Native Plants That Survive Colorado Summers

The Front Range is a hard climate to design a garden in. Late frosts in May, hailstorms in June, six straight weeks of sun and wind in July, and an early freeze in October. Most plants from a generic catalog do not survive a Colorado summer; the ones that do are the ones we plant on purpose.

Here is the short list of natives and well-adapted perennials we use repeatedly, with the reasoning behind each. None of these are exotic. All are widely available at local nurseries.

Perennials

Russian sage (Perovskia atriplicifolia). Tall, silvery, with hazy lavender flower spikes from July through September. Drought-tolerant once established. Pollinators love it. Two of these in a four-by-six-foot bed is enough to anchor the back row of a perennial planting.

Blanket flower (Gaillardia aristata). Native short-lived perennial that reseeds itself happily. Yellow-and-red daisy-form flowers from June through frost. Tolerates the worst clay-heavy soils we have on this side of the range. The "Goblin" cultivar stays under twelve inches.

Penstemon (Penstemon strictus and Penstemon pinifolius). Two native species we use constantly. Strictus (Rocky Mountain penstemon) grows to two feet with deep blue spikes. Pinifolius (pineleaf penstemon) is a low evergreen with orange-red flowers that hummingbirds work hard. Both want full sun, lean soil, and almost no water once they are in.

Yarrow (Achillea millefolium). Tough native with flat-topped flower clusters and feathery foliage. The cultivars (Moonshine, Paprika, Terracotta) extend the color range. Cuts back hard in late fall and re-emerges every spring without complaint.

Catmint (Nepeta x faassenii). Not native, but we plant it everywhere. Drought-tolerant, deer-resistant, blooms blue-purple from May into July, and shears back in midsummer for a strong second flush. The cultivar "Walker's Low" is the workhorse.

Shrubs

Three-leaf sumac (Rhus trilobata). Native shrub that handles dry slopes, hot exposures, and poor soil. Glossy green leaves through summer, brilliant red-orange fall color, and small fuzzy red berries that birds eat. We use it as a slope-stabilizer and a screen.

Apache plume (Fallugia paradoxa). Native to drier parts of the West. White rose-like flowers from late spring through summer, followed by silky pink seed plumes that persist into fall. Reaches six feet tall and just as wide. Wants full sun, lean soil, and almost no supplemental water.

Curl-leaf mountain mahogany (Cercocarpus ledifolius). Slow-growing evergreen shrub that handles the worst exposed sites. Leathery dark-green leaves, small white flowers, distinctive feathery seed plumes. We use it as a wind-tolerant evergreen anchor in xeric designs.

Grasses

Blue grama (Bouteloua gracilis). Native short grass with distinctive eyebrow-shaped seed heads on horizontal stems. Drought-tolerant, low-maintenance, and beautiful in mass. We use the cultivar "Blonde Ambition" for its heavier seed display.

Little bluestem (Schizachyrium scoparium). Mid-height native bunchgrass with blue-green summer foliage that turns copper-red in fall. Holds its color through winter. We plant it in drifts of seven or more for the best visual effect.

Indian ricegrass (Oryzopsis hymenoides). Cool-season native bunchgrass with airy seed heads that catch the morning light. Goes dormant in summer heat, which is fine in a mixed planting. We pair it with summer-flowering perennials so the planting always has something doing.

A note on water

Every plant on this list is described as drought-tolerant or low-water "once established." The "once established" caveat is critical. Newly planted perennials and shrubs need supplemental water through their first two summers, period. We typically schedule a deep weekly soak from May through September of years one and two, then back off to once a month through year three, then to "only when the plant looks stressed" thereafter. Skipping the establishment water is the single most common reason native plantings fail in Colorado.

What we will not plant

A short list of plants we have stopped recommending entirely: Russian olive (invasive), salt cedar (invasive), hybrid tea roses (require constant care here), most large-leafed hostas (burn in afternoon sun), and any non-native bamboo (root systems lift sidewalks). We have alternatives for each.

If you have a planting space that needs filling and you want to know which plants will hold up in your specific exposure, the conversation is the easiest part of the design process. Send us a photo of the spot and we can usually answer over email.

← Back to the journal