Denver Botanic Gardens

America's main botanic garden in the Rocky Mountains, based on a plan by Garrett Eckbo. It is a great pity that other botanic gardens do not make more use of expert designers - it is rather as though museums were in the habit of putting up and modifying buildings without advice from architects. Denver also has a demonstration garden on how to manage planting for water conservation (a xeroscape or xeriscape garden).

Head Gardener's Comment

Green inside and out, the Gardens is considered one of the top botanical gardens in the United States and a pioneer in water conservation. Accredited by the American Association of Museums, the Gardens’ living collections encompass specimens from the tropics to the tundra, showcasing a plant palette chosen to thrive in Colorado’s semi-arid climate. The Gardens' dynamic, 23-acre urban oasis in the heart of the city is now in its 52nd year, offering unforgettable opportunities to flourish with unique garden experiences for the whole family – as well as world-class education and plant conservation research programs. Additional sites at Denver Botanic Gardens at Chatfield, a 750-acre wildlife and native plant refuge in Jefferson County; and Mount Goliath, a high-altitude trail and interpretive site on the Mount Evans Scenic Byway, extend this experience throughout the Front Range.