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Rocky Mountain Gardening

How late can I plant in this area? (long)

highalttransplant

17 years ago

We moved to Silt (west of Glenwood Springs) at the end of March and have been waiting all summer for the landscaper to do the hardscape (sprinklers, fence, sod, and prepare flower beds for planting). He dug trenches and laid down some of the pipes for the sprinklers over a month ago, and hasn't been back since. Apparently, he does work for a developer that provides the majority of his income, and his residential jobs are just gravy. I wish I would have know this BEFORE we hired him!

Anyway, he swears he is coming Monday and can finish everything in 2 to 3 weeks. My concern is that even if he actually comes through this time, it will be too late to plant my perennial beds by then, and I will have to wait until spring to get started. What is the absolute latest I can plant in this area? Most of what I need I will have to mail-order, as we are in a small town and there is not much to choose from at the few nurseries nearby. I have spent hours and hours planning what to plant and how many will fit in the beds, and I am anxious to get started. Plus, I am tired of the dirt yard. It is depressing, and the kids are constantly tracking it in the house.

Any advice or encouragement would be welcome. I am in gardening withdrawals :(

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Comment (1)

Skybird - z5, Denver, Colorado
17 years ago
Hi High,

The absolute latest you can plant is the day before the soil freezes! However, I'd recommend putting stuff in as soon as possible to give it some time to start feeling at home before the real cold hits! (If you ever do plant after it's getting down to freezing overnight, be CERTAIN whatever you're planting is thoroughly hardened off or already dormant before you put it out.)

Is there anywhere in the yard where he won't be doing any work where you could put things in over winter and then move them in the spring as soon as they start growing? That might sound like a lot of extra work, but it sounds like you can't wait to get your hands into the dirt, and it actually will give you more of a head start next spring than you might think. Once the plants are in the ground, the roots will be growing all winter--anytime the soil isn't frozen. I'm not sure about out there on the western slope (what altitude are you at?), but here in Denver it's not at all unusual for the soil to not be frozen most of the winter. Just depends on the particular winter. The roots are the most important part of a perennial, and almost everything you put in the ground this fall will come up much bigger next spring. Then, when it's growing fast in spring, you can easily move it to wherever you want it without setting it back much at all usually. The earlier you move things, the better. Just an idea so you can actually start seeing some of the things you've been planning! And it's not at all unusual for folks with perennail gardens to be constantly digging things up and moving them anyway! So, join the crowd!

One thing I would sugg

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