Colorado is a notoriously tricky place for plant enthusiasts when it comes to growing gardens and maintaining attractive yards. Because of the arid conditions, many experts are encouraging homeowners to perfect their skills by showcasing plants native to Colorado in their yards. These plants are the most successful option because they tend to be water wise and thrive in their natural environment.
A few weeks ago we asked In The NoCo listeners to send us your questions about planting native plants. Well, you asked and we listened! We had CSU Extension Horticulture Coordinator Tommy Roth come back to the show and answer some of our favorite listener questions.
Erin O'Toole: A listener asked, how do I keep natives in my yard when it is either very shaded by my house, in other words, not dappled sun or under a pine tree. Can I use water wise natives in these places?
Tommy Roth: That's a great question. That's something a lot of people are often concerned about. So first, let's address the pine tree aspect. So generally, I would try to avoid planting things directly underneath a tree. If you look out in nature, things don't usually grow directly underneath a tree, right up to the trunk, so that's actually bad for your tree. The plant that's under it can steal water from the tree. So, I would probably just mulch an area underneath your tree and just kind of leave it like that so that your tree can be as healthy as possible.
For things that are in the shade from your house, there are plenty of native plants that can grow in the shade. A few of them are Manzanita smooth sumac, creeping or Oregon grape. There's way more that .
Erin O'Toole: One listener wrote in and wanted to know what native plants are hard to grow from seed. When should you buy seeds versus plugs?
Tommy Roth: So I would say, if you want to say, save time and money isn't an issue, just buy plugs. But if you want a little learn a little more about seeds, save some money, maybe grow some more rare plants that might impress a plant nerd, then I would say, do seeds.
Erin O'Toole: Tommy, last time we talked, we discussed a bit about what to do with your soil to help native plants thrive. One listener asked, What should I do to my rock-hard, clay soil before seeding with natives?
Tommy Roth: The main problem with having a rock hard soil like this is that the roots are going to have a hard time spreading, and that's going to cause drought stress symptoms in your plant. So one thing you could do is try to amend your soil with some compost. This is going to change the character of the soil. It's going to add in some organic matter. It's going to allow your soil to hold onto nutrients more effectively. Hold on to water more effectively. And a lot of native plants aren't super picky with the soil, so as long as the roots can move through the soil, should be okay. But you know, it's it's difficult without seeing the soil.
Erin O'Toole: Last time you mentioned how beneficial planting milkweed is to monarch butterflies, and one listener had a follow up question to that. They said, I'd like to plant milkweed for the butterflies, but read that there are many varieties, and it's important to plant the right type that is native to your local area. And they want to know which variety should I plant in Loveland?
Tommy Roth: That's a great question. So there are super awesome milkweed species that are native to the Front Range. The easiest one to grow and the showiest one 鈥� the one that has the most beautiful flowers, the biggest flowers 鈥� is called Asclepius Speciosa. So you may see milkweed sold under the name Asclepius. Asclepius is the milkweed genus. You'll be able to buy these seeds online, or you'll probably be able to get these plugs at a nursery that sells native plants. This is a pretty common native plant that's in the landscape. There are some other native Asclepias species, but they need more specific conditions, and those could be good to try out once you get some experience under your belt growing Asclepias speciosa. And you know, they call this milkweed. It grows literally like a weed. It's an amazing plant.
Erin O'Toole: Well, here's a listener question about deer. This listener asked, as large deer populations roam freely through urban areas, what are your recommendations for deer resistant species to plant?
Tommy Roth: One common misconception with deer resistant plants that I want to dispel is that planting them will stop deer from eating all of the plants in your yard. So that's not the case, right? Deer resistant plants only stop deer from eating themselves. So if you have other plants that deer like to eat in your yard, they'll still eat those, even if you plant a deer resistant plant.
There's a couple of ways that plants can be deer resistant. So plants that are spiky or thorny, that's pretty obvious. And also plants that taste bad to deer. So spiky and thorny plants, they're obvious: cacti, yucca, things like a fur or a pine. Anything that has, you know, like hard or thorny foliage, deer don't like to eat that. There's also some other things like current shrubs or there's rabbit brush. I can't list all of these, but . And just another side note, if deer are really hungry, all that stuff about them, like thinking plants taste bad, that goes out of the window. They're just trying to survive.
Erin O'Toole: I have one last question here. The listener says, I have three acres in Greeley and would like to restore it to a natural prairie. Where do I start right now? It is full of goat heads, mustard weed, bindweed, and a whole host of others that I can't identify.
Tommy Roth: That is a super complex question. And, yeah, that's a really tough situation. Having three acres is a lot of land that's completely infested with invasive species. So broadly speaking, you'll want to remove those invasive weeds somehow. You could use a herbicide. I don't think you would want to hand pull them, but that's also an option. And then you'll want to replace them with a native prairie seed mix. These are sold all across the state, and because this is such a complex question, my advice would be to reach out to the Weld County CSU Extension office to get some specific advice tailored to your unique situation. I've dealt with goat heads before, and I don't wish that on anyone.
