Mountain West Regional Reports

  • winterize irrigation system
    Mountain West Regional Reports

    How to Winterize Your Irrigation System

    When I first moved to Colorado, I learned the hard way about the need to winterize my irrigation system. Never having had a system, I had no idea how it…

  • japanese beetles on a leaf
    Mountain West Regional Reports

    How to Get Rid of Japanese Beetles

    It was long thought that Japanese beetles (Popillia japonica) would not survive in our Mountain West climate; after all, they like humidity and moisture. But when they were introduced into…

  • tall pink sedum
    Mountain West Regional Reports

    Upright Sedums Dazzle in Autumn

    Earlier this year I highlighted some of my favorite ground-cover sedums. But I can’t ignore the taller, upright sedums, or stonecrops, which are extremely showy in fall. Upright sedums are…

  • Ruby Tuesday Heuchera
    Mountain West Regional Reports

    Unusual Fall Perennials for the Mountain West

    In Andy Brand's article Unusual Fall Perennials, he discusses some out-of-the-box plant picks for this spectacular time in the garden: "As we reluctantly accept the inevitable and begin preparing our…

  • plant with purple foliage
    Mountain West Regional Reports

    Purple Shrubs and Trees for Drama in the Garden

    I like to incorporate a lot of color in my gardens. While flowers are a big part of what provides that color, foliage can also play a large role. Leaves…

  • sedums
    Mountain West Regional Reports

    Colorful Creeping Sedums for the Mountain West

    While succulents have been all the rage in recent years as easy-care houseplants, I’ve been planting hardy varieties in my garden for years. Sedums (Sedum spp. and cvs., Zones 3–11)…

  • spring-flowering trees
    Mountain West Regional Reports

    Unusual Spring-Flowering Trees for the Mountain West

    Who doesn’t love flowering trees? When blooming, they provide stunning focal points in the landscape. While crabapples (Malus spp. and cvs., Zones 4–8) and hawthorns (Crataegus spp. and cvs., Zones…

  • raised bed garden
    Mountain West Regional Reports

    Why to Use Raised Garden Beds, Especially in Extreme Climates

    My first foray into gardening was many years ago when my husband and I joined another couple in renting a community garden plot in Arlington, Virginia. We inherited the worst…

  • shade loving perennial
    Mountain West Regional Reports

    Shade-Loving Perennials for the Mountain West

    On a recent Zillow report of my home, I saw a photo from when my husband and I bought our house over 13 years ago. It caught my eye because…

  • Mountain West Regional Reports

    March Garden To-Do List for the Mountain West

    Begin spring cleanup. While you are in the mood for pruning in the garden, now is also a good time to begin spring cleanup tasks as well. Remove piles of…