Skip to main content
  1. Home
  2. Inspiration

High Country Gardens has a super-specific plant finder — and it’s pretty awesome

Niko Vercelletto
By

Becoming a gardener can be scary at first. There are lots of things that can go wrong and dozens of plants to choose from when starting a garden. From the soil to the sun to your backyard’s size, everything needs to be taken into consideration when creating your first garden. However, we live in the age of the internet where cat videos won’t ever stop and an average person can learn about quantum physics. Beginner gardeners have more resources now than ever before to become an expert in no time.

One of these resources is the High Country Gardens plant finder. Not only is the tool one of the best out there for finding exactly the right kind of plant for your yard, but the entire website is a cornucopia of plants and information.

What is High Country Gardens?

In 1984, a man named David Salman opened Santa Fe Greenhouses. The goal of his business was changing how Americans thought of gardening by cultivating and growing beautiful perennials, native plants, grasses, cacti, and other succulents. These types of plants quickly grew a loyal fan base who wanted eco-friendly garden habitats. As his operation grew, so did his fans, who started coming from outside Santa Fe to find plants that survived in the extreme climates of the American Southwest and West. These water-saving perennials saved his customers time, money, and frustration.

Related

Once David’s operation became too big for Santa Fe, he opened High Country Gardens in 1993 as a mail-order service (because, you know, the internet didn’t exist then). The company again ballooned in popularity as more and more people became aware of the impact they were having on the environment. Since then, the company has been focused on shipping to customers across the country who are eager to own sustainable, low-water landscapes that help the planet and stay beautiful for years.

gorillaimages/Shutterstock

How to use the plant finder

While High Country Gardens is one of the leading e-commerce websites out there for buying plants, there are so many plants to choose from that it can be confusing. That is where the company’s plant finder comes into play. You start by selecting from over 20 categories of plants, including:

  • Butterfly plants
  • Bird-attracting plants
  • Cottage garden plants
  • Waterwise plants
  • Easy-to-grow perennials
  • High elevation plants
Recommended Videos

And so on. After finding your category and clicking on it, customers will be taken to a landing page with a list of the available plants. But then, surprise! Customers can break down the list even further with a variety of options, including height, bloom time, the ideal region the plant should grow in, planting time, light requirements, the needed soil type, how moist the soil should be, and much more depending on the plant category you choose. For example, let’s say you want a waterwise plant that grows best in the northwest United States, is resistant to butterflies, and requires a lot of sunlight. By entering those factors, boom, you have the exact plant that matches those requirements.

The plant finder is already an amazing tool, but it still has one more secret. Once you find your ideal plant and you click on it, customers will be brought to another page about that specific plant, breaking down all of the information about the plant, including a description of the plant’s properties. However, one of the best features is that each plant comes with a video showing how to successfully plant and grow the flower or plant and another video showing everything you need to know about your purchase.

Final thoughts

The High Country Gardens website, specifically the plant finder, is a one-stop shop for every gardener from beginner to expert. The list of categories and the multitude of ways you can break down the lists of plants to find your perfect garden companion is one of the best features of the site. Each plant page not only shows every possible detail about the plant, but also comes with videos to make sure you plant everything correct the first time. If you’re nervous about beginning your garden or just want some questions answered, you should head to the High Country Gardens plant finder immediately.

Editors' Recommendations

Topics
Niko Vercelletto
Niko Vercelletto
Former Digital Trends Contributor
Niko Vercelletto lives in Lansing, Michigan. He is passionate about going into depressive spirals thanks to the Detroit Lions…
Focus on color: Red plants that will bring a festive vibe to any home or garden
Plants that feature joyful red foliage and flowers
Cyclamen

During the transitional period between fall and winter, there’s nothing like a vibrant red plant to infuse your garden with festive cheer. As the weather becomes grayer, brighten up your landscape with a splash of scarlet or burgundy. There are plenty of plants with delicate red blooms as well as those with striking red foliage. From the low-maintenance burning bush to the ubiquitous poinsettia, here are seven festive red plants to grow for the holiday season.

Cyclamen
Cyclamens often hit your local garden centers during the holiday season. This delicate tuberous plant features marbled or matte green leaves with butterfly-shaped white, purple, pink, or of course, red flowers. It blooms during the fall and winter, then goes through dormancy in the summer, during which its foliage dies down. It's hardy down to 23 degrees Fahrenheit, but it does best around 50 to 65 degrees — consider bringing it indoors during the winter. With this plant, you’ll want to provide adequate bright indirect light for blooms. It also appreciates being watered deeply once its soil dries out, but be careful with overwatering during winter.

Read more
Indoor gardening: Hydroponics growing tips for any plant
Start your hydroponic garden with these tips
Cilantro grown hydroponically

Hydroponic gardening is a unique and interesting process. It flips the script on so much of what's considered traditional or standard about gardening, and having a hydroponic garden is an immediate conversation starter. It looks impressive, but that also means it can be intimidating to start.

If you want to garden all year round, though, then nothing should stand in your way. Let’s break down the process of how to start a hydroponic garden! We've got everything you need to know to get started on your very own hydroponic garden. From the first steps of planning all the way to harvesting, here's what you need to know.

Read more
4 November garden plants you should consider growing
The best crops and landscape plants for late fall
Close-up of daffodils in sunlight

November is the end of autumn and the beginning of winter, so it isn’t typically a time when people think about working in their gardens. However, November can still be a productive gardening month! We’ve prepared a list of four flowers and vegetables you can plant in your garden this November — we’ll even give you tips and tricks for growing them, what climates they grow best in, and when you can expect to see results. If you aren’t planning on planting a cover crop this winter, try out one of these four November garden plants.

Daffodils
Daffodils are spring-blooming flowers, but they’re often planted in the fall. Daffodil bulbs should be planted two or three weeks before the ground freezes, so keep an eye on your local weather for the best results. In mild climates, daffodils can be planted as late as the end of November, while cooler climates may need to plant them in September or October.

Read more