The Gardens on Spring Creek

What’s Blooming:  Theme Gardens by Andrew Scott, Seasonal Gardener, Gardens on Spring Creek We are well into summer now, and our gardens have been using their flowers to advertise to pollinators: “Nectar here, inquire within! Reproduction, whoooo!!”   In spite of the recent onslaught of sweltering temperatures, all of our gardens are doing well – constantly changing as different plants cycle through vegetative growth, blooming, fruiting and going to seed. While all our gardens are based around specific themes, our Theme Gardens are a more specific collection of native and cultivated plants.   Composed of five gardens, the Theme Gardens are each small enough to be cohesive on its own, but effortlessly blend together to form a collage of colors, heights, textures, scents and pollinators. Plant Select is the first garden one encounters after crossing over the bridge, flanking visitors on both sides of the walkway with displays of Plant Select® plantings.   Spec...

  Rocky Mountain Junipers in Colorado Springs A Second Look at Rocky Mountain Junipers by Bryan Fischer, Horticulturist, Gardens on Spring Creek Easily overlooked, the Rocky Mountain juniper ( Juniperus scopulorum ) has almost become what vanilla is to ice cream – classic and effective, yet so widely used few of us ever take note of its presence. The compelling, enhanced natural juniper trees in the “ Mountain Wildwoods” exhibit give us pause to reconsider this notion. What if, just because we can grow a species of plant almost anywhere doesn’t mean that we should?  Would that help us better appreciate the juniper for its natural merits, rather than the disheveled, over-sheared green blob we see in parking lots everywhere? Often, the more unusual a plant is in our landscapes, the more noteworthy it becomes. This is especially true if we do the Rocky Mountain juniper the service of picturing where one might naturally find it in the wild – on lean, gritty soils, with limited ...

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 (Spor...