The Month of May

Photo by Joe Amon, The Denver Post

Gardeners look forward to the month of May in more ways than one. Spring has officially kicked in - green is the underlying color theme while buds and blooms are in one stage or another of their anticipated glory.  It's all good, despite some plant losses here and there (Count Your Losses, Prepare to Shop). May is THE shopping and planting month.  Sure, you can plant in June and all through the summer into early fall. But there's just something special about being outside in May breathing it all in...from planting the first tomato, to waking up forgotten muscles while hauling piles of mulch. And finally, the much needed hot, soapy late afternoon shower where the dirt and thick layer of sunscreen disappears down the drain.  Repeat soon, can't wait.   

So it's a given that you will shop your favorite nursery store this month, no doubt you've already been there several times to scope out the latest annuals and pick up some seed potatoes and pansies. But what about some of the more local plant sales...you know the mostly non-profit ones that benefit the community or promote a specific organization or plant society?  Below is a short list of plant sales you may wish to check out this month. Many offer one of a kind native plants, heirloom vegetables and finds you'll never see sold at a big box store. 

Click on each link for times and directions. Also check the Denver Post garden garden calendar each week in the Friday pull out section GROW (you'll also find my garden to do list - Punch List).  Now that was a shameless plug if I ever saw one.  But I mean it, thanks for reading my stuff.


Denver Botanic Gardens Plant Sale: the most well-known plant sale of the garden season. It happens every Friday and Saturday of Mother's Day weekend, this year, May 8 and 9. 

Heirloom Tomato Farms, May 9, Denver.

EarthLinks Mother's Day Plant and Garden Sale, May 9, Denver.

The Gardens on Spring Creek, May 9, 10, Ft. Collins: annuals, herbs, perennials and vegetable transplants...all grown by horticulturists and students from CSU and Front Range Community College.

Ekar Farm Communal Urban Farm, plant sale May 10, 17, Denver.

Denver Urban Gardens, May 8-9, Denver 

Growing Gardens Community Plant Sale, May 9, 10, 16, 17, Boulder.

2015 Spring Plant Sale at Pickens Technical College May 7, 8, 9 and week of May 11 in Aurora.

Old Garden Rose Sale Boy Scouts Troop 102 May 9, Denver.

Bloomapalooza Butterfly Pavilion Plant Sale May 16:  native plant sale, pre-order at 303 469-5441.

Loveland Youth Gardeners, May 14, Loveland

Colorado Native Plant Society plant sale, May 16 in Loveland.

Herb Society of America Rocky Mountain Unit and Front Range Organic Gardeners May 16 in Denver.

Fairmount Heritage Rose Sale May 16 in Denver.

Horticulture Arts Society of Colorado Springs plant sale, May 15, 16, 17 in Colorado Springs.

Plant-A-Palooza Denver CSU Extension, May 16, 17, Denver.

Memorial Day Weekend Plant Sale at Cheyenne Mountain Zoo, May 23, 24, 25, Colorado Springs.