Pretty Smart Plants From Plant Select®
by David Salman
Plant Select® is a regional plant introduction organization founded in 1992. As a collaboration between Colorado State University and Denver Botanic Gardens, the organization has brought together many of the region's best horticulturists, plant breeders, landscapers, and commercial plant growers with the goal of introducing regionally suitable plants for the Great Plains and Intermountain states.
The criteria used for the selection process is rather strict and includes the following ten attributes:
The plants must be:
- Durable
- Flourish with less water
- Thrive in a broad range of conditions
- Habitat-friendly
- Tough and resilient in challenging climates
- One of a kind/unique
- Resist disease & insects
- Long-lasting beauty
- Non-invasive
- Cold hardy
Over the last 25 years, these efforts have been wildly successful, currently having brought to the market 150 noteworthy plants.
While the organization's focus is to introduce plants adapted to western growing conditions, time and the experiences of gardeners elsewhere in the country, have discovered that some of these plants are also suitable for the eastern half of the US as well.
Plants in the program include a wide range of native perennials, shrubs and ornamental grasses in addition to a wide-ranging assortment of cold hardy Old World species from Europe, Asia, and South Africa.
As a founding member of the organization, David Salman discovered and developed six of the plants that were brought into the program. David also helped to popularize and create a market through High Country Gardens for another handful of noteworthy plants Platinum® Dwarf Silver Leaf Salvia (Salvia daghestanica, Red Birds In A Tree (Scrophularia macrantha), Undaunted® Ruby Muhly Grass (Muhlenbergia reverchonii), and others that were later brought into the program.
Blonde Ambition Blue Grama Grass PP# 22, 048
(Bouteloua gracilis)
Zones 4-9
Thin Man Indian Grass PPAF
(Sorghastrum nutans)
Zones 4-9
Orange Carpet® Hummingbird Trumpet
(Zauschneria garrettii)
Zones 5-9
Red Mountain® Flame cold hardy Iceplant
(Delosperma x PWWG025)
Zones 6-9
Gold on Blue® Prairie Zinnia
(Zinnia grandiflora)
Zones 4-8
Wee One English Lavender
(Lavandula angustifolia)
Zones 5-9
3 Recent Plant Select® Introductions
Granita® Raspberry Ice Plant (Delosperma hybrid) (2018)
I first saw this sumptuously colored Ice Plant in the garden of its discoverer, John Stireman of Salt Lake City. John has one of the finest and most diverse rock gardens in the western US. He is particularly enamored with the South African Ice Plants and has spent several decades growing and testing them in his USDA zone 5 rock garden.
As luck would have it, after many years of cross-pollination by bees, Delosperma Granita® Raspberry appeared as a volunteer seedling. And it's a winner! Durable and cold hardy, the flowers have a unique coloration that sets it apart from other Ice Plants and perennial plants. Use it as a water-wise ground cover, planted in well-drained where it gets full sun. Zones 6-10.
Verbena Valley Lavender® Plains Verbena (Verbena bipinnatifida) (2018)
This widespread native species is often considered a biennial. But this selection, found on the Great Plains of eastern Colorado is more perennial and robust. It's best to grow this perennial in "lean" (infertile) fast draining non-clay soils in full, blazing sun. It likes lots of heat and not too much water. After getting it established the first growing season, water deeply but infrequently in subsequent years. Zones 5-8.
"Tough love" is the best way to grow and enjoy this gorgeous plant. With this in mind, it should not be fertilized with granular or water-soluble chemical fertilizers. This will shorten the plant's lifespan and it will act as an annual. Instead, just top-dress with a little Yum Yum Mix around the plant in fall.
Snowmass® Blue Eyed Veronica (Veronica x PO185) (2018)
A wonder hybrid cultivar, this vigorous groundcover Speedwell is a great choice for the xeric (water-wise) garden. It has evergreen foliage and blooms in mid-spring with a flurry of white, blue-eyed flowers that cover the plant for up to a month.
Snowmass® is an outstanding companion plant for spring blooming bulbs (Crocus, daffodils, muscari and wildflower tulips). Plant it in full sun in most soils including clay (when grown on the dry side). Zones 3-10.
Shop Plant Select® Plants From High Country Gardens
A native shrub from the southwestern US, Littleleaf Mountain Mahogany (Cercocarpus intricatus) features attractive silvery evergreen foliage for year-round interest and bird habitat....
Learn MoreLittleleaf Mountain Mahogany (Cercocarpus) Littleleaf Mountain Mahogany Cercocarpus intricatus$12.99 Sale $12.34Sale Price I Save 5%Per Plant - 5" Deep PotA native shrub from the southwestern US, Littleleaf Mountain Mahogany (Cercocarpus intricatus) features attractive silvery evergreen foliage for year-round interest and bird habitat. Its compact size and outstanding durability make it an excellent choice for hedging and xeric landscaping. In mid-spring, the shrub is covered in plumes of tiny pale flowers, which are pollinated by small native bees to create feathery seed tails that catch the afternoon light.Learn MoreA super cold hardy Old World native, Golden Candles (Thermopsis lupinoides) blooms with stunning bright yellow lupine-like flower spikes in mid-spring. It pairs beautifully with mid-...
Learn MoreGolden Candles (Thermopsis) Golden Candles Thermopsis lupinoides$11.99 Sale $10.79Sale Price I Save 10%Per Plant - 5" Deep PotA super cold hardy Old World native, Golden Candles (Thermopsis lupinoides) blooms with stunning bright yellow lupine-like flower spikes in mid-spring. It pairs beautifully with mid-spring daffodils and tulips, and after flowers fade, attractive foliage mounds will enhance your garden through summer. Easily grown and long-lived, Golden Candles delivers welcome early-season color after a long, cold winter. A 2020 Plant Select® Winner.Learn MoreA shrub clematis, Mongolian Snowflakes (Clematis hexapetala) blossoms into a cloud of 2-inch ivory colored flowers beginning in late spring. After months of flowering, showy, shiny, ...
Learn MoreMongolian Snowflakes (Clematis) Mongolian Snowflakes Clematis hexapetala$10.99 Sale $9.89Sale Price I Save 10%Per Plant - 5" Deep PotA shrub clematis, Mongolian Snowflakes (Clematis hexapetala) blossoms into a cloud of 2-inch ivory colored flowers beginning in late spring. After months of flowering, showy, shiny, feathery seed clusters continue the show, revealing dark green mounding foliage. Remarkably easy to grow and drought tolerant, it is a must-have perennial.Learn MoreDwarf Leadplant (Amorpha nana) is a wonderfully compact native shrub that covers itself with purple flower clusters in late spring. Sweet honey-scented flowers attract bees, butterfl...
Learn MoreDwarf Leadplant (Amorpha) Dwarf Leadplant Amorpha nana$12.99 Sale $12.34Sale Price I Save 5%Per Plant - 5" Deep PotDwarf Leadplant (Amorpha nana) is a wonderfully compact native shrub that covers itself with purple flower clusters in late spring. Sweet honey-scented flowers attract bees, butterflies, and other pollinators. A member of the legume family, Leadplant adds nitrogen to the soil, helping it thrive in poor soils and benefiting of all the plants surrounding it. Suitable for the most challenging sunny sites. A 2020 Plant Select® WinnerLearn More
Learn more and explore helpful gardening resources and design ideas from Plant Select®!
© All articles are copyrighted by High Country Gardens.