Do you have an area of your yard you’re not sure how to use—a slope, a dry sunny spot, or a shady corner? The magic of rock gardening might be the perfect solution.
Rocks and stones can transform challenging spaces into beautiful, naturalistic gardens. A carefully placed stone provides year-round structure, creates protective microclimates from Colorado’s wind, and offers cooling shade for plants. Crevice gardens encourage roots to grow deep and for drought tolerant plants to thrive. With rocks, the possibilities are nearly endless.
The Rocky Mountain Chapter of the North American Rock Garden Society invites you to enjoy three inspiring presentations by renowned experts, along with the RMC Spring Plant Sale at Tagawa Gardens. Visit the Events Page for details on the sale : RMC Saturday Spring Plant Sale
Saturday April 11th Presentations at Tagawa Gardens
- Marcia Tatroe – Rock Gardens Rock! Have you fallen in love with those cute little treasures in the rock garden section but aren’t quite sure what to do with them? A rock garden is the answer. You can fit a large number of plants into a small spot making rock gardens ideal where space is limited. And because rock garden plants are tough and weather resilient, no garden is better suited to Colorado’s capricious climate. This class covers the basics of building a rock garden including construction, soil and rock options, rock placement and plant selection.
- Panayoti Kelaidis – A Rock Garden in your Garden. We all moved to Colorado because of the beautiful mountains, wonderful canyons and prairies, but we often replace these with yards that could be in New Jersey or Oregon. This talk will feature plants that are suitable for this climate in rock gardens.
- Kelly Grummons – Winter Hardy Cacti for Front Range Gardens. Learn about cold-hardy cacti that thrive in our region, featuring plants Kelly has collected, propagated, and hybridized to add year-round interest and beauty to gardens and rock gardens alike
Check back later for the times of the Saturday presentations at Tagawa Gardens.
Bios for Rock Garden Speakers
Marcia Tatroe has been gardening in Centennial CO for over 37 years. She wrote a garden column for the Denver Post for over 20 years. Her photography and gardens have been featured in numerous books, magazines and nationally televised gardening shows. She lectures throughout the West focusing on garden design, rock gardening, xeriscape, and native plants, advocating using drought-tolerant and native plants and indigenous materials to create a gardening aesthetic unique to this region. Her garden was awarded Gold Habitat Hero status by the Audubon Rockies in 2017 as an outstanding urban wildscape.
Panayoti Kelaidis is the Director of Outreach and Senior Curator, Denver Botanic Gardens and a Board Member of the American Horticultural Society. He helped create Plant Select®. He speaks on a myriad of topics and leads botanical and horticultural tours throughout the US and the world.
Kelly Grummons has been collecting, hybridizing and propagating winter hardy cacti and succulents for over 30 years. His plants are sold throughout the US and even in other countries. He is the owner of Cold Hardy Cactus in Parker CO.