff to use as loose parts. </li> Fallen leaves, particularly the waxy leaves of the cottonwoods, Populus sp., are durable and easy to use in natural artwork. Just make sure to enjoy them quickly before they are all cleaned up! </li> </ul> None of the natural play elements are fixed. The materials used to build a fairy house one day might be reused in a mural the next. The Play Area</a> is constantly evolving and changing with each new visitor. How will you leave a temporary mark of your own on your next visit? </p>
As cold settles in and plants go dormant, you may think there's not much going on at the Gardens in winter. It's an easy mistake to make! Inside and out, Denver Botanic Gardens is hustling and bustling all year long. One of the best ways to learn about what we're up to is by joining a tour, led by knowledgeable volunteers and expert staff. What better way to warm up on a cold winter day than to take a tour of the Boettcher Memorial Tropical Conservatory? After many months of closure, the Tropical Conservatory is back in business and ready for visitors. On a Tropical Trails Tour</a>, learn about the more than 2,000 species in the Tropical Collection, representing plants from Central and South America, Australia and Africa. Take a break from Colorado's dry winter air and soak in the humidity of the Tropical Conservatory. Trust me, your skin will thank you later. Have you explored our art galleries? The Freyer – Newman Center is home to three galleries with exhibitions that celebrate the natural world. During an Art at the Gardens Tour</a>, learn about the artworks on display and the artists who made them. This year's exhibition lineup includes strange and delightful sculptures and paintings by Ash Eliza Williams, botanical artworks from the collection of seed company Botanical Interests LLC, lifelike drawings of fire and forests by local artist Anna Kaye and so much more. Exhibitions rotate regularly, offering fresh perspectives on the intersection of art and science. Curious to know more about what, exactly, all the plants are up to over the winter? Join a Seasonal Discoveries Tour</a> to explore the Gardens' ever-changing landscapes with a friendly guide. Discover the quiet beauty of frost covered gardens and learn how plants spend the winter months preparing for spring. Season to season and day to day, Denver Botanic Gardens is constantly changing, so there is always something new to see.Whether you've never been to the Gardens or you've been a member for decades, taking a tour is a great way to discover the plants, people, architecture and art that make Denver Botanic Gardens great, no matter what time of year. Register for a tour today! </p> Language Without Words</em> image credit: Language Without Words: Works by Ash Eliza Williams</em> (2024) at Denver Botanic Gardens. Photo by Scott Dressel-Martin</p>
It always starts out as such a good idea. A redesigned home is the fulfillment of dreams. That new raised bed vegetable garden is perfection. A few decades ago, the channelization of creeks and rivers seemed so smart to manage flood-prone areas. </p> Time marches along, and in no time at all we realize that something just isn’t quite right anymore. Old wisdom gives way to new ideas, different elements break down, and some decisions leave us wondering what on earth we were thinking.</p> Such is the way of the ongoing dance of best intentions and the irresistible force of nature. At the Gardens, we learn new lessons every year and are now increasingly focused on restoration – working with what still exists from days past to replenish a collection of life that truly belongs here. At Chatfield Farms, our teams have been restoring the riparian zone along Deer Creek and prairie areas on the south and central parts of the site. </p> After years of manipulation for either agricultural or aesthetic reasons, it is amazing to watch the transformation take place when invasive species are replaced with native and native-adapted plants. There are many small miracles. The new/old landscape is immediately beautiful, with life suddenly back in concert with the environment that nurtures it. With appropriate plants flourishing, there is little need for heavy maintenance and no irrigation required.</p> Metallically adorned native bees reappear, birds make a big comeback. Everything from butterflies to white-tailed deer frolic in spaces that are once again familiar to their origins.</p> The greatest miracle of all with such work is how quickly things shift. Within a year, the difference can be dramatic. My favorite realization about the process of restoration is that the symphony of air and water changes to something that grabs hold of your DNA and connects directly to those rare moments we have spent in truly wild spaces.</p> So, we march bravely into the future. As is mostly the case, our motivations are economic and societal. We must make better use of resources to protect quality of life and long-term sustainability. The good news is that we can do the work of restoration with the realization of abundance rather than scarcity. </p> It is happening right now. Visit any of our four sites to get a glimpse. Or learn about our Sustainable Landscape Services</a> to see how we are partnering with communities and organizations all around Colorado. </p> Better yet, become part of the movement in your own backyard.</p> The winter issue of Inside the Gardens</a> is out now. Read it today.</p> </p>
Looking for a holiday gift that goes beyond the ordinary? We have unique options that bring beauty, joy and inspiration long after the season ends.</p> Memberships: A Year of Wonder</strong>Give a gift that blooms all year! A membership</a> to Denver Botanic Gardens offers unlimited visits to explore the Gardens at York Street and Chatfield Farms. From the serenity of the Japanese Garden to the heady scents of lavender in full bloom, each visit offers something new. Members also receive discounts on classes, special events and purchases at the Shop at the Gardens and onsite restaurants.</p> Classes & Programs: Inspire Creativity</strong>For the lifelong learners and creative spirits in your life, consider gifting a class or program</a>. From floral arranging and botanical illustration to cooking workshops and yoga sessions, there’s something for every interest. These hands-on experiences are a thoughtful way to nurture hobbies or spark new passions.</p> Wintertime Visits: A Magical Escape</strong>The Gardens transform into a winter wonderland during the colder months. Treat your loved ones</a> to a day surrounded by the beauty of nature, even in winter. Highlights include the tropical warmth of the Boettcher Memorial Tropical Conservatory, orchids in Marnie’s Pavilion, art exhibitions</a> in the Freyer – Newman Center galleries, the Helen Fowler Library</a>, free film screenings</a> in the Sturm Family Auditorium, and the calming sights of snow-dusted evergreens. Warm up with a cup of coffee from Copper Door Coffee Roasters. </p> Shop at the Gardens: Unique Finds</strong>Skip the mall and discover thoughtful gifts at the Shop at the Gardens</a>. From handcrafted jewelry and botanical-inspired home goods to gardening tools and books, the shop features items you won’t find anywhere else. Proceeds support the Gardens’ mission, so every purchase gives back.</p> This holiday season, give the gift of nature, creativity and connection. Explore all the possibilities at Denver Botanic Gardens and make your gifts as memorable as they are meaningful. </p>
The ever-present nature of shrubs plays an important role in creating habitat for wildlife. Their multiple persistent trunks allow them to maintain a year-round presence, even when other plants have senesced, creating a structure and stature in the landscape and shelter utilized by a huge variety of creatures. Conveniently for hungry animals, because of these persistent states, shrubs are also unmatched at holding onto fruit and seeds well into the winter months.</p> As my colleague Michael Guidi highlighted in his 2023 October Walking Tour “Ornamental Fruit: Berries, Drupes and Pommes,”</strong></a> colorful fruiting shrubs are excellent aesthetic additions to the winter garden, in addition to their extensive benefits for wildlife. But there are also less conspicuous fruits and seeds to be found throughout the world of winter shrubs with just as important an ecological role to fill. </p> Although the plants listed below can all be found in the Laura Smith Porter Plains Garden</strong>, this isn’t so much a tour along a specific route but a call to notice. Wander the gardens with your mind open to flashes of fluff and texture held above tawny and darkened winter stems.</p> Amorpha fruticosa</strong></em> (false indigo bush)</strong>While the dark maroon flowers of false indigo bush stun throughout the summer, the abundant latte colored seedheads offer important forage for songbirds throughout winter.</li> Atriplex canescens</strong></em> (fourwing saltbush)</strong>The fourwing saltbush is dioecious, meaning that different individuals have different sexes. You’ll need a female plant to produce the seeds that are enjoyed by a large variety of wildlife, but fret not if your bush isn’t producing seeds. Studies have shown that these shrubs have fluid biologies that allow them to switch between sexes as needed.</li> Ericameria nauseosa</strong></em> (rubber rabbitbrush)</strong>Rubber rabbitbrush is one of the most common and important shrubs of the Front Range. Following their late-autumn ochre blooms, they set thousands of seeds, which they hold atop their waxy stems.</li> Krascheninnikovia lanata</strong></em> (winterfat)</strong>The seeds of winterfat are so named because of their high levels of protein and ability to sustain small and large mammals throughout the winter months. Their dense seedheads resemble furry candles.</li> </ul> If you’re interested in incorporating shrubs into your garden and exploring inspirational shrublands throughout the world, be sure to check out the book that Michael Guidi and I wrote, “Shrouded in Light: Naturalistic Planting Inspired by Wild Shrublands.”</strong></a> Available in the Shop at the Gardens</strong></a> and at a number of online retailers.</p> </p> Gallery photos by Kevin Philip Williams</em></p>
Natural history collections have served as libraries of our world’s biodiversity for centuries. These libraries—holding plants, fungi and insects—are known as herbaria. There are over 3,565 herbaria worldwide and each contain important collections from their respective regions of the world. For instance, Denver Botanic Gardens houses the largest collection of macrofungal specimens from the southern Rocky Mountain region in the entire world. Because of this regional emphasis, scientists from other places who are interested in species we hold request loans of our specimens. Sending a loan is like a library lending you a book for an entire year. Scientists peruse our available online data and request physical specimens to sample and study when the scientific questions require it.</p> To give you an example of a loan, a few weeks ago the Gardens sent willow specimens to Quebec, Canada for a student who is trying to understand evolutionary relationships among different species of willow trees (Figure 1). If previous scientists hadn’t invested the time to collect willow specimens, that student would have to figure out how to travel across the world to collect samples from plants in the wild. Similarly, several fungal specimens were sent to Spain to elucidate the nature of the pigments in earth tongues (Neolecta </em>sp.) (Figure 2). We also request loans from other institutions. One of our graduate students here at the Gardens has requested Jacob’s Ladder (Polemonium </em>sp.) from over 10 other herbaria to study the volatile compounds produced by the plant. These are just a few examples of the more than 30 active loans our Natural History Collections</a> are facilitating (Figure 3).</p> Herbaria are constantly utilized for their regional collections and frequently send specimens off to curious researchers. Even in our digital age, where data is readily available online, some scientific questions can only be answered by sampling and studying the actual plant or mushroom specimen. Lending our specimens out is one of many ways the Gardens is contributing to science aimed at answering our burning questions about biodiversity on a global scale.</p> This article was contributed by Collection's Assistant Matthew Sheik</strong>.</em> </p>
I was lucky enough to grow up in Colorful Colorado, where spending time outdoors was the daily norm. Apart from the pansies on my front porch, the tomatoes in my backyardand the cottonwood trees I knew I was allergic to, I remained largely unaware of the diverse species of plants surrounding me — a phenomenon known as "plant blindness." It wasn't until I began pursuing a degree focused on plants that I started to recognize the variety and ecological importance of our flora.</p> Over the summer, I had an opportunity to combat plant blindness in my own way through my work as an intern specializing in plant records at Denver Botanic Gardens.Plant records involve documenting, mapping and verifying the location of each plant that enters the Gardens. Computer-generated maps of the Gardens are created using a system called BG Maps, which connects with AutoCAD and integrates with BG Base. BG Base stores all data collected about a plant, including its identity, date acquired and source and links this information to its precise location.</p> My work primarily saw me mapping plants in the areas affected by recent renovations, updating data on existing plants and inputting information about new plantings. I worked closely with the horticulturists and curators of these gardens: Sonya, of the Birds and Bees Walk, and Amy, of June’s PlantAsia. My responsibilities included recording each plant's location, condition and phenology on paper maps, which were later transferred onto the computer. This stored data enables horticulturists to monitor plants and their growth patterns. Most importantly, these maps connect to GardensNavigator.</p> Gardens Navigator</a> makes information about the plants in each garden accessible to the public. Visitors can use it to find specific plants, locate plants in bloom or identify unlabeled plants. By transforming abstract plant data into an interactive and educational experience, plant records encourage greater awareness and appreciation of the plantsaround us, bringing us one step closer to reducing plant blindness.</p> This article was contributed by Taylor Archer</strong>, a student at the University of Arizona pursuing a major in landscape architecture. Originally from Greenwood Village, Colorado, Taylor was drawn to Tucson for its unique desert flora. She plans to further her education by obtaining a master’s degree in landscape architecture after completing her bachelor’s degree.</em> </p>
I was lucky to grow up in a family who had a fondness for art and nature. Frequent trips to various museums, zoos and to Denver Botanic Gardens helped me grow this affection myself –especially when the Denver Art Museum had an exhibit on Monet and his waterlilies in 2019. When I discovered this Waterlily Registration Internship, I just knew I had to apply. </p> Most of my efforts this past summer during my internship surrounded the idea of hybridized waterlilies. Three major projects I was tasked with were taking photos and notes on this year's competition waterlilies, registering waterlilies through the International Waterlily and Water Gardening Society</a> (IWGS) and attempting to make my own hybrid waterlily.</p> For the IWGS New Waterlily Competition, hybridizers send their waterlilies to participating botanic gardens, where they are documented over an eight-week period with growers’ notes and photos. After those eight weeks are up, the information is sent to international judges who determine a winner in the fall. Most hybridizers enter for publicity purposes, since customers are more likely to buy from them if they’ve won an award. This year we grew hardy and hardy x tropical lilies for hybridizers from Thailand, China, France, Germany and the United States. The judges typically look for interesting flower shapes and colors, growth habit, new leaf color or pattern and uniqueness.</p> Some hybridized waterlilies at the Gardens are not registered through IWGS yet, so it was my job to collect data on those and enter it into the IWGS system. Some of the data I collected included petal number, petal and leaf color, and flower and pad size. Those that have been registered are published in the IWGS 4th Quarter Journal. This is important to hybridizers because they can have their waterlily recognized in a publication, and it is also less likely that another hybridizer will use the same or a similar name in the future. </p> My last project focused on making my own hybrid. The process involved finding parent plants I liked the traits of, then taking pollen from a male flower and putting it into a female flower and labeling it. If the female flower developed a seed pod, I would put a bag over that seed pod and wait for it to explode the seeds into the bag. I realized that with waterlilies, not every cultivar is compatible. Most of my seeds were not viable, but I suppose part of the fun is finding out which cultivars lead to success. I am so glad I got to learn more about aquatic plants and the process of hybridization through interactions with the amazing staff and through trial and error. This was an incredible summer, and I am eternally grateful to Denver Botanic Gardens for letting me try my hand at waterlilies and connect to my inner Monet.</p> This article was contributed by Sophie Mantooth,</strong> a senior at Colorado State University majoring in horticulture with an emphasis in business. After graduation in December, she hopes to learn more about the world of horticulture through participating in WWOOF (World Wide Opportunities on Organic Farms) United Kingdom.</em> </p>
Directing the flow of water isn’t a new idea.</p> Humans have been changing the flow of water for thousands of years for our benefit, and oftentimes to our failure. Water is never truly wasted though, it is always in a cycle of evaporation (and transpiration by plants), condensation and precipitation. What is wasted is the energy it takes to treat and move water to where we need it.</p> Forethought when designing our landscapes can save us time, money and precious water. We protect our homes by making sure that water drains away from its foundation; water is valuable though, so where is it draining to? Often, it runs off and into the stormwater system. </p> Designing landscapes to catch and hold water presents an opportunity to use water more sustainably. We can eliminate or reduce the need to irrigate the landscape with the (treated) potable water pumped to our houses. Where do you start if you want to build sustainability into your landscape? Gravity is all you need; water runs downhill.</p> Make observations of existing conditions.</strong></p> Where are there impermeable surfaces?</p> Roofs, driveways and sidewalks are the biggest surfaces.</li> Where are the downspouts? What sections of the roof are the downspouts responsible for?</li> Plan landscaping around downspouts fed by the largest sections of roof.</li> </ul> </li> How can you collect water from the driveway? Installing a channel drain can divert water into a garden bed</li> </ul> </li> What are the existing elevations-during a precipitation event, where does the water flow?</li> What are the soil conditions?</li> </ul> Develop a plan.</strong></p> It is certainly helpful to know the big picture plan for a landscape design, but it’s also more realistic to take simple and small steps towards that goal.</li> Creating berms and swales is a simple way to slow water. Which plants prefer the swale (wet), and which prefer the berm (dry)?</li> </ul> </li> Elevate pathways for easier maintenance, and direct water into adjacent beds. Or create lower beds because hardscapes are difficult to move.</li> </ul> </li> Use French drains</a> to direct water where it's most useful.</li> Use rain barrels to store water</a> for dry periods (2-55 gallon barrels are legal in Colorado).</li> </ul> We’re constructing a large-scale water catching and rain garden system at Chatfield Farms. Our new parking lot and Welcome Center will make the gardens much more accessible, while also draining water into swales and depressions to make use of as much precipitation as possible. </p> Brad Lancaster</a> has an abundance of knowledge on this topic in his books and online if you'd like to learn more. </p> Photos by Erik Howshar except as otherwise noted.</em> </p>
It can be easy to think of a garden as separate from its surrounding environment. After all, the plants in a garden are predominately selected, grown and managed by human hands, a far cry from the myriad ecological factors that shape wild plant communities. Despite this difference, the boundary between a garden and its surroundings is far from impermeable. Under the right conditions, introduced garden plants can escape and start growing in nearby areas where they don't naturally occur. Though infrequent, these garden escapees can become invasive, potentially harming the local environment, economy or human health.</p> To reduce the risk of unintentionally introducing invasive plant species through the ornamental plant trade, Denver Botanic Gardens monitors a list of ornamental plants with traits similar to those of known invasive species. As the Watch List Species Intern, I helped collect data on these “watch list” plants to help determine the invasive potential of these species. Data collection consisted of several components. Watch list plants were mapped throughout the Gardens (with a great deal of assistance from horticulturists) to assess their spread and the effectiveness of control measures. This information was then entered into the Gardens’ database for its living collection so that it can be referenced at any time in the future.</p> Next, watch list plants were collected to be preserved as herbarium specimens</a>. These specimens can then be used to confirm the identification of watch list plants as well as document where that species is located at the time of collection. The final portion of my internship was conducting weed risk assessments for several watch list plants. A weed risk assessment consists of 40 yes-or-no questions about the plant’s life history, climate tolerance and known ecological or economic impacts. A score is generated based on the answers to the questions, which can then be used to estimate the invasive potential of a plant.</p> Contributing to the watch list project as an intern at the Gardens was both a rewarding and revelatory experience. The amount of work done behind the scenes to ensure that plants in the Gardens’ living collections are responsibly selected and managed is truly awe inspiring. Moreover, learning from experts in horticulture and ecology at the Gardens was an incredible opportunity, and it was a privilege to do so while helping to address an important issue facing the horticulture industry.</p> This article was contributed by Seth Polich</strong>. He recently graduated with a master's degree in biology from West Chester University of Pennsylvania, where he also cared for the university's teaching greenhouse. Originally from the Colorado Springs area, he is happy to be back exploring the diverse flora of his home state. </em> </p>
