Native Gardening
As the population of the Wasatch Front area continues to grow, we see more and more of our favorite foothill wildflower patches disappear under concrete, asphalt, and kentucky bluegrass. The question we ask here is whether there is any way to help native plants coexist with people in this increasingly urban landscape. One place where Utahns and native plants could come to coexist is in a garden setting. The people of Utah are committed to gardening - perhaps if they learned to garden with native plants they might also become committed to the appreciation and preservation of these plants in the wild.
But how do we introduce people to native plants for their gardens? Only a few are readily available in the mainstream nursery trade, and many natives with truly outstanding horticultural potential have been grown only by a few aficionados or not at all. On one hand, we need local nurseries that specialize in Utah natives, where people can find many beautiful and unusual kinds of plants. On the other hand, we need some way to let people know why they would like growing these plants instead of petunias. And while a picture may be worth a thousand words, a living, growing garden is clearly worth a thousand pictures. This brings us to the idea of a Utah Heritage Garden.
People are accustomed to thinking of their heritage in cultural terms, but each resident of Utah can also lay claim to a unique bioregional heritage that includes all the complex natural communities of the state and the literally thousands of different kinds of plants, animals and other creatures that inhabit them. Most of us know very little about this extraordinary natural heritage. One meaningful way to learn about this heritage is to grow native plants.
As any serious gardener will tell you, growing a plant is a whole different experience from casual observation. Watching and aiding the astonishing transformation from seed to seedling to vigorous young plant to mature flowering plant can be transforming for the gardener as well. It also changes the way the gardener perceives that plant when it is encountered in a wild setting, growing without any human aid at all. The beauty and strength of native plants in the face of harsh conditions can be quite moving to those who have learned through gardening to see and to value them.
We are developing a procedure for implementing the Utah Heritage Garden idea at schools and city parks throughout the state. This procedure could be customized to meet the goals of each project. Each garden will be adapted to local soils and climate. Garden clubs or other organizations such as the schools themselves will be encouraged to get involved with propagation, which is one of the most rewarding aspects of gardening with natives.
The Utah Heritage Garden Program has the following purposes:
1) To teach the people of Utah about their unique and spectacular native plant heritage.
2) To show people that water-wise landscaping with Utah natives can be as beautiful and interesting as traditional European-style landscaping.
3) To help people discover how gardening with native plants can create a joyful sense of connectedness with wild nature.
4) To encourage people to care about the fate of native plants in the wild as well as enjoying them in the garden.
For more information about this program, visit the Utah Division of Wildlife Resources web site.
- Planted 1998 :
- Planted 1999:
- Thanksgiving Point Animal Park, Lehi
- Rock Canyon Trailhead Park, Provo
- University of Utah Mallway, Salt Lake City
- Ensign Elementary School, Salt Lake City
- Planted 2000:
- Price
- City Park, Park City
- Benson Grist Mill Historic Site, Grantsville Highway
- Utah Valley State College, Orem
- Planned summer/fall 2001:
- Iron Mission State Park, Cedar City
- Vivian Park, Provo Canyon
- Moab, Utah
- Three Falls Elementary School, Hurricane, Utah
- Planted 2005 (added Oct. 2007):
The purpose of this section is to provide descriptions, cultural information, and pictures for Utah native plants that have potential as ornamentals in the context of water-wise landscaping. These fact sheets were developed by Dr. Susan Meyer in conjunction with propagation workshops hosted by the Utah Native Plant Society.
You are welcome to use the information and pictures on this site for any worthy educational purpose, but please acknowledge the source, and respect our request not to use the information commercially.
Common Name | Scientific Name | Plant Family |
---|---|---|
Stansbury cliffrose | Purshia stansburyana | Rose, Rosaceae |
Green Mormon Tea | Ephedra viridis | Jointfir, Ephedraceae |
Whitestem Rubber Rabbitbrush | Chrysothamnus nauseosus ssp. hololeucus | Aster, Asteraceae |
Mountain Big Sagebrush | Artemisia tridentata ssp. vaseyana | Aster, Asteraceae |
Winterfat | Krascheninnikovia lanata | Goosefoot, Chenopodiaceae |
Common Name | Scientific Name | Plant Family |
---|---|---|
Indian Ricegrass | Eriocoma hymenoides | Grass, Poaceae |
Needle and Thread | Hesperostipa comata | Grass, Poaceae |
Shining Muttongrass | Poa fendleriana | Grass, Poaceae |
Squirreltail | Elymus elymoides | Grass, Poaceae |
Bluebunch Wheatgrass | Pseudoroegneria spicata | Grass, Poaceae |
Basin Wildrye | Leymus cinereus | Grass, Poaceae |
Blue Wildrye | Elymus glaucus | Grass, Poaceae |
Common Name | Scientific Name | Plant Family |
---|---|---|
Blazing Star | Mentzelia laevicaulis | Loasa, Loasaceae |
James Buckwheat | Eriogonum jamesii | Buckwheat, Polygonaceae |
Butterwort | Senecio multilobatus | Aster, Asteraceae |
Showy Daisy | Erigeron speciosus | Aster, Asteraceae |
Sundancer Daisy | Hymenoxys scaposus | Aster, Asteraceae |
Desert Four O'Clock | Mirabilis multiflora | Four O'Clock, Nyctaginaceae |
Pale Evening Primrose | Oenothera pallida | Evening Primrose, Onagraceae |
Firechalice | Epilobium canum | Evening Primrose, Onagraceae |
Cushion Globemallow | Sphaeralcea caespitosa | Mallow, Malvaceae |
Munroe Globemallow | Sphaeralcea munroana | Mallow, Malvaceae |
Lewis Flax | Linum lewisii | Flax, Linaceae |
Utah Milkvetch | Astragalus utahensis | Pea, Fabaceae |
Butterfly Milkweed | Asclepias tuberosa | Milkweed, Asclepiadaceae |
Spider Milkweed | Asclepias asperula | Milkweed, Asclepiadaceae |
Nakedstem Sunray | Enceliopsis nudicaulis | Aster, Asteraceae |
Wyoming Paintbrush | Castilleja linariifolia | Broomrape, Orobanchaceae |
Desert Paintbrush | Castilleja chromosa | Broomrape, Orobanchaceae |
Firecracker Penstemon | Penstemon eatonii | Plantain, Plantaginaceae |
Narrowleaf Penstemon | Penstemon angustifolius | Plantain, Plantaginaceae |
Palmer Penstemon | Penstemon palmeri | Plantain, Plantaginaceae |
Wasatch Penstemon | Penstemon cyananthus | Plantain, Plantaginaceae |
Prince's Plume | Stanleya pinnata | Mustard, Brassicaceae |
Showy Goldeneye | Viguera multiflora | Aster, Asteraceae |
Utah Sweetvetch | Hedysarum boreale | Pea, Fabaceae |
Western Wallflower | Erysimum asperum | Mustard, Brassicaceae |