Skip to main content

What's Blooming in July: Greenroof Shelter

Newly replanted Green Roof Shelter in Children's Garden

What's Blooming in July: Greenroof Shelter

by Josh Cornell, Horticulturist, The Gardens on Spring Creek 

During the summer of 2019, the Green Roof Shelter in the Children’s Garden underwent a much-needed renovation. With new waterproof underlayment, as well as a new soil retention system and redesigned irrigation, it was all set for a new plant palate. A garden space mimicking the ecosystem of a shortgrass prairie is replacing the sedums that had taken over from the previous planting. These plants often deal with the some of the same challenges in their natural settings as they will on the green roof – including shallow soil depth and fluctuating seasonal extremes in temperature.

Blue gramma (Bouteloua gracilis)

Based on a shortgrass prairie, one would obviously expect to see...grasses. On our green roof you will find blue gramma (Bouteloua gracilis), sideoats gramma (Bouteloua curtipendula), sand dropseed (Sporobolus cryptandrus), blue fescue (Festuca ‘Boulder Blue’) as well as  some annual rye (Lolium multiflorum) was used to stabilize the media last winter. Most noticeable are the seed heads of the blue gramma, which resemble little “eyebrows” or “eyelashes”.

California poppies (Eschscholzia californica)

Along with the grasses there are also a selection of blooming plants to add splashes of color. A few of the standouts are California poppies (Eschscholzia californica), Western wallflower (Erysimum capitatum), Hartweg evening primrose (Calylophus hartwegii), sacred thornapple (Datura wrightii), along with several varieties of Penstemon, Agastache, Echinacea and Artemisia. The intense scarlet blooms of the Humboldt County fuchsia (Epilobium septentrionale ‘Waynes Silver’) and hummingbird trumpet mint (Monardella macrantha ‘Marian Sampson’) planted around the edges are a favorite of the hummingbirds and will be sure to catch your eye. Some pasque flowers (Pulsatilla vulgaris ‘Rote Glocke’ and ‘Blau Glocke’) are also thrown in to bring some color, and hope, in early spring.

A collection of unique cold hardy cacti have also been added to the green roof. This idea came about after reading an article about sod roof houses in Nebraska, built by the pioneers. The accompanying pictures revealed beavertail cactus (Opuntia sp.) growing on these old rooves. I felt they add a beauty and texture appropriate for our western landscape. Several species of Opuntia with unique bloom colors and winter pad coloring have been added. With blooms varying from white and cream to citrus shades of orange and yellow, they will be a sight not to miss. Also planted is one of my favorites, the claret cup cactus (Echinocereus triglochidiatus). Its large, red blooms draw the attention of pollinators and people alike.

It has been a satisfying endeavor to watch the green roof garden evolve from total rebuild, reseeding and replanting, to its emergence this summer. It changes every week with more blooms and will continue to evolve and mature with the passing years. I look forward to seeing its changes and growth through the years, and I hope you will too!


Labels:

Popular posts from this blog

Hornworms by Brionna McCumber

Gardeners in Colorado may find large green caterpillars with an iconic horn on their plants every summer—these are hornworms! Tobacco hornworms ( Manduca sexta ) feed on common garden crops, often leading to conflict with humans. These very hungry caterpillars are defoliators, damaging plants such as tomatoes, peppers, potatoes, and eggplant. While the caterpillars use crops as a food source, which could be seen as negative, the moths provide a critical step in reproduction for the plants via pollination. Carolina Sphinx Moths ( Manduca sexta ), also called Hummingbird moths, are the adult form of hornworm s. They are known for their unique ability to hover mid-flight. Combined with the use of a special elongated proboscis, these moths are especially important for plant species with long tubular flowers that other pollinators cannot access or pollinate.  The Gardens on Spring Creek Butterfly House wants to highlight the importance of these specialized pollinators in our...
Read more

Winter Watering by Bryan Fischer

O ne of the brightest spots of living on the Front Range of Colorado is its winters. With more than 300 days of sunshine annually, we seldom see extended periods of the grey, chilly, precipitating skies common in so much of the country. It’s not unusual for daily highs to make it above 50 degrees. Much of this we have our elevation and distance from an ocean to thank – our sunlight is more intense than at sea level and our humidity lower, resulting in greater warming during the day compared to regions of similar latitude to our east or near a coastline .    Unfortunately for many landscape plants, however, that same day-night temperature differential spells trouble when paired with our lack of soil-insulating snow cover.  The resulting environment of warm days, frequent wind , and intense sun increases water demand, while low humidity saps the soil moisture reserves that our limited precipitation may provide. As a result, our landscape plants are predisposed to dehydration-indu...
Read more

Conifers: Pining for Something Different by Bryan Fischer

Evolving considerably earlier than flowering plants (angiosperms), conifers represent a long-lived and successful lineage of trees classified as gymnosperms. Gymnosperms were among the first true seed-bearing plants and evolved before specialized pollinators existed, so they are typically wind-pollinated. Seeds on these plants are produced between or on scale-like structures (think pine cone scales), rather than in fully enclosed structures, like tomato fruits. Gymnosperm, in fact, is Greek for “naked seeds,” so just imagine what that might imply for the origin of the word “gymnasium” … Long-lived, adaptable and attractive year-round, conifers represent a silver bullet of sorts for our Colorado gardens. Sadly, the overuse of just a few species and cultivars of these plants has given them a bad name. Don’t be put off – judicious use of conifers makes perennial plantings “pop” and provides structural bones during the fall and winter months.  Below, find a selection of underused, adap...
Read more