Riverside Sanctuary
Because this property is a rural, riverside acreage, the plantings were designed to naturalize themselves.
Grasses are the "hair of the planet," wrote Oehme & Van Sweden in their iconic "Bold and Romantic Gardens." Grasses will be the first to take over a garden. This property is designed towards this reality. A few intentional ornamental grasses set up design rhythms and repetition just for that eventuality. When - not if - it happens, the grounds won't look weedy and overgrown between maintenance visits.
The other plantings are a melange of opportunistic yet complimentary species, with a focus on foliage: Engleman ivy, Corsican violets, golden currant, columbines.
Using native shrubs and forbs such as these ascribe to the reality of volunteer plants. Birds will spread them far and wide, so why not start there? What else evokes Colorado as well as the plants that thrive here?