Restoration is an integral part of land management and conservation. As natural disasters and human activity continue to impact biodiversity and wildlife habitat, it is becoming increasingly important to restore degraded land back into healthy ecosystems. Here at Denver Botanic Gardens, many scientists conduct research on ways to improve how we restore native plant communities in the Front Range. This year, I conducted this type of research down at Chatfield Farms, using native plant species brought in from all over the Western United States to see how well they grow here in Colorado. </p> With the help of many of the Research & Conservation Department’s wonderful seasonal staff, we planted over 5,000 seedlings from four different species native to the Front Range of Colorado and collected data on how the plants grew over the summer. We were pleased to see that they all did quite well in their first year! After just a few months in the ground, our seedlings were big and happy, which is good news for restoration efforts. Each seedling will continue to be monitored over the next several years to see how they perform long-term. </p> With climate change on the horizon, it’s important for land managers, like the Bureau of Land Management, to know what plants will survive here long term. Often it can be helpful to use species that are native to Colorado, but use of plants or seed that come from hotter and dryer regions in the county can help them to better adapt and survive long-term as temperatures get warmer and rain becomes less frequent. Other times, it is best to use plants or seeds that have been growing as close to the restoration site as possible, so that they are already well adapted to the environment they will be growing in. Knowing where to source plants from and where to plant them is an important research topic for bringing back native plant communities to Colorado! </p>
Check your calendars and get inspired for a party! All kinds of get-togethers are welcome, and our spaces can accommodate any size, small or large. The Gardens is an ideal venue for weddings, company picnics</a>, baby or bridal showers, holiday parties</a> and more. We offer traditional indoor spaces with A/V capabilities and some charming non-traditional spaces, such as the solarium, Water Garden Gazebo and Orangery (see gallery below). Talk to our event staff at York Street to help guide you to find a space</a> that will make your event extraordinary.</p> Our gardens are stunning any time of the year: in springtime with armloads of bright tulips, during the winter while covered with sparkling snow, abundant with blossoms in summer and with flourishes of color and crispness in autumn. Booking an event with us gives your guests access to explore our beautiful 24 acres. Hosting an event here will dazzle your guests.</p> Popular dates, weekends and certain spaces fill up quickly, so get in touch with us soon! Fill out our rental inquiry form</strong></a> or reach out to our team at York Street at private.events@botanicgardens.org</a> or call 720-865-3551.</p>
Planning your event can be stressful, with a host of moving parts, people and details to coordinate. But with proper planning and the use of fun and memorable vendors your event can stand out. Follow these easy tips to create an event that not only saves you the headache of coordinating but that also “wows” your guests with an experience they won’t soon forget. </p> Give your guests not just an event, but an experience. </h4> To make your event stand out, offer an experience rather than just a space. Although having a great venue can help make a great event, you may want to tour some of our add-on spaces to offer your guests a variety of engaging environments and experiences. At the Prairie Garden Terrace</a>, you and your guests can cozy up around the fire pit to watch as the sun dips behind the mountains. Or sip fine cocktails under the canopy of a tree twinkling with warm market lights. We are also proud to offer our newly finished Lavender Garden pergola, situated next to the butterfly house. Be surrounded by a field of lavender while overlooking the historical Hildebrand Ranch. If you’re planning your event in the fall or winter, you can take advantage of Corn Maze</a> and Trail of Lights</a> to add an extra special experience. </p>
The steppe is a vast, treeless plain. A seemingly endless horizon interrupted only by the faint jagged line of mountains in the distance. In summer, the grasses dance in the warm breeze. In the winter, the cold winds move snow horizontally across the plains. These seemingly harsh environments evoke thoughts of distant nomads riding hard across the prairie. </p> Steppe biomes occur mainly in four regions of the world: Patagonia, Central Asia, Southern Africa and much of North America. They are typified by cold winters, hot summers and arid conditions punctuated by seasonal moisture. These habitats are very important to people in part because they are where much of our food comes from. At the same time, they are filled with flowers and beautiful, resilient plant life. </p>
On my first trip to Oaxaca, I could not have anticipated the depth of culture, the colors, the food, the history and the energy, all shared openly by the locals at every turn. The colorful streets of Oaxaca City host a blend of customs and culture that are second to none. The expansive archeological site of Monte Alban attests to a past that spans thousands of years and includes the Zapotec, Aztec, Mixtec, and other indigenous cultures, so traditions run deep. </p> Though Oaxaca City is the hub of activity, the surrounding hills and farm-quilted valleys are dotted with smaller villages, many of which support a particular niche in the larger regional community. One town may focus on hand weaving, using rich traditional colors derived from local plants, minerals, even insects. The next may be a center of mezcal production surrounded by rolling fields of blue agaves. In the next village skilled artists carve wooden alebrijes (spirit guides), intricately painted in mind-bending detail. Local shops and mercados are brimming with handmade treasures to commemorate your journey.</p> The “food scene” is legendary and local dishes with long history are the norm. Unsullied by fast food culture, most meals draw from traditional elements of corn, beans, chilis and savory meats and sauces, but don’t get the wrong impression—it’s not all the same! Good luck deciding between the tlayudas, memelas and the tacos dorados. Local herbs, tropical fruits, garlic, tomatillos, chapulines (optional!), coffee and chocolate add to the mix. A traditional Oaxacan hot chocolate with pan de yema is a great way to start a relaxed morning in a café along the ZÓcalo (main plaza). And who knew there were seven distinct types of mole, along with dozens of regional variations?</p> Few cultural experiences can compare to the colorful traditions and celebrations surrounding Día de Los Muertos in Oaxaca. The city is awash in color with strings of gold and orange marigolds and red amaranth draping windows, doors and railings. Exuberant processions seem to happen spontaneously, with musicians and giant papier-mâché effigies spinning through crowds of locals, many with faces painted as detailed calaveras and some offering quick sips of home-brewed mezcal in little bamboo flutes, along with plenty of good cheer. However, these events are peripheral to the real soul of the season. The community celebrates our shared mortal experience, quietly, as a family. Cemeteries are prepared by family members with thousands of flowers, candles and mementos as the departed are welcomed back once a year, not with sadness, but in scenes of happy remembrance.</p> For the plant lover, Oaxaca is equally rich and surprising. The city harbors its own colorful urban collection of ornamental plants, with exotic trees, palms, bougainvillea and succulents, but the real botanical riches of Oaxaca lie beyond the city. As one of the most botanically diverse regions in the world, an excursion in any direction can delight you with pine forested mountaintops, bromeliad-covered cliffs, towering cactus and VW-sized agaves, orchids, echeverias, plumerias and thousands more. If you can spend more time, Oaxaca should be on every plant lover’s list! If you have ever wanted to experience the best of true Mexico, join us on our trip to Oaxaca for Día de Los Muertos, October 28 – November 3, 2022. I wouldn’t miss it! </p>
I began researching rare alpine plants of Colorado a few years ago, progressing from understanding basic germination requirements to studying seed longevity in storage to examining the effects of increased temperature from climate change on these species. Still being somewhat new to alpine plant research, I felt it would be beneficial to meet with folks who are doing similar research—not just here in Colorado, but around the world. The Employee Engagement Committee at the Gardens funded a trip to Norway to meet with researchers at the University of Bergen who are also studying the effects of warming on alpine plant communities. </p> In mid-June, I flew from Denver to Bergen and was greeted with what I learned was typical Bergen weather. Clouds and drizzle were the norm for most of the week I was there, which of course is very different from typical Colorado weather. The moisture was evident in the lush, green landscape of the picturesque mountain setting. Not to mention the baby sheep that roamed free on the landscape… but back to the research. </p> One of the main research projects of the “Between the Fjords” lab</a> is a transplantation/warming experiment. Among the biggest threats to native alpine species that results from increased temperatures is the encroachment of low-elevation species into the alpine. So, the research group in Norway transplanted lowland species into the plant community in the alpine to understand the effects of competition. Additionally, they had plots with and without warming (using open-top chambers to increase temperatures) to understand the effects of increased temperature on alpine species both with and without competition from lowland species. </p> While this project is in its initial stages, there aren’t too many results to report on yet, but it was very helpful to see the setup of the study and learn all about the project. </p> The other field project that I saw while there is known as “the world’s wettest drought experiment” – a rain exclusion experiment at a heathland site focused on the dominate heathland plant, heather. Although not alpine, the project was still of interest to me because of a seed germination component. Seeds of the heather were collected from the various rain exclusion treatments and germinated in lab conditions to understand impact of drought conditions on germination. Although it poured the day we visited the heathland, it was still very cool to see such a different ecosystem. And as the Norwegians say, “There is no bad weather, only bad clothing.” Coming from sunny Colorado, I was not prepared with adequate clothing (rain pants). </p> I hope to continue to keep in touch with the lab group in Norway and find ways to collaborate on alpine plant research, lending to a global understanding of effects of climate change on alpine communities. In particular, following my study to understand baseline fitness response to increased temperatures, I would like to use what I learned from their warming/transplant experiment and bring that to research in Colorado.</p> Alpine plant communities are changing in different ways throughout the world. For example, Europe is seeing more lowland species invading the alpine than we have seen in the United States. This could likely be the biggest threat to endemic alpine species, so understanding the effects of competition is essential to understanding response to climate change. Climate change is not a localized threat, but rather a global phenomenon that requires collaboration and understanding at an international level.</p> The knowledge that I gained while in Norway will contribute to international standardized methods of alpine plant research. Through these methods we will be able to identify species that are at greatest risk from climate change and prioritize those species for conservation, which is a core focus of the Research Department at the Gardens. Furthermore, our discussion of a collaborative seed and germination database would contribute to the global understanding of seed traits, as this is often ignored in ecology research. The researchers in Norway were particularly interested in this type of collaboration. And of course, I would be remiss if I didn’t mention that the local Denver beer that I brought with me greatly benefitted our discussions of research and future collaboration. </p>
