Newly transplanted from England to Colorado in 1987, I desperately needed help in making sense of this dramatically different gardening climate. When I searched libraries and bookstores for local garden advice, I came up mostly empty-handed. Back then, Judith Phillips’ “Southwest Landscaping with Native Plants” was one of the few books to address the peculiarities of this region.
Even though her home is in central New Mexico, there are more similarities than differences between our two localities. Some of the plants on her lists won’t survive our much colder winters. Even so, Phillips’ philosophy and insights significantly influenced my gardening decisions.
A few years ago, when I learned she was working on a second, more comprehensive guide to Southwest gardening, I began watching for its release. The instant popularity of the two-volume set of “Gardening by Design” and “Plants for Natural Gardens” underscores the great need for information specific to our region’s unique set of circumstances. Anyone who is serious about gardening in this region will want all three of Phillips’ excellent books.
Another essential book came out in 1991. Boulder landscape architect Jim Knopf’s “The Xeri-
scape Flower Gardener” is, hands down, the best garden guide for the beginner flower gardener who also is concerned with water conservation. All these years later, it’s not uncommon to see a shopper with a well-worn copy, bristling with sticky notes, at plant sales and garden centers. Just as indispensable to shrub and tree selection (plus groundcovers, vines and lawn grass) is Knopf’s companion volume “Waterwise Landscaping with Trees, Shrubs and Vines.”
Also a big help, not only to the gardener new to this region but to the gardener who picks up a shovel for the first time ever, are Barbara Hyde’s “Gardening in the Mountain West” and “The Progress of a Gardener.” Hyde, a native Coloradan and retired Colorado State University Cooperative Extension horticulturist, knows her stuff and simplifies even the most complex topics.
Once you’ve got the basics down and are looking to expand your horizons, it’s time to pick up Lauren Springer Ogden’s “Undaunted Garden,” which relates one gardener’s experience as she turns a featureless urban plot into a world-class garden. The sequel, “Passionate Gardening,” adds well- known author and artist Rob Proctor’s voice to Springer’s personal account of gardening in the Front Range of Colorado.
“Xeriscape Colorado,” by Connie Ellefson and David Winger is a good, basic how-to guide for building a Xeriscape.
Rob Proctor’s new book “How to Get Started in Rocky Mountain Gardening” is a good region-specific overview, packed full of sound advice.
If you can find it, I also highly recommend Proctor and David Macke’s “Herbs in the Garden: The Art of Intermingling,” a book that is less about herbs than a celebration of gardening in the Rocky Mountain West. The best aid for vegetable gardening is David Wann’s “The Zen of Gardening in the High and Arid West.”
There is no question that our garden literature has a long way to go to catch up with gardening cultures in other parts of the United States.
But compared with what we had two decades ago, a wealth of sources are available to newcomers to help make the transition to the sometimes frustrating but incomparable gardening experience our region offers.
Marcia Tatroe is a garden writer and lecturer. E-mail her at rltaurora@aol.com.
