Letter from Ray Schoch
Xeriscaping – June 2003 – Colorado Central Magazine
Dear Ed, Martha and Colorado Central readers:
“The road to hell is paved with good intentions…” or so a Baptist minister once told me.
If he’s correct, I’m doomed. One of the things I’ve always disliked about many plant and gardening articles and books is the tendency of the writers to always use the Latin name(s) for the plant(s) they’re describing.
Color me embarrassed for doing that very thing in the May issue, wherein I fully intended to provide common names for the plants in the article as well as the Latin names. Please allow me to make a belated attempt to correct my mistake — perhaps redeeming myself at least partially from the hellfire and brimstone promised by that long-departed preacher.
“Falugia paradoxa” is also known to those of us who are not professional botanists as “Apache Plume,” a desert shrub with randomly-appearing white flowers and very interesting seed pods that trail wispy pink plumes. “Penstemons” are perennial flowers, some varieties of which are native to Colorado. They’re available in a rainbow of colors, but I’m partial to the reds and purples myself. “Cytisus purgens” is also known as “Spanish Gold Broom,” a dry land shrub from Spain. A happy one is covered with bright yellow blooms for a couple of weeks in the spring.
“Liatris punctata” is also known as “Gayfeather.” There are several varieties of Liatris, but the “punctata” version, called “Dotted Gayfeather,” is common in Colorado and more drought tolerant than the “spicata” type, which is often found in nurseries. This plant benefits the soil, and takes a season or two to get established. It’s a late-season bloomer, with somewhat hairy-looking magenta/pink/purple flowers that are quite striking.
Dianthus is usually — around Loveland, at least — just called by its Latin name. It, too, is drought-tolerant, and depending upon the variety purchased, can be fiery red to pink to white. Dianthus is a low-growing, mounding plant.
“Veronica liwanensis” is also known as “Turkish Veronica.” It’s a very low-growing ground cover that’s very hardy and tough once it’s established. “Tough” doesn’t mean it will tolerate a lot of walking-on, but it will tolerate climate variations and neglect once it’s established. Turkish Veronica has tiny leaves and exquisite, but very small, flowers in the spring.
“Aronia melanocarpa” is a variation on the Colorado native Chokecherry bush. It’s usually found at nurseries under the common name of “Chokeberry” (Note the “b” for berry instead of the “ch” for cherry). These are relatively small shrubs with white flowers in the spring, small fruit in late summer that birds often like, and very colorful fall foliage. The native Chokecherry isn’t particularly colorful in the fall; if fall color appeals to you, get the Chokeberry.
“Hemerocallis,” available in dozens of colors, are “Day Lilies.” A landscape designer once described these to me as “bulletproof,” and so far, the ones I’ve planted have lived up to his praise. They’re adaptable to different soil types and moisture levels. I tend to conclude that a plant that can survive my ham-handed planting technique and amateur attentions for its first season is probably fairly durable.
Finally, “Schizachyrium scoparium” is more commonly known as “Little Bluestem,” a native prairie bunch grass. The “blaze” variety turns a definite orange in the fall, and since it’s a bunch grass that grows to 18″ or so in height, it brings nice color to the yard. “The Blues” variety looks virtually identical to “blaze” when it’s green through the summer, but in the fall, “The Blues” turns a wondrous gold, purple and maroon. It’s not eye-popping at a distance, but up close, it’s a gorgeous range of colors in the fall.
My apologies for leaving out the common names in the article.
Ray Schoch
Loveland