Posted June 16, 2010 by Panayoti Kelaidis, Senior Curator & Director of Outreach
- Himalayan foxtail lilies in the Perennial Walk
- Foxtail lily hybrids in the Ornamental Grasses garden
If you’ve been to Denver Botanic Gardens in the last month you can hardly have missed them: no, not the Henry Moore sculptures (albeit they stand out!), I’m talking about foxtail lilies: Eremurus. These stand out (and stand up!) in a dozen gardens: bristling exclamation points that are impossible to miss. The literal translation of this Greek-derived scientific name is “Desert tail”, which isn’t quite accurate. Foxtail lilies are sentinels of the true steppe of Eurasia, growing from Anatolia in the west all the way to Mongolia in the east. They are not found on true desert so much as grassy prairie and montane meadows. Mike Bone and I saw them in the Tian Shan mountains above Almaty last summer and on the foothills of the Altai mountains of Kazakhstan (high points of our trip last year).
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Posted June 15, 2010 by Anna Sher, Adjunct Research & Conservation Researcher
Volunteers plant at the Bluff Lake Nature Center.
Denver Botanic Gardens has been involved in restoration of damaged ecosystems around the state of Colorado through its Research and Conservation programs for at least a decade, but none have been quite as satisfying as the one at Bluff Lake Nature Center.
“Over the past four years Bluff Lake Nature Center staff and volunteers have removed hundreds of Russian Olives and numerous tamarisk from around the site and along Sand Creek. We estimate that within the next two years Bluff Lake will be completely free of these invasive tree species,” says Bluff Lake Site Manager (and former Denver Botanic Gardens horticulturalist) Chris Story.
THE HISTORY:
The partnership between the two organizations began in 2003 when the Research Department at Denver Botanic Gardens was looking to put volunteers on
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Posted June 14, 2010 by Matt Cole, Director of Education
Denver Botanic Garden's green roof
This is the week for the Green Roof for the West Symposium! On Thursday, June 17, from 8 a.m. to 5 p.m., Denver Botanic Gardens opens its doors to a regional conference with international speakers. The Gardens and its co-hosts (the U.S. Green Building Council – Colorado Chapter, Colorado State University and UC-Denver College of Architecture and Planning) have been looking and working towards a reprise of last year’s sucess. This year promises to be as forward-thinking and informative as the first ever symposium, also held at the Gardens. The registration price is $125 for the entire day, and current students with valid ID pay only $30. Includes continental breakfast, box lunch and beverages.
The symposium will feature a full day of in-depth sessions, presented by leading green roof experts and designers from across the U.S. and around the world.
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Posted June 14, 2010 by Larry Vickerman, Director of Denver Botanic Gardens at Chatfield
It’s mid-June and the numerous wildflowers at Denver Botanic Gardens at Chatfield are just coming into full bloom. The Gaillardia, several different Penstemon, and Spiderwort are in full bloom just east of the big red and white barn. The Paintbrush have been spectacular this year and are still blooming. The barn area is the most diverse and will be colorful into September. The big planting on the north face of the amphitheater is just starting to bloom.
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Posted June 14, 2010 by Doris Boardman, Web Technology Manager
Come join us for the first concert of the year at York Street!
Chick Corea Freedom Band
w/ Kenny Garrett, Christian McBride & Roy Haynes
Monday, June 14
Tickets still available at our Bonfils-Stanton Visitor Center Will Call starting at 4 p.m.
Doors at 6, Concert at 7
$57 Members—$62 Non-Members
Check out a video of him performing at the Blue Note in Tokyo.
And enjoy more Chick Corea here!
I have seen him perform many times, and each concert has taken me on an incredible musical journey. The Gardens York Street amphitheater is the perfect venue for this true legend of jazz.
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Posted June 14, 2010 by Sarah Spearman, Education Sales Coordinator
This year’s Bonfils-Stanton Lecture Series, “The Feast in the Garden: Edible Landscapes and Regional Food Traditions,” has been a great success so far with incredible speakers from all around the world, visiting speaker-lead tours through the Gardens and amazing tastings provided by Slow Food Denver.
The Gardens is particularly excited about our next speaker, Bryant Terry, an award winning eco-chef, food justice activist, and author of numerous books including his most recent, “Vegan Soul Kitchen.” And, yes, you read that right…vegan soul food. Terry’s dynamic presentation, “Redefining Soul Food: Politics and Pleasures of Food and Eating in the Black Communities,” will take place at the Gardens on Thursday, June 24. Terry will discuss…
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Posted June 11, 2010 by Ellen Hertzman, Manager of Volunteer Experience
Penstemon grandiflorus
There is much to choose from this week! Whether you are looking for a profusion of blooms, a delicate Colorado landscape, or a dry and prickly color feast—you can find it here!
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Posted June 10, 2010 by Matt Cole, Director of Education
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Hummingbird perching in the Lilac Garden
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Hummingbird perching in the Lilac Garden
Check out this hummingbird, spotted almost directly overhead in the Lilac Garden at Denver Botanic Gardens. Normally, I’m more interested in the horticultural and botanic than I am in the animals I might happen to see in Denver. But this bird was twittering away, paused to sit for just a moment on the branch, then leapt from its perch into the air and swooped and dived several times before dashing across the Gardens. I was lucky to enough to share the experience with both adults and children. (Doesn’t it seem like the Gardens is be a great place for children and families in the summer? Look here or read Lisa’s blog.) It was neat enough to see a hummingbird, to watch it perching with an audience as entranced as we were was divine!
