In an effort to reduce outdoor water use and increase the visibility of low-water native plant landscaping, Thompson School District redesigned unused turf areas in front of Cottonwood Plains Elementary School in June 2023. Thompson School District received a design from Denver Botanic Gardens and funding through a grant with Northern Water. Additional funding came from a Colorado Water Conservation Board grant, Cottonwood’s parent-teacher organization, and the District. The site preparation, drip irrigation, and plants were provided by Elite Industries. Volunteers made up of CPES families and staff, TSD staff, and community members helped with the planting on the rainy Saturday morning of June 3, 2023.
The design transformed the approximately 3,000-square-foot space of Kentucky Bluegrass into a low-water native plant oasis complete with walking paths and sitting rocks. The over 300 plants offer year-round color variations and support local biodiversity including hummingbirds and butterflies. This space is intended to serve as a place for students to connect with nature and for the community to learn more about the possibilities of landscaping that is adapted to our local climate.
Design
Native Plant List
| Plant Select | Genus | Species | Cultivar | Common Name | Water Use | Annual Maintenance | 5-10 years Maintenance |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| no | Achillea | ‘Moonshine’ | Moonshine Yarrow | moderate to xeric | Cut back/shear to base every spring | Follow annual maintenance | |
| no | Achillea | millefolium | ‘New Vintage Violet’ | New Vintage Violet Yarrow | moderate to xeric | Cut back/shear to base every spring | Follow annual maintenance |
| no | Achillea | ageratiflia | Greek Yarrow | moderate to xeric | Rake out dead leaves in spring if any. | Follow annual maintenance | |
| no | Agastache | Blue Fortune Hyssop | moderate to xeric | Cut back to base/shear down to ground every spring. Then rake up. | Replace plants that may die every 5-10 years. | ||
| no | Agastache | aurantiaca | Apricot Sprite | moderate to xeric | Cut back to base/shear down to ground every spring. Then rake up. | Follow annual maintenance. | |
| no | Anemone | × hybrida | ‘September Charm’ | Anemone ‘September Charm’ | moderate to dry | Cut back to base/shear down to ground every spring. Then rake up. | Follow annual maintenance. |
| yes | Aquilegia | chrysantha | DENVER GOLD® | DENVER GOLD® Columbine | moderate to xeric | Hand trim back dead stems in spring. | Follow annual maintenance. |
| yes | Aquilegia | REMEMBRANCE® | REMEMBRANCE® Columbine | moderate to dry | Hand trim back dead stems in spring. | Follow annual maintenance. | |
| yes | Arctostaphylos | × coloradensis | ‘Chieftain’ | Chieftain Manzanita | moderate to xeric | Never touch unless there is damage to branches and only prune those branches out in spring. | Follow annual maintenance. This can be a long lived woody shrub if growing conditions are correct. |
| no | Artemisia | schmidtiana | Silver Mound Sage | dry to xeric | Hand trim back dead stems in spring. | Follow annual maintenance and allow to go to seed. Thin out any undesireable seedlings. | |
| no | Artemisia | tridentata | Big Brush Sage | dry to xeric | Never touch unless there is damage to branches and only prune those branches out in spring. | Follow annual maintenance. This can be a long lived woody shrub if growing conditions are correct. | |
| no | Aster | tataricus | Tartarian Aster | moderate to xeric | Hand trim back dead stems in spring. | Follow annual maintenance. | |
| yes | Berlandiera | lyrata | Chocolate Flower | dry to xeric | Hand trim back dead stems in spring. | Follow annual maintenance and allow to go to seed. Thin out any undesireable seedlings. | |
| yes | Bouteloua | gracilis | ‘Blonde Ambition’ | Blonde Ambition Blue Grama Grass | dry to xeric | Cut back every early spring. | Divide or remove old plants and replace with new plants. |
| yes | Callirhoe | involucrata | Winecups | dry to xeric | Cut back/shear to base every spring | No maintenance, long lived plant that is well behaved. | |
| yes | Cercocarpus | intricatus | Little Leaf Mountain Mahogany | dry to xeric | Shear once a year from much tighter growth. Can also be sheared in the spring to shape into a short hedge if desired. | Follow annual maintenance. | |
| no | Cercocarpus | montana | Curly Leaf Mountain Mahongany | dry to xeric | Shear once a year from much tighter growth. Can also be sheared in the spring to shape into a short hedge if desired. | Follow annual maintenance. | |
| yes | Chamaebatiaria | millefolium | Fernbush | dry to xeric | Shape/Shear 2″-6″ off all branch tips every early spring into a nice round mound. This will promote a great branching structure for a nice dense shrub, while deadheading each year. Leave the short branch tips on the ground as “mulch”. | Follow annual maintenance. | |
| yes | Chrysothamnus | nauseosus | var. nauseosus (baby blue form) | Baby Blue Rabbitbrush | dry to xeric | Shape/Shear to small mound or just enough to remove seedheads EVERY late fall or very early spring. This will maximize late summer blooming. | Follow annual maintenance |
| no | Ephedra | minimia | Mormon Tea Shrub | dry to xeric | Install steel edging around this plant to limit spreading | No maintenance | |
| yes | Epilobium | canum ssp. garrettii | ORANGE CARPET® | ORANGE CARPET® Hummingbird Trumpet | moderate to dry | Trim back in spring to promote spreading the plant into a wider size. | Follow annual maintenance. This is a long lived perennial and continously spreads out from center at a resonable rate, but divide if it grows too large. |
| yes | Hesperaloe | parviflora | Red Yucca | dry to xeric | Trim flower stems back to base of plant every early spring. | Follow annual maintenance. | |
| no | Prunus | pumila var. besseyi | PAWNEE BUTTES® | PAWNEE BUTTES® Western Sand Cherry | moderate to xeric | After its mature, select a few larger branches and prune them off to about 6″ above ground and let plant rejuvenate. | Follow annual maintenance. |
| no | Rhus | aromatica | ‘Gro-low’ | Gro-Low Sumac | moderate to xeric | No maintenance. If it out grows space trim it back hard in spring. | Follow annual maintenance. |
| yes | Rudbeckia | hirta | Denver Daisy | moderate to xeric | Hand trim back dead stems in spring. | Follow annual maintenance. | |
| yes | Satureja | montana var. illyrica | Purple Winter Savory | moderate to xeric | Prune back/shear to ground in spring. | Follow annual maintenance. | |
| yes | Schizachyrium | scoparium | ‘Standing Ovation’ | Standing Ovation Little Bluestem | moderate to xeric | Cut/shear back every spring. | Follow annual maintenance. |
| yes | Scrophularia | macrantha | Red Birds in a Tree | moderate to xeric | Cut/shear back every spring. | Follow annual maintenance. | |
| no | Sedum | Vera Jameson | moderate to xeric | Cut/shear back every spring. | Follow annual maintenance. This can be a long lived perennial if growing conditions are correct. | ||
| no | Solidago | rugosa | ‘Fireworks’ | Goldenrod | moderate to xeric | Hand trim back dead stems in spring. | Follow annual maintenance. This can be a long lived perennial. |
| yes | Sporobolus | wrightii | Giant Sacaton Grass | moderate to xeric | Cut/shear back every spring. | No maintenance, long lived plant that is well behaved. Will not die out in the center. | |
| no | Stachys | byzantina | Lamb’s Ear | moderate to xeric | Hand trim back dead stems in spring. | Follow annual maintenance. | |
| yes | Veronica | ‘Reavis’ | CRYSTAL RIVERTM Veronica | moderate to dry | Hand rake or run hand over to remove any dead foliage in spring | Trim out any dead, divide over grown areas and add plantings where desired. | |
| no | PBSI Native Lawn Mix (blue grama and buffalo grass mix) – Seed Mix | dry to xeric |