Rocky Mt Botanic Gardens has new signs, trees -and- Plant Sale
Four new trees were planted: 2 Bristlecone Pines and 2 White Firs, May 2021. (Photo by Kathleen Spring) 
The sandstone signs are now in place that describe each of the 5 zones, May 2021. (Photo by Kathleen Spring)
“This is our big planting year, with trees, shrubs, and wildflowers being planted each week,” said coordinator Garima Fairfax.
“We are meeting every Sunday, Tuesday, and Friday that it is not raining or snowing, and each time we will be planting something. I am going to different nurseries a couple of times a week, getting wildflowers, shrubs, and trees, so you will see big progress happening at the garden. And lots of hole digging. Yesterday we started planting the montane meadow, with columbines and golden banner ~~ it will look fantastic one day soon.”
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Annual Plant Sale Fundraiser – May 22
The Rocky Mountain Botanic Gardens will be holding a plant sale fundraiser Saturday, May 22, 2021, 9 a.m. – 3 p.m. After years of planning and saving, for the first time this annual event will be held at the Gardens. The main entrance to the Gardens is located along the path to Bohn Park, from the corner of Prospect St. and 4th Ave in Lyons, a half-mile walk from Main Street.
An assortment of beautiful native plants in 4” pots, mostly perennial wildflowers, will be for sale. After a scouting trip to the Harlequin’s Wholesale Nursery in Boulder, we’re fairly confident that we’ll be able to get Rocky Mountain columbine (Aquilegia coerulea), prairie coneflower (Ratibida columnifera), wild blue flax (Linum lewisii), Rocky Mountain iris (Iris missouriensis), and chocolate flower (Berlandiera lyrata). These species all grow wild somewhere in Colorado, have gorgeous flowers, and work nicely in home gardens. The rest we’ll pick based on what native garden favorites look best right before the sale.
All the plants will be ones that are also growing in the Botanic Gardens.
Garden volunteers will be on hand throughout the sale day to make recommendations and swap growing tips.
A limited number of annual hanging baskets of brightly colored Million Bells will also be available, as well as colorful t-shirts with our Rocky Mountain Botanic Gardens (RMBG) logo.
All proceeds from these sales benefit the RMBG.
Visitors will be able to explore the Gardens while they shop. The first of the flowers are starting to bloom in the beds planted last year, and there should be more by the time of the sale later this month. So far we’ve had pasque flowers (Pulsatilla patens) and golden smoke (Corydalis aurea) showing off their early spring colors. It’s a busy springtime at the garden, with volunteers planting new trees, shrubs, and perennials every week.
For getting to the sale and hauling those plants home, the closest parking is along Prospect or 4th. We request that attendees wear masks and practice thoughtful social distancing for the safety of volunteers & visitors. Cash, check, or credit card will be accepted as payment. We’re hoping for good weather and lots of Lyons plant lovers to attend. This sale is a great chance to please some pollinators with beautiful, low-water, Colorado native plants and to support our efforts in building a public garden in Lyons.
………………..Jessie Berta-Thompson, RMBG board member
