About the Front Range Plant Finder
Last reviewed 2026-06-06
The Front Range Plant Finder is a searchable, photo-first reference for trees, shrubs, groundcover, and perennials that perform on Colorado's Front Range, from Colorado Springs to the Wyoming border, foothills to plains. The plants here are drawn from authoritative Colorado green-industry and extension sources, not generic national plant data. Anything we include that is not on one of those lists is labeled plainly, so you always know what is vouched for and what is not.
The 2024 Front Range Tree Recommendation List®
The tree ratings here come from the 2024 Front Range Tree Recommendation List®, a consensus document developed by 16 representatives of Colorado's green industry. Trees are rated by how reliably they perform in regional conditions (alkaline soils, cold snaps, hail, wind, and low rainfall), and each carries critical and cautionary site factors to weigh before planting.
How we add shrubs, groundcover & perennials
Beyond the tree list, species are included from CSU Extension fact sheets, the Colorado Native Plant Society's Front Range Native Plant Guide, and Plant Select®. Mature size, water needs, native status, pollinator value, soil and pH tolerance, and hail/wind/salt tolerance are compiled from these references.
How we rate plants, sources by attribute
We record only factual, non-copyrightable attributes (a plant needs full sun; it grows quickly), cross-referenced across authoritative sources. No prose or photos are copied. Ratings are general tendencies for an established plant on the Front Range, not guarantees; we do not assert specific lifespans in years.
- Tree rating & site factors
- 2024 Front Range Tree Recommendation List®
- Sun / light exposure
- USDA PLANTS, NC State Extension, Lady Bird Johnson Wildflower Center, Missouri Botanical Garden, Plant Select®
- Growth rate
- USDA PLANTS, NC State Extension, The Morton Arboretum, Arbor Day Foundation
- Lifespan
- USDA PLANTS / USDA Silvics, The Morton Arboretum
- Fall color
- NC State Extension, The Morton Arboretum, cultivar references
- USDA hardiness zones
- The Morton Arboretum, NC State Extension, Missouri Botanical Garden, Dirr's Manual of Woody Landscape Plants, Arbor Day Foundation
- Mature form / shape
- The Morton Arboretum, NC State Extension, Missouri Botanical Garden, Dirr's Manual of Woody Landscape Plants
- Groundcover performance (foot traffic, coverage, lawn alternative, winter cover, spread)
- CSU Extension, Plant Select®, Denver Botanic Gardens, Colorado Native Plant Society
- Common pests & diseases
- CSU Extension fact sheets & Pest Alerts, Colorado State Forest Service, university extension IPM guides
- Pollinator value
- Xerces Society, university extension references
- Mature size, water, soil, pollinator, tolerances
- CSU Extension, Colorado Native Plant Society, Plant Select®, Denver Botanic Gardens, ISA
- Entity links (Wikipedia / Wikidata / GBIF / USDA PLANTS)
- resolved via the GBIF and Wikidata taxonomic databases
Plant data is reviewed and refreshed periodically (typically each spring and late summer) as new editions of the source lists are published.
Sources & references
- 2024 Front Range Tree Recommendation List®, Developed by 16 Colorado green-industry representatives: ASLA, CNGA, CSU Extension, the Colorado Tree Coalition, CALCP, ISA, Denver Botanic Gardens, and the Colorado State Forest Service.
- CSU Extension, Fact sheets including 6.305 (Ignition-Resistant / FireWise plants) and native deer-resistant plant lists, plus mature-size and culture references.
- Colorado Native Plant Society, Front Range Native Plant Guide, with native status and ecoregion data.
- Plant Select®, CSU + Denver Botanic Gardens program identifying plants that thrive in the high plains and intermountain West.
- Denver Botanic Gardens & the Colorado Tree Coalition, Mature height/spread and regional performance references.
- iNaturalist, Photos under commercial-safe Creative Commons licenses (CC0, CC BY, CC BY-SA), with per-photo attribution shown on each plant page.
Photos & attribution
Plant photos come from iNaturalist under commercial-safe Creative Commons licenses, with per-photo photographer attribution shown on each plant page. Photos under non-commercial (CC BY-NC) or all-rights-reserved licenses are excluded.
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