Plants native to Colorado are no-fuss, hardy options for your landscape. Most are drought-tolerant and don’t require a lot of fertilizer and soil amendments. They also provide food for native birds and insects. Our natives are located throughout the Perennial section, as well as in Shrubs and Trees. For a list of native plants suitable for the Front Range of Colorado, see the Colorado Native Plant Society’s “Suggested Native Plants for Gardening and Landscape Use on the Front Range of Colorado.” We have most of the plants on this list!
Here’s a small sampling of what you’ll find at Wilmore:
Trees and Large Shrubs
- Colorado Blue Spruce, picea pungens
- Pinyon Pine, Pinus edulis
- Rocky Mountain Juniper, Sabina (Juniperus) scopulorum—including “Gray Gleam,” first propagated by Scott Wilmore in 1945.
- Rocky Mountain Maple, Acer glabrum
- Mountain Mahogany, Cercocarpus montanus
- Ponderosa pine, Pinus ponderosa
- Big Tooth Maple, Acer grandidentatum
- And more!
Shrubs
- Boulder Raspberry, Oreobatus (Rubus) deliciosus
- Chokecherry, Prunus virginiana ssp
- Golden Currant, Ribes aureum
- Sand Cherry, Cerasus (Prunus) pumila
- Rabbitbrush, Chrysothamnus nauseosus
- Apache Plume, Fallugia paradoxa
- Sand Cherry, Prunus besseyi
- And more!
Perennials/Biennials
- Black-eyed Susan, Rudbeckia hirta
- Blanket flower, Gaillardia aristata
- Butterfly Milkweed, Asclepias tuberosa
- Chocolate Flower, Berlandiera lyrata
- Colorado Blue Columbine, Aquilegia caerulea
- Fringed Sage, Artemisia frigida
- Harebell (Bluebells), Campanula rotundifolia
- Rocky Mountain Penstemon, Penstemon strictus
- Spotted Gayfeather, Liatris punctata
Sulphur Flower, Eriogonum umbellatum- And more!
Grasses
- Big Bluestem, Andropogon gerardii
- Blue Grama, Chondrosum gracile, (Bouteloua gracilis)
- Little Bluestem, Schizachyrium scoparium
- Switchgrass, Panicum virgatum
- And more!
Additional Native Plant Resources
CSU’s Extension Fact Sheets: Native Trees for Colorado Landscapes, Native Herbaceous Perennials for Colorado Landscapes, Native Shrubs for Colorado Landscapes, and Native Grasses for Colorado Landscapes.