Let’s say you’ve decided to reduce your water needs around the house by redoing your yard with lower-water use plants. You hire a landscape designer, decide on a design and plant palette, clear the space of unwanted flora, and plant your new landscape. Done, right?
Not exactly. Gardens and landscapes are not static; they are always in a state of change. Trees and shrubs grow taller and wider. Perennials bulk up. Or they falter, communicating they are not happy in their location. Annuals spring up and then die when frost arrives in the fall. Perhaps the wind or wildlife scatters seeds — both weed and ornamental seeds — around the garden. These changes are just as true for the Broomfield Xeriscape Demonstration Garden as they are for a home landscape.
After Broomfield became a county and set up the master gardener program, the first class of Broomfield master gardeners worked with Broomfield staff to design and install a garden east of the parking lot for the George Di Ciero City and County Building, 1 DesCombes Drive. The first trees were planted in fall 2003. Shrubs, ornamental grasses and perennials soon filled the garden.
Over the years the plantings have matured. As in home gardens, the Xeriscape Demonstration Garden has had its challenges — vole damage, weeds and plants that were a bit too vigorous, irrigation issues and the challenge that is universal to all gardeners, limited time for maintenance. All of these factors have shaped the garden.
This a year is one of renewal for the garden. Overgrown and damaged shrubs and trees have been removed. Weedy ornamentals have been dug out or confined. Faltering perennials are being moved and replaced with more appropriate plants. New plants are being introduced. And this year, master gardeners and Broomfield staff have additional resources to help with garden upkeep; volunteers and staff from Denver Botanic Gardens are assisting with a biweekly maintenance program.
In the ongoing effort to help homeowners save water in their landscapes, the Xeriscape Demonstration Garden will continue to offer ideas for lower-water-use landscapes. In the coming months watch for new water-smart plant ideas. Look for modifications in the turf areas and the rock garden. Plant and landscape information also will be updated.
If you haven’t visited in a while, we invite you to stop by. The trees have grown large enough to provide a bit of shade over the benches, and the hummingbirds have discovered the tubular flowers of the salvia and the hyssop.
Colorado State University Extension in the City and County of Broomfield provides unbiased, research-based information about 4-H youth development, family and consumer issues, gardening, horticulture and natural resources. As part of a nationwide system, Extension brings the research and resources of the university to the community. The Broomfield County Extension office is at 1 DesCombes Drive, Broomfield, 80020. For information, call 720-887-2286.
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