Planting a Prairie Garden

Prairie plants are tough. They survive periods of drought and harsh winters...Prairie landscapes are easy to recreate and need little special care...

Silene regia 'Prairie Fire'
Item # 91742 		Silene regia 'Prairie Fire' (P.P.#15692)
Prairie Fire Royal Catch Fly

Each $7.99
3 to 6 $7.79
7 or more $7.59
Oenothera macrocarpa
Item # 72150 		Oenothera macrocarpa
Missouri Evening Primrose

each $7.99
3 to 6 $7.79
7 or more $7.59
Salvia azurea
Item # 84700 		Salvia azurea
Prairie Sage, New Mexico form

each $8.29
3 to 6 plants $7.99
7 or more $7.79
Rhus trilobata
Item # 82560 		Rhus trilobata
Three-Leaf Sumac

each $7.99
3 to 6 $7.79
7 or more $7.59
Panicum virgatum 'Shenandoah'
Item # 74540 		Panicum virgatum 'Shenandoah'
Shenandoah Switch Grass

each $8.79
3 or more $8.59

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Historical writings give glimpses of the kinds of plants in earlier environs. For example, when the Spanish conquistadors crossed the Rio Puerco just west of Albuquerque, they wrote of wading through chest-high water and walking among grass that brushed the bellies of their horses. That same area today is a mere a trickle of water through desert shrubs and short grasses.

New Mexico is typically associated with short grass prairie plants, but history lets us think tall grass prairie plants, more commonly associated with the Midwest, are probably indigenous to the area.

Prairie plants are tough. They survive periods of drought and harsh winters. They also comprise quite a diverse combination of shrubs, grasses and flowering perennials. Prairie landscapes are easy to recreate and need little special care once the plants are established. Following are suggested prairie plants.

Short Prairie Grasses and Perennials

  • Bouteloua gracilis (‘Hachita’ Blue Grama Grass) is the predominant short prairie grass through much of the western United States. The blades remain quite short, but the little seed heads that resemble eyebrows grow from 12 to 18 inches high. Grama grass greens up during warm months and is easy to grow from seed or plugs.
  • ‘Legacy’ Buffalo Grass is another warm season, short grass grown from plugs.
  • Artemisia frigida (Fringed Sage) adds soft silvery gray color to the prairie garden.
  • Oenothera macrocarpa (Missouri Evening Primrose) shimmers in the afternoon summer sun and persists into the evening dusk. A long season of bloom is a plus.
  • Zinnia grandiflora (Prairie Zinnia) thrives in hot sunny spots. It’s not the easiest plant to grow but its deep yellow blooms make it worth a
    try.
  • Salvia azurea (Prairie Sage) is great for late season color in your prairie garden. Our New Mexican collection is particularly xeric and has soothing sky blue flowers.
  • Aster oblongifolius ‘Dream of Beauty’ (Fragrant Aster) is a vigorous groundcover aster that makes big fall blooming clumps with hundreds of sugar-pink flowers.

Tall Prairie Grasses and Perennials

  • Schizachyrium scoparium ‘Blaze’ (Little Bluestem Grass) is suitable for any soil type including clay. It turns beautiful shades of rusty red in the fall.
  • Panicum virgatum ‘Shenandoah’ (Prairie Switch Grass) reaches heights of 4 to 5 feet with dark colored lacy seed heads. Its height makes it a nice accent in the tall grass prairie especially in fall when its reddish foliage becomes more pronounced.
  • Heliopsis helianthoides ‘Tuscan Sun’ (False Sunflower) is an improved selection of this very cold hardy and indispensable prairie perennial. ‘Tuscan Sun’ is a colorful and rugged daisy among the prairie grasses
  • Penstemon tubaeflorus (White Flowered Plains Beardtongue) is a rare and beautiful prairie Beardtongue with a long blooming habit and glistening white flowers.
  • Silene regia ‘Prairie Fire’ (Royal Catchfly) is a rare native valuable for its stunning flowers that attract hummingbirds.
  • Liatris lingulistylus (Meadow Blazing Star) will bring butterflies galore to your prairie with its nectar-rich spikes of lavender-purple flowers.

If you’re interested in a short grass prairie garden but aren’t sure how to design the planting, The Western Prairie preplanned garden will be just right for you.

Suggested Planting

For a fairly large area, start with a native grass seed mix with shorter varieties of grasses. Then intersperse taller grasses and perennials into it once the seed has sprouted and gotten established. The shorter varieties mixed in with tall ones gives the perennials a chance to really stand out.

Once established, a prairie garden will change from year to year as grasses and perennials drop seed and produce new plants. You may even spot varieties you didn’t plant as birds drop seeds of other wildflowers. Also, think of adding a few shrubs if you have the space. One that’s easy and establishes fall color and fruit that attracts birds is Rhus trilobata (Three Leaf Sumac).

If you come to Santa Fe, visit our two demonstration gardens. Many of these prairie plants are on display. Our Guided Garden Tours run through August 29—Saturday mornings 10 and 11am; Wednesday 10am. Call 1-877-811-2700 for more information