Conservation/Environment Winterizing a Xeriscape Garden
Leave three- to six-inch stalks, rather than cutting the plants to the ground level. That way the plants are easy to find next spring. Or, if you want to keep birds in your yard during the winter, leave plants as they are and clean up in the spring. This gives birds food and the plants protection from the cold.
Fall is a great time of the year to plant. The cooler temperatures do not stress the plants and they have time to develop a root system before the heat of next summer. Many nurseries have their plants on sale in the fall.
Xeriscape plants generally reach maturity in three years. During the fall, plants can be divided to fill in open spaces in the garden.
Fall is the time of year to plant spring bulbs. They are the ultimate Xeriscape plants, taking their moisture from the winter snow and rain.
To view individual images of Xeriscape plants in the Riverfront Park Demonstration Garden, click on the plant name below. For an overview and plant finder, click here.
Achillea filipendulina — Moonshine yarrow — After die-down, trim halfway
Achillea varieties — Yarrow — Cut to ground in fall or spring
Agastache rupestris “Apricot Sunrise” — Hybrid hummingbird mint — Trim in spring
Amorpha canescens — Leadplant — An annual late-fall pruning back to a foot tall will increase the flowers
Armeria maritima “Compacta” — Common thrift — No maintenance needed
Artemisia versicolor “Seafoam” — Curlicue sage — In spring, cut back 4" to 6" from ground
Buddelia davidii — Butterfly bush — Cut back to 1/3 in spring
Calamagrostis x acutiflora — Karl Foerster — Cut to about 1' in spring
Callirhoe involucrata — Poppy mallow — Trim in spring
Campsis radicans — Trumpet vine — Trim as desired in spring
Caryopteris x clandonensis — Dark Knight — Trim in spring
Centaurea montana — Mountain bluet — Cut to ground in spring
Centranthus ruber “Albus” — Jupiter’s beard — Clean up in spring
Centranthus ruber “Red” — Valerian — Cut to ground in spring
Cerastium tomentosum — Snow-in-summer — Shear off faded flowers throughout growing season
Chaenomeles x superba "Cameo" — Flowering quince cameo — Prune to shape as needed in spring after flowering to stimulate growth of flowering spurs, which will improve bloom for the following year
Chrysanthemum x superbum — Double Shasta daisy — Cut off blooms and divide in spring every three years
Coreopsis grandiflora “Sunray” — Tickseed — Dies back with frost
Coreopsis verticillata “Zagreb” — Thread leaf coreopsis — Clean up in spring
Dalea purpureum — Purple prairie clover — No maintenance needed
Dianthus — Pinks — Clear flower heads through season. No winter prep
Echinacea purpurea — Purple coneflower — Dies back with frost
Eriogonum umbellatum — Sulfur buckwheat — No maintenance needed
Eupatorium spp. — Joe Pye weed — Trim stems in fall to about 6"
Falugia paradoxa — Apache plume — Trim to shape only. Self-shedding in fall
Festuca glauca "Sea Urchin" — Sea urchin blue fescue — Shear off seed heads after blooming
Gaillardia grandiflora “Goblin” — Goblin blanket flower — Cut flower stems in fall, leaves form mulch
Gaura lindheimeri — Pink cloud — Trim long stems back halfway
Geranium sanguineum — Cranesbill — Clean up in spring
Helianthus maximiliani — Maximilian’s sunflower — Cut to ground in spring
Helictotrichon sempervirens — Blue oat/blue avena grass — No maintenance needed
Hemerocallis fulva — Daylily — Clean up in spring
Hemerocallis hybrid — Daylily — Dies back with frost. Leave or split and replant
Iberis sempervirens — Dwarf candytuft — No maintenance needed
Lavandula — Lavender — In spring, cut back old stems by one third
Liatris punctata — Gay feather — Cut to ground in spring
Linum perenne “Lewisii” — Blue flax — Cut to ground in spring
Miscanthus sinensis "Gracillimus" — Maiden hair — Cut down to about 1' in spring
Miscanthus sinensis "Little Zebra" — Dwarf zebra grass — No maintenance needed
Miscanthus sinensis "Silberfeder" — Silver feather maiden hair — Cut to about 1' in spring
Nassella tenuissima (Stipa) — Silky thread grass — Do nothing; does not like to be cut at all
Nepeta varieties — Catmint — Clean up in spring
Oreganum laevigatum (Herrenhausen) — Ornamental oregano butterfly — Self-shedding in fall
Penstemon “Prairie dusk” — Prairie dusk beard tongue — Leave stalks; mulch with leaves and lightweight material
Penstemon pinifolius — Pineleaf penstemon — Cut off only flower stalks in fall or spring
Penstemon strictus — Rocky Mountain penstemon — Leave stalks; mulch with leaves, lightweight material
Perovskia atriplicifolia — Russian sage — Trim in spring
Phlomis russeliana — Hardy Jerusalem sage — Trim stalks to ground
Ratibida columnifera "Yellow" — Yellow prairie coneflower — Deadhead after blooming
Rosa "Fuchsia Meidiland" — Fuchsia Meidiland rose — Best pruned in late winter once the threat of extreme cold has passed
Rosa rugosa — Rugosa rose — Remove any suckers or shoots at the base that you do not want to grow and produce
Salvia pachyphylla — Giant flowered purple sage — Prune back and shape in the fall after the flowers are finished
Salvia pitcheri “Grandiflora” — Pitcher’s blue sage — Trim in spring
Salvia x sylvestris — Sage — Cut back in spring after seeing what comes back
Scrophularia macrantha — Redbirds in a tree — Will re-bloom without deadheading
Sedum telephium — Autumn joy — No maintenance needed
Sedum varieties — Stonecrop — Cut to bushy base or clean in spring
Tanacetum niveum — White bouquet tansy — Cut back old flowering wood at the base of the stem
Teucrium aroanium — Gray creeping germander — Shear back one-third in mid-spring to reinvigorate established plants
Thymus varieties — Creeping thyme — Benefits from a 1" layer of fine compost
Tradescantia virginiana — Spiderwort — Self-shedding in fall
Verbascum chaixii — Mullein — Trim in spring
Veronica allionii — Speedwell — Cut stalks in fall. Takes care of itself
Yucca filamentosa — Adam’s needle — Remove brown leaves and stalks in fall or spring
Zauschneria arizonica — Hardy hummingbird trumpet — Cut back in spring