Springtime in Colorado also means time to get your garden growing!

Need a few plants to fill in holes or interested in creating an all new garden this year? Frank Haas, CMZ’s Horticulture Curator, shares three key factors to consider when picking plants.

-          Hardiness – A plant is deemed hardy if it can survive the cold we have in the winter and come back the following spring. If you want plants to come back year after year, select plants rated to do well in your hardiness zone. Colorado Springs is rated Zone 5, whereas slightly higher (and thus colder) elevations west of the city would more likely be rated as Zone 4. 

-          Water requirements – Group plants with similar water requirements in the same planting area. It is often easiest to place plants with the highest water needs closest to the house, where you have ready access to a hose, and place plants with lower water requirements farther away. If you group plants by their water needs, you'll not only save water, but also make it easy to keep your plants happy.

 

-          Sun or shade – While selecting plants for your garden, take into consideration how much sun or shade the plant needs to thrive. While many plants can withstand some variation, too much sun can scorch the leaves of shade-loving plants and too much shade will cause sun-loving plants to go into decline.

The zoo's Annual Plant Sale website is a great resource for growing information. Click here to learn more at https://store.cmzoo.org/SearchResults.asp?Cat=109