Coals from Newcastle

Okay, the title is a bit of an in-joke! Kelly Grummons--arguably the best horticulturist in the Rocky Mountain region--grew up in Newcastle, Wyoming (in the Black Hills' foothills)...where there IS a lot of coal. But a lot more glorious nature and wildflowers than even coal! Kelly has a glorious history in the Denver area: elevating Paulino Gardens and then his own nursery, Timberline, and now operating Prairie Storm nursery. Whatever he does, it's the best. His garden has been an enormous inspiration to me forever: tomorrow 145 cars are going to visit--and you can get a taste of what they'll see then...

Wonderful drifts of color in the dryland berms

Jorge Fernando, former employee of Prairie Storm--here next to Agave gracilipes in bloom (Jorge is pretty tall, and the agave a good deal taller)

Allium altaicum

You KNOW it's a good plant when you see it all over Kelly's garden. Plant Select needs to re-think this one...

Escobaria sneedii v. leei

Amazing how hardy and tough this little rare cactus is. Kelly propagates and sells it by the bushel!

Antirhinum hybs.

Kelly has done great work with perennial snapdragons--this is a particularly vigorous patch.

Opuntia debreczyi 'Potato' not as floriferous as usual

Wonderful vistas in his renovated gardens...

I love the vining Lonicera turned into a shrub...

Genista lydia needs to be grown more widely. I only see it sold in Box Stores locally...should be Plant Select (maybe the dwarfer, commoner form in nature)

I photographed this bed from several angles, not sure which I liked the most: you decide!

I agree, this is the best picture!

Penstemon x barbatus

Not sure of the clone--this is a winner however!

Polygonum polymorpha

I keep trying to figure out where I could fit this in MY garden: meanwhile I enjoy it in Kelly's: one gorilla of a plant!

Love his veggie garden!

And bread poppies (OK OK they have other uses)

A wonderful patch of prairie verbena...probably from his own prairie...

Echinocereus hybrids

More vistas! And now I know where my Orostachys trough ended up!

The famous Opuntia collection (or small part of it!)

Gwen Moore's Semp collection found a good home...

More Allium altaicum: this one winters in this pot!

Heracleum ledebourii from Central Asia: not for sissies!

Enchanting clump of Geranium armenum (or psilostemon)
 

 A very cool rose...

And a last glimpse at the front door before we leave.  Thank you, Kelly!  A pillar of our industry, an a pillar of friendship to all who know you!