Crevice Garden Building Workshop by Nancy Shepard

 

Crevice garden at the Denver Botanic Gardens Photo: Denver Botanic Gardens

I recently attended a crevice garden building workshop put on by Plant Select® and hosted by CSU. Plant Select is a non-profit collaboration of Colorado State University, Denver Botanic Gardens, and professional horticulturists (https://plantselect.org/.) The workshop was part of a two-day Plant Select conference specifically for landscape professionals. Landscape companies are increasingly using plants from the Plant Select collection because they flourish with less water and are tough and resilient in challenging climates such as our Rocky Mountain region. They told me they also have been getting more requests from their clients to build crevice gardens. CSU supplied the large bare expanse of an ugly eyesore outside the doors of the Colorado State University Horticulture Center.

Building Berms: Lessons Learned by Nancy Shepard

2022 front yard with berm, four years after installation. Photo by Nancy Shepard

When we replaced our front yard landscape in 2018, I wanted to make our yard a little more private. We live on a corner and even though the traffic is minimal, it made sense to not only create a bit of privacy, but also give the yard a bit of visual dynamic. 

Free Garden Planning by Nancy Shepard

Example of Plant Select single design

Looking for garden planning help? You don’t have to spend money hiring a garden designer. In some cases it’s as easy as color-by-number paintings when you take advantage of the many detailed designs that local cities, Plant Select, and water conservation organizations have posted for free. Here are a few that offer pre-designed plans that include sketches and plant lists.