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Casper Pick Perennials
The following perennials were picked for their true durability. These are the ones you want for those really tough locations where you want a bit of color whether it be poor soil, high wind or that sunny dry spot. These will survive without additional water but with occasional deep watering they will thrive.
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New! Mongolian BellsTM (Clematis integrifolia ‘Mongolian Bells’ (‘psharlan’))
Plant Select® 2008 This very compact bush clematis hails from inner Mongolia. Blossom color is wide-ranging from white, pink, and lavender through blue with a May through September bloom season. Best uses are as a mounding clump in a xeriscape or border or as an edging in those settings. Fluffy seed heads add interest in late summer and fall. Size: 10-14” Tall by 12-15” Wide.
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Zone 3 |
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Full sun to part sun |
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Size: 3.5” pot |
CIMB-P |
Cost: $9.75 |
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Kannah Creek Buckwheat (Eriogonum umbellatum var. aurem ‘Psdowns’)
Plant Select® 2007 and a true Wyoming native! This mid-sized perennial puts on a glowing yellow show that turns orange as the flowers age, with a May to July bloom season. These vigorous 12-15 inches tall by 12-24 inches wide plants adapt from xeric to moderately moist settings and tolerate conditions up to 10,000 ft!
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Zone 3 |
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Full sun to partial shade |
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Size: 4" pot |
EUKC-P |
Cost: $4.85 |
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New! Little Trudy Catmint (Nepeta x Little Trudy)
Plant Select® 2008 This selection was made from one of our growers for its low spreading and long blooming habit. Well branched stems of rippled, soft gray foliage hug the ground for an 18” to 24” wide mound when this plant matures. Profuse lavender flower stalks 8” to 12” tall cover the plant from early to late summer. Deer resistant.
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Zone 4 |
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Full sun |
SOLD OUT! |
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Size: 4" pot |
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NLTC |
Cost: $4.95 |
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Coronation Gold Yarrow (Achillea ageratifolia)
At 36-42” tall with 3-4’ wide golden-yellow flower heads from later June through autumn above silvered green fern-like foliage this reliable old standard fills a great place at the back of the border or as an accent near caryopteris or Russian Sage. This one does not run about through the flower bed and will stay around for years. Enjoy it as a cut or dried flower, too!
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Zone 3 |
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Full sun |
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Size: 2.5" pot |
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ACGY-P |
Cost: $2.65 |
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Size: 1 gallon |
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Cost: $9.25 |
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New! Paprika Yarrow (Achillea millefolium 'Paprika')
Fully color saturated brick red flowers with golden centers in flat clusters top 24” tall stems. Very feathery foliage in medium green forms basal clumps 18” to 24” wide. This millefolium is a well-behaved clump former and does not run across the garden. You can trust us on this, we have years of experience with this one
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Zone 3 |
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Full sun to partial sun |
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Size: 2.5" pot |
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AMPY-P |
Cost: $2.65 |
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Seafoam Artemisia (Artemisia versicolor)
Plant Select® 2004 Finely filigreed silver-gray foliage gives a frothy appearance on a mound that will spread to nearly 3 feet wide and up to 18 inches tall. Never floppy due to the plants’ woody underpinnings. Wonderful year-round textural accent plant for xeric gardens. Rabbit and Deer resistant.
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Zone 4 |
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Full sun |
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Size: 1 quart |
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SABB-P |
Cost: $6.25 |
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Powis Castle Artemisia (A. arborescenns 'Powis Castle')
Another great deer deterrent accent in the garden and at 24 inches tall it works as a windbreak within a planting area as well! This silvery foliaged sterile hybrid (can’t seed) looks delicate, seldom blooms, hales from a limestone-based area of England and is perfectly at home here! Rabbit and deer resistant.
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Zone 4 |
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Full sun |
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Size: 4" pot |
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PCBB-P |
Cost: $4.95 |
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Gaillardia
Two diminutive treats—both bloom abundantly from late spring through fall.
'Fanfare' (G. 'Fanfare') 12” to15” tall by 12” wide at maturity . There’s plenty of WOW power here: Showy 3” to 4” wide flowers are really a ring of deep yellow-tipped desert red trumpets! (Hence the varietal name)
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Zone 3 |
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Full sun |
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Size: 1 quart |
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GFFG-P |
Cost: $6.85 |
A spectacular performer in All American Selection test trials, Arizona Sun (G. aristata 'Arizona Sun') is a real shorty; at only 8” to 10” tall and 10” to 12” across it even fits in pots and planters! Flower style is traditional with mahogany red petals edged in bright yellow.
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Zone 3 |
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Full sun |
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Size: 2.5" pot |
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GAAS-P |
Cost: $2.75 |
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New! Prairie Sunshine Hymenoxys (Hymenoxys scaposa 'Prairie Sunshine')
A very valuable Great Plains native xeric plant for garden and rock garden use. The crown, maturing to 12” diameter, is very hardy and even evergreen in mild winters. But who plants for a nice little tuffet in winter! Bright yellow 3/4” to 1” daisy-like flowers with golden centers top 8” leafless scapes (scaposa). For a long lived native plant, the bloom season is quite long, too! We have loved seeing hymenoxys in bloom on walks over local gravel terraces and are pleased to be able to offer this relative of “Perky Sue” to you! (Don't drown on tight clay).
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Zone 4 |
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Full sun |
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Size: 2.5" pot |
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HSPS-P |
Cost: $2.85 |
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New! White Evening Primrose (Oenothera caespitosa marginata)
Four big white petals open into 2.5” flowers in the afternoon from early to late summer and close the following morning on this local native. Foliage is a dense basal rosette of long, thick grayish, dark green leaves. Growing close to the ground usually nearer to 6” than the possible 12” tall and only 12-18” across on the largest specimens, these are great for the very dry rock garden or an open exposed site.
For those gardeners “blessed” with clay take heart as another name for this plant is “Gumbo Lily.” Companion plants include penstemons, nepetas, groundcover sedum, Cowboy’s Deilght (Sphaeralcea) and prairie grasses like Blue Grama and Little Bluestem.
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Zone 3/4 |
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Full sun |
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Size: 4" pot |
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OCWE-P |
Cost: $4.95 |
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Missouri Evening Primrose (Oenothera macrocarpa)
Slender, dark green leaves on sprawling stems create a pleasing form for this, the classic species of Evening Primrose. What you will really notice are the many large lemon-yellow flowers with a good midsummer bloom season on these 12-18” tall mounds that are 18-24” in diameter. These are striking enough to use as island bed anchors and tough enough to handle settings such as under streetside mailboxes and reflected heat plantings such as beside driveways. Nepatas, Penstemons, Yarrows, Sedums, decorative grasses and other xeric or even average garden plants make good companions.
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Zone 4 |
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Full sun |
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Size: 1 Gallon |
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OMME-P |
Cost: $10.25 |
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New! Fremont’s Evening Primrose (Oenothera macrocarpa subsp. ‘fremontii)
Large light yellow flowers from May on cover this very narrow leaved Nebraska and Kansas native. These drought tolerant plants mature into 10” tall by 18” wide mounds requiring little water.
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Zone 4 |
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Full sun to part sun |
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Size: 2.5" |
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OMFE-P |
Cost: $2.75 |
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New! Ball Cactus (Coryphanta vivipara AKA Escobaria vivipara)
Just what the western rock garden or trough needs! Nestling into a gravel mulched ground at 1-3” tall and becoming 1-3”in diameter by the addition of baby plants from basal mammillae these silvery green hardy cacti add bright carmine pink to magenta 2” flowers with clustered yellow anthers forming an eyed effect to the late May-June blooms. Full sun, low water on clay or a more draining soil are needed to keep this little beauty happy. Casper tested for over 5 years.
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Zone 4 |
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Full sun |
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Size: 2.5" pot |
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CVBC-P |
Cost: $3.50 |
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Weed control is the gardeners bane in a new garden or one gifted with a yearly supply of windblown seeds! Hand digging does not need to be your only strategy. Glyphosate herbicide, at label dilution, spot applied to weeds with a small sponge paintbrush is effective on most young weeds. Attached the paintbrush handle to a dowel and you’ve eliminated bending over! This direct application means no possibility of herbicide drift to garden plants via our Wyoming breezes.
Applying pre-emergent herbicides is a choice for many people to prevent germination of those weed seeds. Apply in early spring before germination begins and repeated per label directions throughout the season to be most effective.
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Jupiter’s Beard (Centranthus ruber)
This durable plant stands up to wind and handles dry clay but will also thrive in more moisture as long as the soil drains well. The rose-red blooms last from late spring through summer. Give it room as it will grow to 24” tall and 30” wide and will reseed a bit for a natural look. Also this charmer can go around the corner from heat into partial shade successfully to help tie different parts of the landscape together! Butterflies love it but rabbits don't.
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Zone 4 |
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Full sun to part sun |
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Size: QT |
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CRJB-P |
Cost: $4.95 |
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Jupiter’s Beard ‘Alba’ (Centranthus ruber alba)
Same great plant as the red variety, not a weak albino, only it blooms in white!
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Zone 4 |
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Full sun to part sun |
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Size: QT |
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CRJA-P |
Cost: $4.95 |
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Walker’s Low Catmint (Nepeta faassinii x ‘Walker’s Low’)
Perennial Plant Association Plant of the Year for 2007 and is no stranger to Wyoming conditions! Compact mounding gray green leaves topped by lavender blue flowers recurring from late spring through autumn. This 10-14 inch tall sterile hybrid won’t reseed around the garden. Full sun to part sun and like it’s bigger brother, deer resistant!
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Zone 3 |
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Full sun to part sun |
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Size: 2.5" pot |
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NFWL-P2.5 |
Cost: $2.75 |
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Size: 1 quart |
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NFWL-Pq |
Cost: $4.95 |
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Six Hills Giant Catmint (Nepeta faassenii x ‘Six Hills Giant’)
Light purple flowering mounds up to 36” tall by 36” wide make a handy deer deterring statement in the xeric garden during summer. Use these as flowerbed windbreaks—even one plant can create a protective spot for a less wind or heat tolerant plant and massed thickly around “deer delight” plants these are quite a protection! Control seeding into beds by deadheading spent flowers and/or mulching.
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Zone 4/5 |
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Full sun |
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Size: 4" pot |
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NFSH-P |
Cost: $4.95 |
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Poppy Mallow 'Prairie Wine Cups' (Callirhoe involucrata)
Plant Select® 1999 This low growing native prairie plant blooms repeatedly during summer in bright burgundy cup-shaped flowers with white eyes on low arching stems with dark green deeply cut leaves. Flowers and foliage are reminiscent of Cranesbill Geraniums on this Poppy Mallow but at less than 1’ tall and up to 3’ in diameter, the form is not. The only drawback to keeping this darling besides drowning in wet clay is that rabbits munch too much during those years of cottontail population explosions. Plant in soil that drains or in clay kept on the dry side taking care to seat the plant at grade and not in a low spot.
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Zone 4 |
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Full sun to part sun |
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Size: 1 quart |
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CIPW-P |
Cost: $5.25 |
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Yellow and Red Mexican Hat Coneflowers (Ratibida columnifera and R. c. pulcherrima)
These western prairie coneflowers with tall seed cones are favorites of children and almost everyone else. At 18-24” tall and 18-24”wide with a highly floriferous habit and a long bloom season you can’t miss these clear yellow or mahogany red “sombreros” atop light, airy foliage in a prairie recreation or wildflower garden. The downside is that they bloom so much that the plants are short lived. You will be happiest planting them where they can naturally seed down into a gravel mulched garden to keep you supplied with these for years. Plant in sun, very low water requirement once established.
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Zone 4 |
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Full sun |
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Size: 4" pot |
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RCYel-P
RCRed-P |
Cost: $4.95 |
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Prairie Zinnia (Zinnia grandiflora)
Paper flower is another name for this easy to grow little perennial zinnia. From midsummer to fall 6-8” tall by 8-12” wide dense mounds of slender stems with narrow leaves are covered in papery golden yellow single flowers with red-brown centers. This highly xeric plant makes a great companion for hardy cacti and other very drought tolerant sun-lovers in a range of soil types. This species stays dormant until the weather is warm and settled. Do not clip them out of existence in an early spring clean-up. Also it is important to plant these in the first half of the growing season because the roots only grow in warm soil to get successful establishment -- don’t wait until Farmer’s Market to ask for these.
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Zone 4 |
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Full sun |
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Size: 4" pot |
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ZGPZ-P |
Cost: $4.95 |
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New! Prairie Red Globe Mallow (Sphaeralcea coccinea) This native low growing ground hugging plant naturalizes in short grass or gravel mulched gardens. Blooms in coral-red in early summer on 6-12” tall by 15-18” wide plants with almost olive green rounded dentate leaves. Full to part sun, very low water when established, Zone 5 by list, hardier by experience.
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Zone 5 |
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Full sun |
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Size: 2.5" pot |
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SCRF-P |
Cost: $2.65 |
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Russian Sage (Perovskia atriplicifolia)
This vase shaped 3 to 4 foot accent plant makes a vivid statement behind xeric perennials or in the middle of a stand of plants! Blue-violet flower spikes top silvery gray foliage in late summer through hard freeze. This high desert native of Afghanistan thrives in lean soil on hot windy sites and has proven itself reliable on Wyoming’s high plains as well. Deer don’t touch it!
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Zone 4 |
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Full sun |
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Size: 2.5" pot |
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PARS-P |
Cost: $2.75 |
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Size: Quart
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PARS-P |
Cost: $4.50
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Gallon |
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PARS-P |
Cost: $12.00 |
Cheyenne Russian Sage (Perovskia atriplicifolia 'Cheyenne')
This selection from the Cheyenne Experiment Station is bigger (5’ tall), bolder and bluer (longer flower spikes have bigger blooms) then the species. Spring supply is limited but more will be available at The Farmer’s Market.
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Zone 4 |
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Full sun |
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Size: 1 Gallon |
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PACR-P |
Cost: $12.50 |
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Butterfly Milkweed (Asclepia tuberosa)
A 2000 Great Plants® selection
Showy orange flower heads in midsummer on prairie native plants that mature to 2-3’ tall by 15” wide create the “gotta have it” allure to this nonspreading beauty (it is not like the big pink noxious weed milkweed). Enjoy this great butterfly and hummingbird magnet and dry garden accent in sun. Be careful to grow on the dry side, especially during the dormant season and when the plant is young before the root system has become established. Establishment technique is to plant at grade or on a slight mound (never in a water collecting hole) and to water lightly often for the first season. The extra attention early on will pay great dividends in subsequent years. Listed as Zone 5 but tested in all but the most exposed sites in the Casper area.
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Zone 5 (4?) |
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Full sun |
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Size: 2.5" pot |
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ATBM-P |
Cost: $2.85 |
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Sundrops ‘Prairie Lode’ (Calylophus serrulatus ‘Prairie Lode’)
Great Plants® 2007 is the little native charmer of a butter yellow blooming sub-shrub 6” tall by 12” wide at maturity that we love. It is picky about soil moisture—don’t keep it too wet in clay soil but give it the conditions it needs and reap the reward of a long bloom season! CSPL-P
New! Lavender Leafed Sun Drops (Calylophus lavandulifolia) Very large yellow flowers mature to apricot for most of summer on this Gt. Plains native sub-shrub. 15”-18” tall narrow gray-green foliage gives it the species name and the 18” width gives it a very noticeable presence in the landscape. Keep this one dry on clay soil and lightly watered in sands—it is not as picky as its little cousin. CLLS-P
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Zone 4 |
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Full sun |
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Size: 2.5" pot |
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CSPL-P or
CLLS-P |
Cost: $3.15 |
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New! Anatolian Tanacetum (Tanacetum albipannosum)
A mat of feathery silver-toned foliage 18” wide is topped at 18” tall by big white daisies with yellow centers suitable for cutting and attractive to butterflies. Tolerant of wide ranging conditions including different soils, Panayoti Kelaidis of the Denver Botanic Garden recommends it as a great plant from Anatolia (Asia Minor, on the Turkish part of the Asian Steppe).
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Zone 4 |
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Full sun to part sun |
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Size: 1 quart |
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TAAT-P |
Cost: $6.00 |
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Penstemons are wonderful natives and hybrids of all sizes with a wide range of bloom times for the water-wise garden or your patch of prairie! From white thru purple and from pale pastel to fully saturated hues, flowers are usually borne along stalks above basal foliage. Size ranges from tiny rock garden gems with grass-like foliage thru wild snapdragons with pink blooms on the top 3 feet of 5 foot tall stems! Keep yourself and hummingbirds happy and plant many species of penstemon!
The key to Penstemon success is two-fold, do not over water or they will grow floppy or die and second do not over fertilize. Most will live more years in our mineral soils than in a tended garden bed! You will be rewarded for your restraint. The hands on gardener can dead-head to prolong some species blossoming and add years to the plant’s life.
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Pineneedle Penstemon (Penstemon pinifolius)
These Casper tested long-lived perennials covered in scarlet tubular flowers for nearly two months in the summer will be a hit with you and the hummingbirds! Later in the season this somewhat xeric plant will be a dark green mound looking a lot like a miniature evergreen, 8 inches tall. PPPP-P
Pineneedle Penstemon ‘Mersea’s Yellow’ Like the scarlet form only 6-8 inches tall and semi-evergreen needle like foliage.
PPMY-P
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Zone 4 |
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Full sun |
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Size: 2.5" pot
4" |
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PPPP-P or PPMY-P |
Cost: $2.75
Cost: $4.95 |
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Jingle Bells Penstemon (P. barbatus ‘Coccineus’)
From the Four Corners area of the southwest, this 3 footer in both height and width offers large bright scarlet flowers in late summer. Well drained soil or grow on the dry side in clay. No babying allowed.
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Zone 4 |
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Full sun |
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Size: 1 quart |
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PBJB-P |
Cost: $4.75 |
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Bridges Penstemon (P. rostriflorus)
Plant Select® 2006 During later summer a continuous succession of small scarlet red tubular flowers in elongate panicles top slender stems with dark green narrow leaved foliage that forms a basal rosette and climb upward. Long lived if not pampered. Height: 1’-2’ and width: 1’ at maturity
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Zone 4 |
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Full sun |
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Size: 4" pot |
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PRBP-P |
Cost: $4.95 |
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Silverton Bluemat Penstemon (P. linaroides var. colordoensis ‘Silverton’)
Plant Select® 2005 Spikes of lavender blue flowers top a 12-15 inch mound of silvery green foliage in early summer. The evergreen foliage of this plant gives it a year round presence in the garden! Removal of spent blooms help prolong the plant’s lifespan. Plant in well drained loam or sandy soil.
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Zone 4 |
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Full sun to part sun |
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Size: 2.5" pot |
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PLCS-P |
Cost: $2.85 |
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Prairie Splendor Penstemon (P. x 'Prairie Splendor')
Great Plants® 2005 This introduction from Dale Lindgren at the University of Nebraska North Platte Station breeding program is a 26” tall upright plant maturing to 18” wide. Large white, lavender, rose and pink shaded flowers last for about a month!
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Zone 4 |
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Full sun to part sun |
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Size: 1 quart |
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PXPS-P |
Cost: $5.25 |
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© Keith A. Williamson |
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New! Palmer Penstemon (Penstemon palmeri)
This looks like a big bold pink snapdragon but it is really a xeric perennial that only thrives where grown as if only 15” or less of precipitation provide its moisture. Do not place where moisture will gather by pooling or from runoff. It may be a central accent to a xeric island planting, in the back row of a sunny xeric border, or as a foundation plant beside the south side of a house (reflected heat is tolerated).
Oblong leaves form basal rosettes giving rise to 2-4’ tall bloom stocks that form clumps 18-24” wide at maturity. Bloom season is late spring through summer. This one is big enough to be a companion to xeric shrubs like Western or Pawnee Buttes Sand Cherry, Fernbush, or Curl Leaf Mountain Mahogany, but is equally at home with Russian Sage or other xeric perennials.
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Zone 4/5 |
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Full sun |
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Size: 4" |
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PPPa-P |
Cost: $4.95 |
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Sunny Garden Perennials
The following perennials are suited to Casper conditions but need regular watering so use them in traditionally tended gardens.
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La Veta Lace Geranium (Geranium magniflorum ‘La Veta Lace’)
Plant Select® 2003 Low mounds of lacy foliage are topped by rosy-purple blooms in summer. The overall appearance of this charmer is much more delicate than the usual cranesbill geranium but it really is quite durable—Casper Mountain winter tested! Average flower garden watering.
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Zone 4 |
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Full sun to part sun |
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Size: 4" |
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GMLV-P |
Cost: $4.95 |
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SOLD OUT! |
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Hopflower Oregano (Origanum libanoticum)
Plant Select® 2004 Lovely trailing herb 18-24 inches wide by 10-15 inches tall. Lavender and chartreuse bi-color lantern-shaped bracts form throughout the summer months drying to brown in fall. Best suited to raised beds, rock gardens or containers. Plant in well-drained garden loam, clay or sandy soil. We tried this 2 years ago and it even over-wintered in bigger pots, an eye catcher for all who saw it! Oh and the smell of oregano! Attracts bees to help pollinate your garden. Full sun to part shade. Avoid too much reflected heat.
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Zone 4b |
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Full sun to part shade |
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Size: 2.5" pot |
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OLHO-P |
Cost: $3.00 |
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Size: 4" pot |
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Cost: $4.95 |
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New! Husker Red Penstemon (Penstemon digitalis ‘Husker Red)
1996 Perennial Plant Association Plant of the Year, this University of Nebraska introduction carries white flowers blushed ever so slightly pink on stalks above striking, deep red foliage. Up to 3’ tall by 2’ wide. If you place this in a windier garden keep it in the lee of bigger plants to prevent leaf tatter and scorched leaf edges.
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Zone 4 |
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Full sun to part sun |
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Size: 1 quart |
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PDHR-P |
Cost: $4.75 |
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Firewitch Dianthus (Dianthus gratianopolitanus ‘Firewitch’)
2006 Perennial Plant Association of the Year This up to 12” wide mat of silvery-blue evergreen foliage looks great all year. Masses of brilliant raspberry red, 1” wide, upward facing spicy clove-scented flowers are the reason to grow this one for your, hummingbirds’ and butterflies’ enjoyment in borders and watered rock gardens. After the heavy late spring bloom shear the plant to encourage an early fall repeat bloom. Height 6”, Width 12”.
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Zone 4 |
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Full sun |
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Size: 1 quart |
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DGFW-P |
Cost: $5.25 |
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First Love Dianthus (Dianthus ‘First Love’)
Plant Select® 2001 Intensely fragrant rounded cluster flowers change from white to deep rose rather than starting dark and fading and attract butterflies, hummingbirds and gardeners with floral shears (great cut flower!). Flower stalks are 15-18” tall above 12” diameter clumps of moderately fine foliage. The overall effect is akin to Sweet Williams but perennial and much more graceful even maintaining a nice mounded foliar presence in winter. Full sun. Average flower garden watering.
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Zone 3 |
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Full sun |
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Size: 2.5" pot |
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DFLD-P |
Cost: $2.75 |
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New! ‘Wink’ Dianthus (Dianthus 'Wink')
Great Plants® 2008 Introduction Neat mounds of tiny blue foliage literally covered with delicate soft pink flowers characterize this selection made years ago by Dr. Roger Uhlinger of the University of Nebraska Lincoln Horticulture Department and named for his wife’s nickname. Plant in sunny borders and rock gardens receiving moderate garden watering and let yourself, butterflies and hummingbirds enjoy.
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Zone 3 |
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Full sun |
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Size: 2.5" pot |
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DWWD-p |
Cost: $2.75 |
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Cassis’ Yarrow (Achillea millefolium ‘Cassis’)
Intensely deeper than burgundy flower heads on strong 24” tall stems (shorter when grown drier) bloom for a long season above green ferny foliage that matures from18-24” wide. No wonder it won a Fleuroselect Quality Mark Award. This one doesn’t run all over if grown on the dry side and makes a great contrast for gaillardia, evening primroses, agastaches and nepetas. Also looks great with Powis Castle and Seafoam Artemisias and the upright sedums. Plant in sun and don’t over-water.
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Zone 4 |
to |
Full sun |
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Size: 2.5" pot |
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AMCa-P |
Cost: $2.65 |
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Size: 1 quart |
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Cost: $4.50 |
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New! Golden Jubilee Hyssop (Agastache foeniculum 'Golden Jubilee')
This All American Selection of Anise Hyssop is bi-continental in that it has a history of use in English gardens and this variety was originally named to commemorate the then 50 year reign of Queen Elizabeth II. Anise Hyssops are bigger leaved than the Agastaches of the desert west but are clay tolerant, have nice mint fragrance, keep the butterflies and hummingbirds happy, bloom in dense spikes of lavender-blue florets in the midst of late summer and this one has golden foliage on 20” tall plants that grow 18”-24” wide. It is a striking accent in or out of bloom!
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Zone 4 |
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Sun to part sun |
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Size: 2.5" pot |
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AFGJ-P2.5 |
Cost: $2.75 |
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1 quart |
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AFGJ-Pq |
Cost: $4.75 |
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Orange Carpet Hummingbird Trumpet (Zauschneria garretti ‘Orange Carpet’)
Plant Select® 2001 This plant is a real eye catcher; it’s vivid green foliage is topped with glowing orange-scarlet flowers from July to frost! Hummingbirds will be drawn to tubular flowers. With a cascading growth habit the mature height is 4 inches so place it to the front of the garden bed and watch the show. A bit of afternoon shade makes this plant thrive and bloom the most.
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Zone 4 |
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Full sun to part sun |
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Size: 2.5" pot |
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ZGOC-P |
Cost: $3.00 |
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1 quart |
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Cost: $5.25 |
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New! ‘Caradonna’ Salvia (Salvia nemorosa ‘Caradonna’)
This recently introduced strong growing cultivar with purple-black flower stems covered with blue-purple ‘East-Friesland’ type blooms is superior to previous garden sages. If kept deadheaded, it will stay in bloom from May through July. At 18” tall and 18” wide it makes a striking vertical accent in the full sun perennial bed. Moderate flower garden watering will keep this beauty in good form.
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Zone 4 |
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Full sun to part sun |
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Size: 2.5" pot |
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SNCS-P |
Cost: $2.75 |
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1 quart |
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SNCS-P |
Cost: $5.25 |
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Happy Returns Daylily (Hemerocalis ‘Happy Returns’)
This is the most continuously blooming variety that we have seen. Its season starts early and the 18” tall dwarf just keeps going with 3” fragrant light yellow (NO gold) flowers. Maturity will widen one plant to an 18-24” cluster. While daylilies are drought tolerant and survive lower watering, they will not bloom well without supplemental watering from blossom set through blooming. For most blooms plant in full sun but partial sun is also tolerated.
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Zone 3 |
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Full sun to part sun |
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1 quart |
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HHRD-P |
Cost: $6.00 |
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Daylily Suggestions:
Plant daffodils and other spring bulbs inside daylily clusters allowing the bulb foliage to mature unobtrusively while developing spring flowers for next year. This combination gives two bloom seasons in one space and also adds a pleasing fall display when the strap-like leaves of the become a sea of golden yellow.
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‘Ruby Bells’ Coral Bells (Heuchera ‘Ruby Bells’)
Brilliant dark red blooms on densely packed flower spikes stand above compact mounds of evergreen foliage. With 16” tall flower spikes this one is excellent for cutting as well as attractive to butterflies and hummingbirds. One plant will mature into a 15-18” wide clump. Consider planting with Snow Angel as an accent plant in a cluster of coral bells. Plant in full or partial sun and provide with moderate garden watering.
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Zone 4 |
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Full sun to part sun |
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Size: 2.5" pot |
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HSRB-P |
Cost: $2.65 |
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Size: 4" pot |
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HSRB-P |
Cost: $4.95 |
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Siberian Yarrow ‘Love Parade’ (Achillea sibirica ‘Love Parade’)
Large umbels of soft pink flowers rise above waxy, ferny foliage from June to September. This 2’ tall selection is great for cutting as well as a butterfly lure. One clump will mature to 2’ in diameter but will not run rampant through a garden. Consider Agastaches, Dianthus, Echinaceas, Gauras and Hop Flower oregano as companions. Full hot sun is tolerated but this is not a highly xeric yarrow so provide a bit of supplemental watering even after establishment to insure best bloom.
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Zone 4 |
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Full sun to part sun |
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Size: 2.5" pot |
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Cost: $2.65 |
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Hibiscus ‘Disco Belle Rosy Red’ (Hibiscus moscheutos ‘Disco Belle Rosy Red’)
Through the years we have seen a few hardy pink hibiscus planted in Wyoming. But the new brighter colored ones were planted amongst ornamental grasses in the ground and in big planters around Ft. Collins and the late summer effect was wonderful! Now we have a supply to offer for your garden. These look like the florists’ pot plants with big vibrant blooms but they can survive a Zone 4 winter. Provide regular garden watering (also winter water to prevent root desiccation) and plant in sun. They look great with Purple Fountain Grass! Hummingbirds will thank you and you will have a bit of tropical looking WOW power. At 20-30” tall and 24” wide these will stay more out of the wind both summer and winter than the original cultivar thus performing acceptably in our conditions. These break dormancy late, thus avoiding spring frost damage and you may plant 3” deeper to provide more winter protection to new buds that will become branches.
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Zone 4 |
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Full sun to part sun |
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Size: 1 quart |
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HMDB-S |
Cost: $7.25 |
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Geranium ‘Rozanne’
Perennial Plant Association Plant of 2008! Very large violet blue, white centered flowers from e. summer to frost top mounds of slightly marbled deep green foliage. This Blooms of Bressingham selection is special because the flowers are larger, the blue deeper and the plant more heat tolerant than similar varieties. More added perks: reddish-brown fall foliage color, rejuvenation by shearing to 3” and butterfly attraction. Add compost to the soil for best performance. Height 20” by 24” Width.
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Zone 5 |
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Sun to part shade |
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Size: 1 quart |
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GRRG-P |
Cost: $10.00 |
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The best gardens seem to have an element of serendipity and the happiest Wyoming gardeners allow themselves to be pleasantly surprised by chance pairings: a fuchsia blossom beside a plant with chartreuse foliage, volunteer groundcover helping a new bed to get established.
Given our intense sun, wind, and alkaline soil it is easier to be successful at English Cottage, Mediterranean, and Western Prairie Styles than it is with more formal French or Italianate Gardens. Gravel mulched rock gardens are also a good choice.
Create garden windbreaks with shrubs, fences, durable perennials, and grasses so that your "Sunny Garden" perennials can thrive through the intensity of summer. Many are tall grass prairie derived and are accustomed to natural shelter from the brunt of wind and continual beating of summer sun. Just match plants by water need and sun level. That is the way to long life and vigor in the garden. Plan the basics now and if need be tweak it next year. Perennials are forgiving!
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Rain Gauge
Throughout this site, the following are used as guidelines for watering established plants:
These plants need regular watering somewhat like a bluegrass lawn so that they never dry to depth in the root system during the active growing season and need occasional winter watering to prevent root dessication and resultant plant death.
These plants are adapted to intermittent deep watering with soil drying to a depth of a few inches between waterings. Watering frequency may be every couple of weeks during the active growing season and maybe only one winter watering for optimal care.
These truly xeric plants can live with our 12 inches of natural precipitation and only need a winter watering during a multi-year drought but they will thrive with a monthly watering. Overwatering will kill some of these.
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