READING LIST

Barr, Claude (1983).  Jewels of the Plains:  Wildflowers of the Great Plains Grasslands and Hills. Minneapolis:  University of Minnesota Press. A charming account of a SD rancher's homesteading years, field observations and intimate knowledge of native plants gained through his careful cultivation of them at his Prairie Gem Ranch. Some descriptions are downright poetic.  A copy can be found at the Conifer Branch of Jeffco Public Library.

Gabrielson, Ira (1932).  Western American Alpines.  New York:  McMillan.  Gabrielson highlights the garden potential of many plants indigenous to the Northwest corner of the US, including Pentstemon, Lewisia, Saxifraga, Phlox, etc.  I love his description of Eriogonums: "strange little gray-leaved shrubs which hold much garden promise".   A copy is housed at the State Agricultural College in Fort Collins, and copies in various states of disrepair are easily found for sale online.

Mozingo, Hugh (1987).  Shrubs of the Great Basin:  A Natural History.  Las Vegas:  Universtiy of Nevada Press.  The botanical drawings by Christine Stetter are some of the most beautiful I have seen, and the book is printed on creamy paper with many color plates.  The descriptions exude deep respect for the plants, which Mozingo refers to as our "constant companions" due to their ability to withstand drought.  CSU Library will lend out their copy.

Nold, Robert (2008).  High and Dry: Gardening with Cold-Hardy Dryland Plants.  Portland:  Timber Press.  Where to begin...The quintessential catalog of plants of the interior west, written from the standpoint of a person who has probably grown every one of them.  Chapters on perennials and annuals, grasses, rock garden plants, cacti, trees and shrubs, including technical yet wryly presented desciptions.  Gorgeous, full-color botanical paintings in watercolor throughout the book.  What a gift the book is to keepers of the Western garden!

Primeau, Liz (2003). Front Yard Gardens: Growing More Than Grass. Buffalo: Firefly Books, Ltd. Great "before and after" pictures of front yards by a Canadian author.

Rocky Mountain Alpines: Choice Rock Garden Plants of the Rocky Mountains in the Wild and in the Garden (1986). Boulder: American Rock Garden Society and Denver Botanic Gardens along with Timber Press. This volume was produced for "Alpines '86", the second Interim International Rock Garden Plant Conference, held in Boulder, Colorado. It includes chapters by Jim Borland, Allan Taylor, Panayoti Kelaidis and other NARGS revolutionaries.

Tatroe, Marcia (2007). Cutting Edge Gardening in the Intermountain West. Boulder: Johnson Books. Gorgeous pictures of established gardens, with an emphasis on natural designs, composition and color.