Xeriscape Demo Gardens
The Water Department has or has participated in starting several Xeriscape Demonstration Gardens around town to give customers ideas for their water conserving gardens. The two most obvious gardens are the
UNC/ City of Greeley Garden and the Water Department Garden.
City of Greeley Water Conservation Garden
2503 Reservoir Road
This garden began in 1997. The term Xeriscape, while known, still had perceptions of rock gardens and cactus. The objective of the garden was to dispel the rock idea and show that Xeriscape can be a lush mix of perennials, annuals, ornamental grasses, bulbs, trees and shrubs. Another misconception is that Xeriscape means no turf. This garden has four kinds of turf.
Starting on the east end of the garden, the stamped concrete walkway is flanked by two annual gardens. Behind the flowers on the right side are hardy shrub roses, lilacs in white, rose, lavender, and deep purple. Perennials in the next bed include Gailardia, creeping Phlox, Yarrow, Mexican Hat, and clumping Blue Fescue. The next bed on the north side of the walk is a Daylily bed. This bed includes ‘Stella de Ora' in the front and the taller Daylilies in back of traditional orange, pink and red. On the south side of the walkway is a berm with Canadian Choke Cherry and Serviceberry Trees. Also on the berm are Purple Coneflower and Russian Sage along with Tulips and Daffodils that bloom in the spring. Flanking the berm on either side are varieties of Potentillas ranging in color from the traditional yellow to white and pink.
This site was a challenge because of all of the overhead wires, there were very few places where a large shade tree could be planted. Two ash trees 'Marshall' and 'Summit' shade the seating area on the north side of the walkway. Sumac and a Weeping Cherry wrap around the semi circular seating area. Smooth Brome is a wide bladed, cool season turf between the fence and the walkway. Buffalograss is a native to the short grass prairie and is along the outside sidewalk near the street.
Oasis is the name of the Art in Public places situated on the hill at the garden. "Oasis" is a tribute to Greeley 's founding fathers and their insight into assuring an ample supply of water for Greeley. The sculpture fountain celebrates our water history through a mesh depiction of the mountains with Greeley water pioneers painted on Lexan (polycarbonate resin thermoplastic). The art is inspired by a 1908 photo of Greeley's water leaders. The fountain is made up of twelve plates, each representing a month, and varying in depths to represent the average amount of precipitation for that month. Historic photos and explanations accompany the project.
An assortment of large shrubs and small trees are just west of the art to the west seating area. The berm across from the art is an assortment of Butterfly bush, Yellow Twig Dogwood and Low-Grow Sumac. Next along the outside of the walkway is another area for three large shade trees, they are Burr Oak, Kentucky Coffee Tree, and ‘Patmore” Ash.
Around the rock garden is an assortment of low growing junipers to show what they would look like as a ground cover.
The west end of the garden by makes a loop around the triangular area which is surrounded by Blue gramma grass (another native) inside the triangle are several different types of ornamental grasses. On the north side of the sidewalk is a cool season crested wheatgrass another alternative turf grass. The largest tree in the garden is the Western Catalpa at the intersection of the sidewalks. It was chosen for this spot because of its height but it won't spread enough to interfere with all of the overhead wires.
City of Greeley Xeriscape Garden Plant List Common Name
PERENNIALS
Rocky Mountain Columbine
Wine Cup, Poppy Mallow
Spanish Gold Broom
Starburst Ice Plant
Hardy Yellow Ice Plant
Coral Canyon Twinspur
Spanish Peaks Foxglove
Blanketflower
Colorado Gold Gazania
Daylilly
Dwarf Gold Daylily
Kobold Gayfeather
Silver Blade Evening Primrose
Lavender Mist Sun Daisy
Purple Mountain Sun Daisy
Prairie Jewel Penstemon
Palmer Penstemon
Red Rocks Penstemon
Rocky Mountain Penstemon
Pikes Peak Purple
Russian Sage
Prairie Coneflower, Mexican Hat
Red Prairie Coneflower
Black Eyed Susan
Silver Sage
Stonecrop
Woolly Thyme
Turkish Veronica
TREES
Small
Crabapple Camelot
Hawthorn Crimson Cloud
Maple
Crabapple Brandywine Clump
Crabapple Indian Summer
Medium Maple
Serviceberry Snow Cloud
Japanese Lilac
Golden Rain Tree
Ash 'Marshall's'
Ash 'Summit'
Ash 'Patmore'
Kentucky Coffee Tree
Ginko Biloba
Burr Oak
Crabapple Crimson Cloud
Canadian Chokecherry
Linden
Sunset Hyssop |
ANNUALS
Silver Dollar
TURF GRASSES
Buffalograss
Tall Fescue
Blue gramma
Smooth Brome
Crested Wheatgrass
ORNAMENTAL GRASSES
Blue Fescue
Feather Reed
Varie.Feather Reed
Blue Avena
Red Baron
Purple Maiden
Little Dot Zebra
Variegated Maiden
Switchgrass
Indian
Mexican Feather
SHRUBS
Small
Bar Harbor Juniper
Buffalo Juniper
Calgary Carpet Juniper
Cranberry Cotoneaster
Dwarf Fragrant Sumac
Soapweed
Blue Mist Spirea
Apache Plume
Carol Mackie Daphne
Medium Butterfly Bush, lavender
Butterfly Bush, mauve
Butterfly Bush, white
Red Flowering Quince
Wilton Carpet Juniper
Mohican Wayfaring Tree
Tall Butterfly Bush, pink
Butterfly Bush, white
Alleghany Viburnum
Blue Velvet Honeysuckle
Nannyberry Viburnum
Siberian Peashrub
Silver Fountain |
University of Northern Colorado Xeriscape Garden
17th Avenue and Reservoir Road
The Xeric Demonstration Gardens demonstrates wildlife gardening in addition to exhibiting landscape water conservation. The project design incorporates the basic elements of food, water, and cover needed to attract urban wildlife. In addition to the information about xeriscaping, park signage will include information about the wildlife gardening aspects. The purpose and intent of the community gardens is to encourage individuals, clubs or organizations to conduct field research, testing and display of materials, plants or methods promoting water-wise gardening.
Plants were mostly selected for the garden to dispel the notion that all xeric plantings consist mostly of beds with aggregate and larger rocks and a few plants resistant to drought. Rather, the planting beds in the Xeric Demonstration Gardens display examples of low maintenance plant species that require minimal water, but are colorful and create habitat for wildlife.
Native, non-native and ornamental grasses have been specifically used in the gardens to demonstrate to homeowners examples of alternative selections for commonly used grasses in lawns and flowerbeds. Here the homeowner can observe firsthand the growth habit of these plants and perhaps better visualize how these selections might be used to replace water-consuming grasses and plants in their own lawns and gardens.
Decisions about the Xeric Gardens are made by a committee of fifteen. These members are comprised of UNC staff and faculty, City of Greeley staff, District Six teachers or staff, CSU Cooperative Extension Services, as well as community leaders.
In 2007, the garden became the first site for the Community Gardens Project. Greeley residents have an opportunity to rent a garden plot at the UNC Xeric Garden. The opportunity to rent a garden plot is one of the projects coordinated by the Community Garden Advisory Committee as part of Project GROW (Gardeners Reaping Opportunities for Wellness) through the Natural Resource office at the City of Greeley.