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Posted By High Country Gardens Content Team on Mar 2, 2024 · Revised on Sep 16, 2025
Summerhome Garden is a gardener’s dream come true. Owner Lisa and horticulturist Kevin are on a mission to inspire others and show their community just how awe-inspiring xeriscaping can be.
Garden owner Lisa is a lover of plants, seeds, and global travel. A past environmental engineer and entrepreneur, Lisa is passionate about science and math. Since she began volunteering at Denver Botanic Gardens in 2016, she’s started to apply those principles to a more creative pursuit. Lisa is now dedicated to helping others understand how we can thrive—one plant, one butterfly, one bee, and one bird at a time.
Lisa met horticulturist and garden designer Kevin P. Williams at Denver Botanic Gardens, whose work has led to the creation of public gardens throughout the city. He has also worked and gardened at The High Line in Manhattan and the Brooklyn Botanic Garden. He has a passion for combining bioregional plant palettes with unconventional sources of inspiration like hardcore punk - or in this garden, graffiti - to create dynamic, captivating gardens.
In this garden project, Lisa and Kevin share their passion for creating gardens that inspire people and bring people together, while creating a planting that celebrates the unique plants and climate of Colorado and creates a sense of place.
When the property next to Lisa’s home came on the market, she had a vision. Imagine if there was a beautiful open space, tucked right into the heart of her growing and developing neighborhood? A space where pets and kids could roam, an oasis The old home was removed, and the lot was prepared for its new life as an amazing xeriscaped garden.
Planting this garden was no small feat - but some pretty unusual circumstances came together to make it happen. In May of 2022, Denver Botanic Garden was closed due to COVID-19 guidelines in Colorado, and the enthusiastic community of garden volunteers was itching for a way to get their hands in the dirt. Thanks to her inspiring vision - and likely thanks to her warm and outgoing personality - Lisa was able to recruit these volunteers for her planting project. Working safely in shifts, they planted thousands of perennials as a community of volunteers. A true example of the power of the plant community!
Horticulturist Kevin provided a creative and unexpected design approach for the garden.
“The design for SummerHome Garden was modeled on graffiti, a type of wild, surprising expression that is a perfect starting point for a naturalistic garden. By densely planting and seeding steppe-adapted plants, we created a novel plant community suited for Denver’s climate with tons of potential for change.”
— Kevin Philip Williams SummerHome Garden Designer & Horticulture Specialist at Denver Botanic Gardens
With a creative vision, Kevins translated the layers of pattern, color, and texture of street art into layers of pattern, color, and texture with living plants.
Beyond the stunning plants, the landscape of Summerhome Garden includes layers of details that make it an incredibly engaging and serene experience for visitors.
Lisa and Kevin carefully and intentionally chose plants for this garden that would thrive in the garden without soil amendments, heavy watering, and lots of maintenance. Many beautiful and resilient native plants are included in the garden, as well as selections of introduced plants that are well-suited to Colorado’s climate.
With the goal of inspiring and encouraging other local gardeners, their plant list emphasizes perennial species that are widely available in the horticultural trade. Fortunately for all who love this garden, they have shared their plant list - most of which are available to order from High Country Gardens.
“I’m thrilled to offer this open space as a gift to my urban neighborhood. Please enjoy–take time to breathe, grow and thrive!” - Lisa
Yes, you can visit Summerhome Garden to take in the beauty yourself! Located in a residential neighborhood, it is important to be respectful of the neighbors. The park is open daily between the hours of 9am and 6pm.
Visit them virtually via their website: Summerhome Garden
Beyond the dazzling garden designs, our waterwise plants contribute to a robust ecosystem where people, plants, and wildlife thrive.
Part Of The High Country Gardens Waterwise Plants Learning Center
