Edible Landscaping and Forest Gardening in the High Desert Steppes – Arid, Cold Climate
Forest gardening, or as I like to think of it, “Forage Gardening,” is a fun way to plan and plant your landscape. The main objective is year round abundance for all involved, the people, land, bugs and other critters. The list below outlines many of the plants I am currently growing.
Guilds
Functional groups of mutually beneficial plants form a guild. Conceptually, guilds mimic the plant communities of ecosystems, but are focused around species that are useful for people. Most of the plants in my list seem to work well together. Comfrey, yarrow, lovage, clover and crown vetch are my main under-story plants. The shrubs and berries fill in above them with a fruit tree, mulberry or nut as the over-story. Here’s an example of a simple guild: comfrey around a pear tree with strawberries and asparagus underneath. This is a semi-drought tolerant guild.
Drought tolerant guild: mulberry with siberian pea shrub, nanking cherry, yarrow and crown vetch. (Here’s a bit more about guilds.)
Getting Started with Perennials
Direct seeding is best in the fall or early spring as soon as the ground thaws. Transplanting can be done in the fall or early spring as well, however coniferous trees and some deciduous trees and shrubs require winter water and are prone to failure if planted in the fall and left without water.
All drought tolerant plants need water to get established. The only exceptions are the ones that are able to self seed and some cactus cuttings.
Plant Zones
For reliable cold tolerance choose zone 5, borderline is zone 6b, some frost risk and protection required in some years in zone 6a. With ambitious micro-climate creation and protection (or in greenhouses), low-water zone 7 plants can survive, for example: figs, rosemary.
Cold and Drought Tolerant Plants
These are all plants which I grow at 5,600 ft in Western Colorado. Annual rainfall is 8-10 inches and winter temp extremes can reach -20F. The top soil is mostly heavy clay, sometimes over shale, sometimes over caliche, sometimes over river gravel deposits. It is often very alkaline.
I use supplemental irrigation for establishment and to speed up growth. Most plants are also mulched when planted to suppress weeds, retain moisture and create long term fertility. Some earth works and structures are helpful: berm and basin for water retention. For trees, snow-fences or planting on the north side of structures can help keep roots moist through the winter and delay flowering to escape late frost.
Here are some places to find the plants on this list:
- Burnt Ridge Nursery
- One Green World
- Trees of Antiquity
- Colorado State Forest Service
- Pitkin Forest Nursery
- Western Native Seed
Here’s the list of plants, in alphabetical order by common name: (updated 12/2024)
- Alfalfa (Medicago sativa)
- Nitrogen fixer
- Bee plant
- Medicinal and supplement uses
- Hay/ perennial cover
- Almond (Prunus dulcis)
- Halls Hardy – thrives with some irrigation
- Other varieties – tend to get gummosis and other issues
- Amaranth (Amaranthus sp.)
- Annual, drought tolerant
- Apple (Malus sp.) – Standard
- So many to choose from!
- Full size trees will have better hardiness than dwarf.
- Apricot (Prunus armeniaca)
- Seed germination 30-60 days cool stratification
- Fruit is prone to spring frost damage
- Can self-seed
- Asparagus (Asparagus officinalis)
- Can self-seed
- Austrian Pine (Pinus nigra)
- I add this because it is the fastest growing pine tree for the region. It is also fairly drought tolerant, great for windbreaks.
- Other evergreens include: Easter Red Cedar, Ponderosa Pine, Douglas Fir, Colorado Blue Spruce, Juniper
- Barberry (Berberis sp.)
- Native (other select varieties can be found)
- Edible fruits, very tart
- Drought tolerant
- Berberis repens is an unusual shade tolerant evergreen shrub, but needs moisture.
- Black Currant (Ribes nigrum)
- Not as drought tolerant, but larger, sweeter berries and many named varieties
- Red Currant
- Birds love them
- Not as drought tolerant, but larger, sweeter berries and many named varieties
- Black Locust (Robinia pseudoacacia)
- Nitrogen fixing, coppices well.
- Great for ground contact applications like fence posts. Good firewood.
- Can sucker and spread when disturbed
- Blackberry (Rubus fruticosus)
- Himalayan – thorny, amazingly vigorous, will suffer if not watered, but holds on for a long time
- Cultivars: Natchez, Chester, Triple Crown (early, mid, late) thornless, not drought tolerant.
- Use deep mulch and drip irrigation with lots of comfrey and clover nearby to keep fertility up.
- Buffalo Berry (Shepherdia argentea)
- Nitrogen fixing
- Western Colorado Native, drought tolerant
- First flowers in the spring for bee food
- Edible, but astringent berries
- Burdock (Arctium lappa)
- Edible and medicinal roots, a staple in some countries.
- For best roots find ‘Gobo’ varieties from Japan.
- Deep rooted, breaks up clay soil
- ,Annoying ‘burrs’, bee favorite, biannual
- Can be weedy, but fairly easy to control
- Cherry (Prunus sp.)
- Nanking Cherry
- Drought tolerant, long flower period for reliable production.
- Extreme bird damage to crops
- Sweet cherry – somewhat tolerant, prone to frost
- Sour cherry – more reliable fruit
- Western Sand Cherry (Prunus besseyi)- native, low growing. Very alkaline tolerant.
- Choke Cherry (Prunus virginiana) – highly drought tolerant native, spreading, astringent berries make great jam. Birds love them.
- Nanking Cherry
- Chives (Allium schoenoprasum)
- Clumping Onions (Allium fistulosum)
- Perennial, sweet flavorful greens in the spring. Dies back through the summer.
- Note: these are not the same as bunching onions.
- Comfrey (Symphytum officinale)
- Likes a lot of water, but thrives in our poor soil. Will survive drought for several years after 5+ years of establishment.
- Excellent soil builder, mulch plant, dynamic accumulator, medicinal, bumble bee favorite.
- Crab apple (Malus sp.)
- Wild crab-apples are more drought tolerant than selected varieties of
- Creeping Raspberry – (Rubus calycinoides or Rubus hayata-koidzumii)
- Hardy to zone 6
- Drought tolerant, part shade or full sun
- Ground cover with edible berries
- Crown Vetch (Securigera varia )
- nitrogen fixing legume, great soil conditioner and animal forage,
- doesn’t climb but ‘leans’ on shrubs to about 2-3′ tall.
- Perennial cover crop.
- Aggressively spreads if conditions are right. Erosion control.
- Culinary Sage (Salvia officinalis)
- Curry Bush ( Helichrysum tianshanicum)
- High drought tolerance, fragrant, not edible
- Dandelion (Taraxacum officinale)
- Elderberry (Sambucus nigra)
- Leaves & berries are toxic when raw, except in select varieties.
- Cook or ferment the berries for edible and medicinal properties
- Needs some irrigation, but is drought tolerant
- False Indigo (Baptisia australis)
- Nitrogen fixing native
- low water, Drought tolerant
- Spreading
- Goji Berry (Lycium barbarum)
- Drought tolerant once established
- Can fruit 2x per year (but birds and wasps love them!)
- Spreads!
- Golden Current (Ribes aureum)
- (Native) – Cold hardy, drought tolerant, reliable fruit
- Gooseberry (Ribes uva-crispa)
- Needs some irrigation, cold hardy, shade tolerant
- Goumi (Elaeagnus multiflora)
- Nitrogen fixing berry bush
- Hardy, Low water
- (Mine haven’t borne fruit yet)
- Grapes (Vitis vinifera)
- Dependent on variety – Cold and drought tolerance
- Hawthorn (Crataegus sp.)
- Drought tolerant, cold tolerant, reliable production
- Medicinal uses
- Black native: Douglas (Crataegus-douglassi)
- Red = very drought tolerant
- Hazelnut Varieties (Corylus avellana):
- Cold is not a problem, winter drought is an issue. Some irrigation needed.
- Suffer in alkaline situations.
- Very tall 15′ bushes are not bearing yet after 6-7 years.
- Honey Locust (Gleditsia triacanthos)
- Not necessarily edible but highly drought tolerant tree
- Italian Dandelion (Cichorium intybus) (chicory)
- Edible leaves and roots
- Jerusalem artichoke (Helianthus tuberosus) Also: sunroot, sunchoke, wild sunflower
- Spreading edible tuber
- Somewhat drought tolerant, native to North America
- Looks like a sunflower
- (It is not from Jerusalem or in the artichoke family)
- Jujube (Ziziphus jujuba)
- (borderline cold tolerance= zone 6)
- Surviving but struggling… Needs a long growing season to ripen fruit.
- Lavender (Lavandula sp.)
- Drought tolerant once established
- Lovage (Levisticum officinale) –
- Needs some water, edible seeds, leaves, shoots, medicinal roots related to osha.
- Every beneficial insect in the garden flocks to lovage flowers.
- Mulberry (Morus sp.)
- The white varieties are more drought and cold hardy
- Reliable producers
- Can self-seed
- Birds love it
- Can be shaken out of the tree and dried
- Native flowers and grasses see: WesternNativeSeed.com
- (At some point, I will have to make another post on the amazing plants in this category.)
- Juniper Pinyon Sage Ecosystem
- High Plains Ecosystem
- Short Grass Prairie
- New Mexico Locust (Robinia neomexicana)
- Medium sized tree, pink flowers
- Nitrogen fixer, thorny and can spread
- Great support tree.
- Oaks (Quercus sp.) – Drought tolerant, cold tolerant, nuts
- Gamble oak (Quercus gambelle) – Native, drought tolerant
- Burr Oak (Quercus macrocarpa) – drought tolerant, faster growing
- Burr/Gamble crosses
- Vigorous, faster growing, produces crops of acorns at a young age. Combines the drought tolerance of the Gambel oak with the cold tolerance of the burr oak.
- Vigorous, faster growing, produces crops of acorns at a young age. Combines the drought tolerance of the Gambel oak with the cold tolerance of the burr oak.
- Oregano (Origanum vulgare)
- Parsnip (Pastinaca sativa)
- Useful bi-annual, but needs water
- Peach (Prunus persica) – Cold tolerant, prone to spring freezing, no drought tolerance.
- Pear (Pyrus sp.) – Standard (standard and self-seeded, full-size varieties are more hardy and drought tolerant.)
- Unpruned pears make great columnar additions to a windbreak, they are very tall with less spread.
- Plums (Prunus domestica), Native
- Plums – named varieties
- Prickly Pear (Opuntia sp.)
- Cold hardy edible cactus varieties see: http://www.coldhardycactus.com/
- Puntia phaeacantha ‘Paradox Form’
- Opuntia ‘Plum’, Opuntia macrocentra
- Opuntia gilvescens
- Coryphantha vivipara
- Echinocereus stramineus
- Purple Locust (Robinia pseudoacacia)
- Nitrogen fixing, fragrant flowers, fast growing.
- Quinoa
- Annual
- Rabina Mountain Ash (Sorbus aucuparia)
- Selected in Russia for its non-bitter, sweet-tart, nutritious fruit. Very cold hardy. Drought tolerant once established.
- Raspberry (Rubus sp.)- Not drought tolerant, native to nearby mountains. Some varieties thrive with irrigation.
- Primocane varieties are my favorite for ease of management.
- Rose Bush (Rosa sp.)
- Russian Sage (Perovskia atriplicifolia)
- Bee forage
- Sainfoin – Onobrychis sative & sp.
- non-bloating nitrogen fixing legume for pasture and hay (usually only 1 cutting)
- requires some irrigation, but good drought tolerance, deep rooted perennial, bee forage
- Salsify (Tragopogon porrifolius)
- Biannual, grows wild.
- Said to have edible roots, haven’t tried it yet
- Seems to attract aphids
- Sea berry – Sea Buckthorn ( Hippophae rhamnoides)
- Nitrogen fixing
- Cold and drought tolerant
- Amazingly alkaline tolerant
- Service Berry (Amelanchier alnifolia)
- Cold and drought tolerant
- Production varieties = Saskatoon
- Siberian Pea Shrub ( Caragana arborescens)
- Nitrogen fixing
- Extreme drought and cold tolerance
- Edible pea
- Bumble bee favorite
- Sorrel (Rumex acetosa)
- Tepary Beans (Phaseolus acutifolius)
- Annual
- Low water
- Very tasty varieties available
- Thyme (Thymus vulgaris)
- Walnut (Juglans regia / Juglans nigra)
- Black Walnut thrives with some irrigation
- English Walnuts thrive with irrigation.
- Yarrow (Achillea millefolium)
- Native, medicinal, drought tolerant, compaction tolerant, attracts beneficial insects.
- Yellow Horn (Xanthoceras sorbifolium)
- Drought tolerant
- Have had issues with bare root plants and seems to not respond well to transplanting
- Small tree, edible nuts, leaves, flowers
- Nuts aren’t super tasty, but high oil content.
What a great list! Thank you for putting this together
There are more that deserve to be on the list and suggestions are welcome! Glad you find it useful.
This list looks GREAT!!!
Do you know of any similar resources for other states?
Thanks,
Seth
Hi, thanks. It would depend on the state…
Hi and thanks for posting this list.
I live in Steamboat Springs Colorado and planning to create edible forest and orchards using beneficial plant guilds. Do you have further suggestions on nitrogen fixing trees that would survive this altitud?
Are the plants and trees in your list all good for this area?
I know most and use some already…..but I was wondering what your thoughts were
eva
Hi,
You should double check the hardiness zones of the plants on this list, I am in 5b and I think Steamboat is going to be colder. In addition to nitrogen fixers on the list you could look at Black Locust as a great nitrogen fixing tree, which can be coppiced and is great for in-ground applications like fence posts. Also for your area: Alder, Lead Plant, Silverberry.
Thank you soooo much this is EXACTLY what I’ve been looking for.
Glad the list is helpful!
One thing on list you DO NOT WANT to get started is burdock — invasive weed that goes crazy , terrible burrs to get out of any animal that gets in them or in your hair. Bees might love the flower stage but difficult to get rid of . Has long tap root that if you cut off or dig but don’t get most of it , it comes back double and can get very tall. Have to spray to kill and I don’t like spray.
Agreed that Burdock can go wild, however… I use a Japanese variety and control the seeds. In my climate it doesn’t really go wild, it still needs a little supplemental water to thrive. It is bi-annual, so not too difficult to control. I let it set seeds, then cut the main stalk and toss it to the chickens. For the benefits: food/nutritional, bee food, soil building and control of grass I find it is worth the work of keeping it under control.
I dont comment much on websites, but felt the need to say thanks for this list, there is precious little quality info on the internet about useful plants for high dry and cold. We’re at 3500′ in the Idaho panhandle. A bit lower and (theoretically) a bit more rainfall than you, but a bit colder too. I need to expand my plantings beyond locust and Siberian pea shrub and this has given me some nice ideas.
Happy planting!
Thanks, glad you found it useful.
Sir you left an amazing gift for the world in the list above thank you for the time and effort you have saves a lot of people time and headaches I am sure.
I just wanted to let everyone you DO NOT want to plant Himalayan Blackberries. They have been considered and invasive species in all of the Pacific Northwest for decades and are rapidly becoming invasive in multiple other locations. They will grow in any soil, any light condition, are heat, cold and drought tolerant. They rapidly spread and form an impenetrable thicket, and well actually try to grow into your house if given the chance. If you want to know more, you can read all about it here.
https://www.invasive.org/gist/moredocs/rubarm01.pdf
Indeed, you do not want to plant Himalayan Blackberries in many places, but here in Western Colorado, it takes some work to keep them alive. (But less than many other varieties of blackberries) They need irrigation to survive and the iron is often locked up in the soil so if they are kept in one spot, they will become iron deficient. I use them as natural deer fence with integrated drip irrigation and they don’t wander far from the water source.
HI Aaron,
I am moved to a new property about 1 acre with access to lake water for irrigation last year in Boulder County. We plan on being here forever but are feeling a bit overwhelmed with where to start. Any recommendations about how to get started on a plan and what to get going first? Right now we have honey locusts and some pines, but for the most part open grass. What kind of annual budget do you think would be reasonable to get something like this started?
Thank you for your input!
Hello Kari,
Budgeting is an important part of the design process. However, I’d recommend starting with your goals and vision, at least a rough outline of what you would like to achieve. You can have a look at this design consultation document that I use to help clients out. You will find budget in the ‘Resources’ section which also includes assessing your own available time and energy as well as knowledge & skills in relation to the project.
I’d be happy to consult with you or recommend someone nearby if you want help.
Hi, I live in the outskirts of Grand Junction and have small acreage with lots of wildlife…would like to hire someone to help me make my yard more wildlife and planet friendly….do you know anyone doing permaculture out here?
Hello Mary,
I do permaculture work regionally, including in Grand Junction and would be happy to talk to you further about your project.
( I can’t think of anyone else doing this work in your area. )
ps: Your email address bounced, so unless you come back here you won’t see my reply!
Great info Aaron! I would like to add Jerusalem artichokes to the list. Drought tolerant, cold hardy in my zone 5a, nutritious roots and with some irrigation they produce a great amount of biomass. East Idaho here Colorado seminative.
Hi Dewayne, Thanks! I’m surprised I missed those. They are doing quite well here as well.
Do you have more information on Guilds? This article mentions them, but doesn’t have much more info on the subject in relation to the Colorado planting list, or in general, and I’d love to experiment with them on my property.
I try to choose each plant in a guild to serve multiple roles, like food production, nitrogen fixation, nutrient accumulation, pest deterrence, beneficial insect habitat, soil stabilization, mulch production, etc. The idea is to reduce the needs for external inputs, like fertilizers or pesticides, by fostering symbiotic relationships. In some regards guilds are a more complex version of companion planting.
Often a guild is focused around a ‘main character’ like an apple tree or other primary producer. Nitrogen-fixing plants, such as clover and Siberian pea shrub, enrich the soil by ‘fixing’ nitrogen and if we chop and drop it or coppice these plants nitrogen becomes available to neighboring plants. Also, nitrogen fixing plants can fill space and provide mulch or other functions without competing with other plants for available nitrogen. We almost always include some type of nitrogen fixer in a guild.
Deep-rooted accumulators like comfrey, burdock, and parsnip draw up nutrients and provide rich mulch for soil building. Plants with strong fragrances, like lovage and herbs, can be natural pest deterrents or produce flowers for beneficial insects. Ground-cover species like yarrow, clover, and crown vetch suppress weeds, conserve moisture, and stabilize the soil surface.
By considering the available niches in space and time we can design as many beneficial connections as possible to fill these niches and optimize three dimensional space, light utilization, and resource distribution. As a guild matures and evolves it should become increasingly self-maintaining to reduce inputs and work.
There are no hard and fast rules, but when designing a guild we avoid putting plants together that will compete for light, moisture or nutrients. So, we need to know as much about each plant as we can so we can place it in relationships where it will do the most good and provide as many functions as possible.
Animals also can play vital roles within permaculture guilds, complementing plant interactions by contributing nutrients, cycling green material, pest control, and soil improvement. Chickens, for example, can forage within a guild, consuming insects and pests (they are great for controlling codling moth larvae under fruit trees) while naturally fertilizing the area through their manure. Ducks and geese help manage slugs and snails around fruit trees or berry bushes, reducing the need for chemical interventions.
Larger animals, such as goats or sheep, may also be carefully integrated into guild management. Periodic grazing or browsing by these animals controls vegetation growth, prevents overgrowth of aggressive species, and naturally fertilizes and aerates the soil. Managed correctly, animal integration encourages vigorous plant growth and healthier soil ecosystems. (Just be aware that animals usually need to be excluded 3 months before any kind of commercial harvest for e coli compliance.)
Beneficial insects, bees, and earthworms, significantly enhance guild functionality. Pollinators ensure effective fruit production, while earthworms improve soil structure through aeration and decomposition of organic matter.
Animals also can play vital roles within a guild, complementing plant interactions by contributing nutrient cycling, pest control, and soil improvement. Chickens, for example, can forage under an apple tree and reduce codling moth larvae while naturally fertilizing the area. Ducks help manage slugs and snails around fruit trees or berry bushes. 5 geese can graze about as much as a sheep and keep grass in check. Guinea foul are great at hunting grasshoppers, etc.
Larger animals, such as goats or sheep, can be integrated into guild management so that periodic grazing or browsing controls grass or weeds, adds fertilizer etc.
Insects are key players so we like to provide habitat or even introduce missing species of pollinators, predators like ladybugs or trichogramma wasps.
And last but possibly most important, we try and create and manage the microbial and fungal life in the soil as those beneficial organisms form the foundation of the soil food web.