Water-wise Resources

Get educated on water-wise practices. The Gardens offers classes for beginners as well as seasoned gardeners.

• July 10: Four Seasons of Native Beauty at Chatfield Farms
• July 21-22 (2-class series): Foundations of Permaculture and Small-scale Solutions for Home Gardeners
• July 25:  Gardening for Wildlife
• Aug. 7: Four Seasons of Native Beauty at Chatfield Farms
• Aug. 15: Native Gardening in the Field: Research and Planning
• Aug. 22: Irrigation 101: Design, Install and Retrofit Like a Pro
• Aug. 26: Go Native! Landscapes Made for Colorado
• Aug. 26: Gardening for Wildlife
• Sept. 9, 16, 23 and 30 (4-class series): The Native Garden: A Plant Design Course
• Sept. 18: Four Seasons of Native Beauty at Chatfield Farms

The Gardens' blog, "Digging into the Gardens," features some helpful entries with tips and tricks for successful water-wise gardening including:

• Water-wise Gardening Starts Here: Tips, Plants and Inspiration
• Why Drought-tolerant Plant are Perfect for Colorado
• Creating a Pollinator-friendly Garden: A Step-by-Step Guide
• The Cactus Collection at Chatfield Farms
• Perennial Planting in the Fall
• How to Bare Root Plant
• Watering Home Landscapes
• The Beautiful and Diverse Penstemon
• Tips for Garden Tool Tune-up
• Steppe Plants, From the Wilds to Your Garden
• The Importance of Cover Crops
• Success with Succulents

The Gardens leads or partners on local and regional initiatives that help make water-wise landscapes more approachable for residential, commercial and municipal spaces:

• Plant Select® is the country’s leading brand of drought-tolerant plants designed to thrive in high plains and intermountain regions. These plants provide more beauty with less work, so gardeners of all levels can achieve successful gardens using fewer resources and with a positive environmental impact. Plant Select was created In 1997 by Colorado State University, Denver Botanic Gardens and professional horticulturists.
• The Gardens’ Sustainable Landscape Services bring the expertise of Gardens’ horticulturists to the design of water-wise, sustainable landscapes for municipal and commercial projects. 
• Garden in a Box from Resource Central — Created in collaboration with Denver Botanic Gardens and Northern Water, they introduced the Splendid Seasons garden. Splendid Seasons brings color, interest and pollinators to your yard all year long. These plants are show-stopping and will save you water
• The Gardens' Helen Fowler Library has many materials for beginner and expert gardeners. Located in the first floor of the Freyer – Newman Center, admission to the library is free for members and the general public. Admission to the Gardens is separate. Gardens’ members may check out library materials.
• Gardening Help via Colorado Master Gardeners from CSU Extension Denver County who work in partnership with the Gardens to provide research-based answers to gardening and plant-related questions. Colorado Master Gardeners are on-site in the Gardening Help office in the Helen Fowler Library April - Oct., Tuesdays, Thursdays and Saturdays, 10 a.m. - 2 p.m. They can also be reached at 720-865-3575 or [email protected].
• In June 2022, Colorado passed legislation creating a turf replacement incentive program to spur the conversion of some nonessential lawns in select urban areas to drought-tolerant landscapes. The goal of this program is to reduce landscape water use by reducing the amount of non-functional/ornamental turf grass by approximately 30 percent throughout the state while enhancing and maintaining urban landscapes and tree canopies that are beneficial to the environment, wildlife and our communities. The Gardens’ York Street location converted several turf areas to more water-wise plantings to showcase best practices and to guide visitors in making their own transitions. 

• Gardens Navigator — Locate and learn about thousands of plants from Denver Botanic Gardens' collections, learn more about the Gardens and its exhibitions, and create a personalized tour.
• Recommendations from the Helen Fowler Library — Specially selected websites providing information on a wide range of gardening, botanical and horticultural topics. Includes links to plant society websites.
• Planttalk® Colorado — Timely and reliable essays on all aspects of horticulture and gardening in Colorado. Find Xeriscape practices here.
• Plant Something Colorado — Inspiration and information from pros who know what it takes to grow a beautiful, bountiful landscape in Colorado